Artist Tran Quoc Viet, 42, in Can Tho city is famous for his talent of curving a Buddha image into the roots of living trees that are 10 to 15 years old. He spends from one week to a month on each tree. — Photo nld.com.vn

The Lunar New Year holiday offers great opportunities for artists in the Mekong Delta to earn high income from customers who request unique shapes for their ornamental trees, from an image of a Buddha to a favourite pet.

Artist Tran Quoc Viet, 42, in Can Tho city is famous for his talent of curving a Buddha image into the roots of living trees that are 10 to 15 years old. He spends from one week to a month on each tree.

“I have to travel to remote areas to look for an older tree to carve. This year, I had to hire three workers to support me,” Viet told the Nguoi Lao Dong (The Labourers) newspaper.

Viet sometimes gold plates his trees.

This year, Viet will display more than 100 artworks carved from tree roots which will sell from VND5 - 7 million (US$200 – 320) each.

"I have some special products including 45-50 year-old tree roots that sell for VND60 - 70 million ($2,500 – 3,200) each,” he said.

Tran Duy Phong, 34, in Sa Dec City in Dong Thap Province is another artist who works with tree roots. He imports champa flower trees from Thailand and creates different shapes. The tree’s root can grow 20 cm each year.

“I’m sure that no garden in Viet Nam has the long-root champa tree like mine. I have already prepared 800 trees with prices ranging from VND4 to 30 million ($200 – 1,300) each,” he said.

Nguyen Kim Loan, in Can Tho City, uses peony flower plants to make shapes of pets.

She now has over 200 types of plants shaped like pets that sell for several hundred thousand dong to several million dong.

Loan owns a pair of dragon and turtle “pet” trees 2m high and 3m wide, made from 20-year-old peony flower trees. She sells this special ornamental tree for VND400 million ($17,500). — VNS