Hanoi (VNA) - Walking slowly through rows of colorful herbal plants, Lau Chia Long - Director of the Muong Long Medicinal Plants and Herbs Conservation and Development Centre proudly shared with us stories about the “herbal paradise” here. He has reasons to be proud, because it was a long and challenging journey before the vast farms of medicinal plants are formed as we see today.
“Unlock” the herbal paradise
Touching the fragrant leaves of the plants, Long reminisced about this land, where over the past many years, many fruit trees have been planted, from Tam Hoa plum to American peach trees. However, most of these trees have not brought economic efficiency.
In recent years, when medicinal plants have been tested and replicated, the potential of this land seems to have been "unlocked" for development.
Pointing to a slender plant with clusters of 6-8 leaves and a bud in the centre, Long said it is among numerous varieties of medicinal plants that the centre has been able to grow and multiply. It is a That diep nhat chi hoa (seven leaves and one flower- scientific name Paris Polyphylla Smith) plant.
Long shared that That diep nhat chi hoa is a rare and valuable medicinal plant which has anti-microbial, anti-viral, and immune-modulating properties. The natural conditions and soil in Muong Long and other areas in Ky Son district are suitable for the plant’s growth. All parts of the plant can be used to make medicine and have many good benefits for health, he said.
Caring for Dendrobium officinale - a precious medicinal plant Covering an area of 142.30 sq.km, Muong Long is located at an altitude of 1,485m in a valley surrounded by mountains ranging from 1,200-2,700m high. The area is near the border between Vietnam and Laos and has a subtropical climate.
It is cool during summer in Muong Long and it is not affected by dry and hot winds from Laos. Mountain peaks in the locality are covered with clouds all year round.
Long said many studies have found that with its climatic conditions, Muong Long is suitable to become a centre for preserving and propagating precious medicinal herbs. After being allocated 136 hectares of land, TH Herbals Joint Stock Company (TH Herbals – a subsidiary of TH Group) has invested in medicinal farms and set up the Muong Long centre to serve the conservation, propagation, and promotion of medicinal herbs.
“Sweet fruits” on a rough land
To reap “sweet fruits” on the rough land like today, Long and hundreds of engineers and employees of the Muong Long centre have spent many days and sleepless nights at the farms, carefully selecting the varieties and setting up the most suitable farming procedures for the plants to grow well.
Currently, the centre has propagated and planted 3,000 That diep nhat chi hoa plants, 100,000 panax notoginseng plants (with an area of 5 hectares), 1,000 pusailaieng plants, 200,000 clusters of orchids mounted on forest trees, and nearly 1,000 one-year-old camellia chrysantha plants under forest canopy in Muong Long and Na Ngoi communes. It has also cultivated codonopsis on 1.3 hectares of land.
In addition, the centre is also growing 40 other types of medicinal plants such as angelica sinensis, black turmeric curcuma, black ginger, amomum longiligulare, fallopia multiflora, gynostemma pentaphyllum, chrysanthemum, Shan Tuyet tea, passion fruit, and lingzhi mushroom, among others.
According to Long, the centre has zoned the 136ha of land in Muong Long into different areas to better preserve and propagate medicinal plants. The care of the plants is meticulously monitored by qualified engineers to ensure appropriate humidity, air, light and nutritional conditions.
Staff members at Muong Long Centre coordinate with local farmers to preserve and propagate precious medicinal plants 
Caring for Dendrobium officinale - a precious medicinal plant
Caring for perilla plants at the Muong Long Medicinal Plants and Herbs Conservation and Development Centre. Trinh Hien Trung, General Director of TH Herbals, said that in 2015, the company received the transfer of the office building and nursery of the experimental station. Determining the goal of forming a "clean medicinal plant" growing area, TH Herbals experts have restored and researched precious medicinal plants and herbs to propagate, cultivate and produce products that are good for health.
To date, TH's medicinal plant growing areas in Muong Long and Na Ngoi communes (Ky Son district) have preserved more than 40 types of precious indigenous medicinal plants and those in the Ministry of Health's list of traditional medicinal plants
The TH-run Muong Long centre has contributed to giving a face-lift to many mountainous communes in the province including Muong Mong and Na Ngoi. Areas growing "clean medicinal plants" are gradually being formed and expanding based on strict standards.
Not only cultivating precious medicinal plants, a factory has been built in the Muong Long centre’s compound to process herbs collected from the wild and plants grown in buffer zones of forests, contributing to the establishment of the TH true Herbal brand of herbal drinks and herbal tea made entirely from natural ingredients by TH. Products are processed according to US FDA standards - the highest standards of health safety.
When medicinal plants become a spearhead
Muong Long Centre for Conservation and Development of Medicinal Plants is a component of a project of preserving and developing high-quality medicinal resources associated with sustainable development of TH Herbals. This is also a direction consistent with local policies on turning medicinal plants into an economic strength of Ky Son district in particular and Nghe An province in general.
Tho Ba Re - Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Ky Son district said that many communes in the district have suitable climate and soil for the cultivation of medicinal plants. Besides, the district is home to many types of medicinal plants in nature such as Ngoc Linh ginseng, That diep nhat chi hoa, bitter melon. The plants grow well in the wild in the area and therefore, for many years, the local people have been collecting these medicinal plants for sale.
“Medicinal plants are readily available in nature in Ky Son, but exploitation without management and conservation will lead to depletion of the resource. Our district is well aware of this,” Re said.
Muong Long has identified medicinal plant development in connection with eco-tourism and community tourism as the direction for household economic development in the locality. 
TH Group not only helps people in the highlands of Muong Long escape poverty but also brings "sweet fruit" to this land, contributing to preserving the treasure of medicinal plants that Mother Nature offers to the locality. The district has identified medicinal plant development in connection with eco-tourism and community tourism as the direction for household economic development in the locality.
Re said that the district has chosen Muong Long, Tay Son and Na Ngoi communes to develop raw material areas because the three communes share similar characteristics. They all are home to a wide range of precious medicinal plants. Therefore, recently, relevant agencies have conducted field surveys to decide development orientation and built projects in coordination with businesses to preserve rare medicinal species. In particular, TH Group has coordinated with the locality to implement the project to develop medicinal plants associated with forest protection.
The district’s People Committee highly values the TH Group’s project on preserving and growing herb plants under forest canopy as it well suits the district’s socio-economic development and natural conditions.
The project to preserve and develop medicinal plants in Muong Long is part of the overall project to preserve and develop high-quality medicinal plants of TH Herbals. TH not only helps people in the highlands of Muong Long escape poverty but also brings "sweet fruit" to this land, contributing to preserving the treasure of medicinal plants that Mother Nature offers to the locality.
Re emphasised that many medicinal plants are only found in Ky Son so they need to be protected and developed. The TH Group has committed to continue investing, transferring science and technology and purchasing products for the locals in the coming time. He also expressed his hope that the medicinal plant farm deployed by TH Group will be successful.
With TH true Herbal products, TH Group has enhanced the value of Vietnamese herbs and created a new perspective on herbal drinks./.
TH true HERBAL tea products TH Group has officially put on the market the following products: TH true HERBAL Giao co lam (Gynostemma pentaphyllum)- lingzhi herbal tea; TH true HERBAL Lac tien ( Passiflorae foetidae)-Tam sen (lotus plumule), TH true HERBAL Tia to- gung (perilla)-ginger herbal tea; TH true HERBAL Nhan tran (Adenosma caeruleum R. Br)- Cuc hoa (chrysanthemum).
TH true HERBAL herbal tea products use domestic ingredients that are collected in the wild or grown in buffer zones of forests in the famous medicinal plant area in Muong Long, Ky Son, Nghe An province. These are products in the true story of TH Group with "true" values of caring for consumers' health, demonstrating TH's steadfast resolve on the path of caring for public health. They are made entirely from natural ingredients with no synthetic additives and preservatives.
With numerous benefits for health, harmonious and palatable flavors, the products are safe for family use (exclude infants under one year) and can be used at most times of the day./.
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