Buckwheat (scientifically known as Fagopyrum Esculentum), a plant with clusters of small pinkish white flowers and small edible triangular seeds, which are used as a kind of food, creates striking sights when it is in blossom, making it a tourists draw in the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai.

H’Mong ethnic residents grow two crops of Tam giac mach (buckwheat), which is in bloom between April and May and between October and November a year. The flowers are sensitive to sunlight, turning from white in the early morning to pink in the afternoon.

Tam giac mach blossom over hills in Bac Ha and Si Ma Cai districts, Lao Cai province, have recently become a must-see scene by traveling-lovers across the country.

Nguyen Ha Thanh, from Hanoi, who set foot on many places inside and outside the country, said he is bewitched by the fields full of buckwheat blossom whenever he comes to the northern mountainous region, particularly Bac Ha and Si Ma Cai.

Splendid carpets of buckwheat flowers, surrounded by lush forests and imposing mountains, are one of the most memorable, amazing scenes, Thanh noted.

According to Head of the Bac Ha district Culture, Sports and Tourism Office Nguyen Van Luyen, the charming flowers grown in Lu Than commune drew more than 2,000 tourists in October, the starting time of their second October-November season in the year.

Lao Cai plans to grow additional 30 hectares of buckwheat in 2015 with a hope to attract more travelers to the province, which is home to Sa Pa, the hundred-year-old popular resort town.-VNA