A large number of flowers and fruit trees to be used as home decorations during the Lunar New Year (Tet) celebrations have begun arriving in Ho Chi Minh City under a week before the start of Vietnam’s longest public holiday.

Vietnamese people customarily decorate their homes with flowers and other plants believed to bring them good fortune during the first days of every new lunar year.

These days farmers are transporting plants they have grown for multiple months to Ho Chi Minh City – one of the largest markets in southern Vietnam – from their hometowns in Mekong Delta provinces such as Dong Thap and Ben Tre.

Apricot trees and other ornamental plants are seen on boats along Ben Binh Dong Road in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Thanh Yen / Tuoi Tre

Men carry an apricot tree from a boat along Ben Binh Dong Road in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Thanh Yen / Tuoi Tre

Boats carrying such plants dock along riverine Ben Binh Dong Road in the southern metropolis’ District 8, as they do when the occasion draws near every year. This year’s Tet begins on February 2.

Other makeshift marketplaces include public parks and sidewalks.

Plants on sale range from chrysanthemum varieties, kumquats and pomelo trees to Vietnamese apricots with yellow blossoms, or hoa mai – the symbol of Tet in southern Vietnam.

A pot of flowers fetches VND50,000-250,000 ($2.2-10.8) while a pot of a pomelo tree costs over VND10 million ($430).

A man protects his apricot trees from the sun along a river in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre

Kumquats in the shape of a pig – the new lunar year’s zodiac animal – are pictured on a sidewalk in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre

People walk past kumquats sold at a public park in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre

A man takes care of a pomelo tree at Hoang Van Thu Park in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre

Men look at flowers sold on a sidewalk in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Thanh Yen / Tuoi Tre

People choose flowers in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre

A man and his mother choose a kumquat at Hoang Van Thu Park in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre

A foreigner lifts a pot of flowers at 23-9 Park in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre

Men look at small-sized apricot trees at Gia Dinh Park in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre

Men stand next to pot mums at a public park in Ho Chi Minh City, January 2019. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre

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