Lotus – the national flower of Vietnam

Lotus – the national flower of Vietnam. Flowers make the life of humans more interesting. Talking about flowers, Vietnamese people usually talk about lotus. Four folk song sentences any Vietnamese people also cures to know by heart:

In the pond rammer, nothing is nicer than lotus,

Green leaf, white flower with yellow pistil in the center,

Yellow pistil, white flower, green leaf,

Near mud, but not bad-smelling mud smell.

Following, we are discovering this special flower kind.

Lotus – the national flower of Vietnam

A bunch of beautiful pink lotus flowers

Lotus is a plant kind living in the water. Root and trunk are under the mud. Leaf stem and flower stem rise up the surface of the water. A lotus flower consists of flower cup, petal, pistil, lotus seed pod. Being still young, the lotus is the same as a big rose bud. When blooming, the biggest flower is the same large bowl with a diameter of 20 cm. The petals are able to be white, yellow, pink embracing each other, protecting the pistil with bright yellow and light smell. All make into a light and flowing beauty. Lotus leaf is blue, as large as a big plate (30cm). There is kind as large as a flat basket containing rice (1m), a baby can sit on it not seeking.

Lotus has a strong living power. Place having lotus, if there is no intervention of human, lotus gives very lots of children. It can go through a pond bank or a paddy field bank, spread nearby areas. Lotus grows well in the tropical climate environment. Lotus can grow anywhere in Vietnam. The North of Vietnam, once upon a time, there is a village growing so lots of lotus, people call the place Lotus Village. In the South of Vietnam, Dong Thap Muoi is famous for lots of lotus.

The lotus plant has many benefits. All parts of a lotus plant-like leaf, petal, bulb, stem, pistil and seed have many uses. A leaf is used as a food wrapper. A petal is used to decorate a dish nicer. Lotus bulb and lotus stem are used to process lots of delicious dishes. Dry flower pistil is used to embalm tea. Young lotus seeds can be eaten. Old lotus seeds can be used to made food and medicine.

The Buddhists in Vietnam usually bring lotus flowers to pagodas to offer Buddha. Many objects in pagodas are also carved lotus shape. Lotus image has a lot in Vietnamese fold songs. A boy shows love to the girl:

Yesterday water beside the temple,

Forget the shirt on the lotus tree,

If you picked it up, return me,

Or you keep it as having me in your house.

In spite of living in the countryside, growing up from the mud, leaf still green, flower is still white with yellow pistil, a lotus is the symbol of simple and clean characteristics of Vietnamese people. Lotus is a friend of Vietnamese people. They are in the mind of Vietnamese people forever and forever. Therefore, the lotus is considered to be National Flower beside National Name, National Flat, National Anthem.

Lotus flower and lotus buds are the favorites of Vietnamese people so that this kind of flower is sold popularly in the country. In the photo, foreigners are excited at hundreds of lotus at Ho Thi Ky flower market – the biggest wholesale flower market in Saigon

Let’s find out what’s inside these petals

A lotus pond in Mekong Delta

Lotus at Thich Quang Duc memorial park, Saigon

If you would like to see and know more about Lotus – the national flower of Vietnam, just join a tour to Mekong Delta where lotus fields are abundant.