Hanoi (VNA) – A festival honouring the long-standing craft of cultivating Nhat Tan peach blossoms opened on January 19 in Hanoi.
The event, themed “Nhat Tan peach blossoms – Spring colours of Hong Ha”, is jointly organised by the ward’s People’s Committee and the Traditional Nhat Tan Peach Blossom Craft Association, introducing artistic peach creations to residents and visitors ahead of the Lunar New Year.
Nhat Tan is among the oldest craft villages of ancient Thang Long–Hanoi. Since the Le Dynasty, the village has been renowned for flower cultivation, with peach trees at its heart thanks to fertile alluvial soil along the Red River and the distinctive microclimate around West Lake.
Over generations, local growers have refined specialised techniques such as shaping branches, girdling trunks, defoliating, and regulating flowering—to produce trees with graceful forms, durable colours and dense buds, gradually establishing the celebrated “Nhat Tan peach blossom” brand of the capital.
Despite historical upheavals and urbanisation that once reduced cultivation areas, Nhat Tan growers have persisted, relocating orchards to riverbank areas while preserving traditional varieties and techniques. As a result, Nhat Tan peach blossoms have evolved from an agricultural product into a cultural symbol of Hanoi’s Tet, embodying history, urban aesthetics and the resilience of a Thang Long craft village.
At the opening ceremony, Tran Tuan Viet, head of the craft association, noted that Nhat Tan peach blossoms are not merely the result of labour but a spiritual symbol closely tied to Vietnam’s traditional Lunar New Year. The festival serves to honour cultural values while promoting high-art peach creations to the public and tourists.
Nguyen Hai Dang, Deputy Chairman of the People’s Committee of Hong Ha ward said the Nhat Tan peach-growing area currently spans about 80 hectares along the Red River, featuring varieties such as traditional pink peaches, double-petaled pale peaches, seed-grown peaches and the rare That Thon peach.
More than 750 households are directly involved in cultivating and trading ornamental peaches, generating an estimated annual value of around 60 billion VND (2.3 million USD). The craft association, with roughly 400 members, plays a key role in conserving varieties, passing on skills and connecting markets to sustain the Nhat Tan brand amid rapid urbanisation.
In the coming time, the locality plans to develop the craft village by preserving traditional values alongside cultural and experiential tourism, encouraging artistic innovation, strengthening branding in a professional and sustainable manner, and engaging younger generations through the application of science and technology.
The festival will run until the 29th day of the lunar month, with all Nhat Tan garden houses participating. Beyond product displays and sales, the venue offers visitors opportunities to tour, take photos and experience the distinctive culture of the traditional Nhat Tan peach blossom craft village as Tet 2026 approaches./.
