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On our familiar journey from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Lat in the early days of the year, when the highland weather was still chilly, we unexpectedly encountered a breathtaking moment in Bao Loc that made us brake immediately. Amidst the passing crowds, a sudden flash of golden light appeared by the roadside like an exclamation point in the green symphony of coffee, tea, and pine trees. In the courtyard of Bao Loc College of Technology and Economics, a vibrant yellow flowering tree stood tall, confidently displaying its beauty against the backdrop of the sky, standing out from all the other trees around it.
We stopped the car, walked into the schoolyard, and couldn't hide our awe. Under the wide-spreading trees, clusters of round flowers shone with a warm, proud, and gentle yellow hue.
The flamboyant tree is in full bloom in the courtyard of Bao Loc College of Technology and Economics.
An unexpected encounter under the golden blossoms.
While we were busy taking photos, a man with graying hair, a slow gait, and simple attire entered the schoolyard. He stopped near a tree, looked at us with a gentle smile, and initiated a conversation. The conversation began naturally, as if the golden flame tree had preordained this encounter.
He said that people are usually familiar with the red flamboyant tree of summer, the dreamy purple flamboyant tree, or the vibrant crimson flamboyant tree, but few know that there is also a flower called the golden flamboyant tree - a rare species. The golden flamboyant tree is also known as the Buddha's Robe tree, or "Buddha's robe tree," belonging to the legume family, with the scientific name Schigolobium excelsum, and originating from Brazil.
The flamboyant tree is a woody plant that can reach a height of tens of meters.
He enthusiastically explained that each branch of the tree will sprout 10 to 12 main flower stalks. From each main stalk, 6 to 8 secondary branches branch out, and each secondary branch bears 30 to 40 flower buds. All of them converge to form a round cluster of flowers, with a diameter that can exceed 80cm, creating a magnificent appearance like a giant canopy. The yellow flame tree flowers begin to bloom around Christmas and New Year's Day and last until the end of the Lunar New Year. A rare flowering season connecting the Eastern and Western New Years.
Hearing this, we realized that the flower in front of us was not only beautiful, but also carried within it a long story of time.
The man who "revived" the golden flamboyant tree in Bao Loc.
After a while of chatting, we were surprised to realize that the unassuming man standing before us was none other than Mr. Bui Van Tho, affectionately known as Mr. Bui Tho. He taught at the Agricultural and Forestry High School from 1970 to 1975, the predecessor of the Bao Loc College of Economics and Technology today. Moreover, he is the one who "revived" the golden flame tree in Bao Loc, bringing the vibrant golden landscapes to the plateau as we see today.
Teacher Bui Tho stands under the canopy of a golden flame tree that he himself planted at Bao Loc College of Technology and Economics.
The teacher recounted that the opportunity arose during the days leading up to the Lunar New Year of 1999. At that time, a photographer sent him a picture of vibrant yellow flowers along with the question: "At the top of the slope leading into Bao Loc town, there is an ancient tree that produces yellow flowers like a giant, beautiful canopy. What is its name?" This seemingly simple question puzzled many people in Bao Loc at the time. No one knew the exact name of the tree; some called it "chieu lieu," others called it "vang anh."
The vibrant yellow of the flamboyant tree blossoms has become a distinctive hallmark of Bao Loc, a feature found nowhere else in Vietnam.
The history of this tree is as rare as its beauty. In 1929, the French brought the flamboyant tree to Southern Vietnam and planted two trees: one in the Saigon-Gia Dinh Botanical Garden, and one in front of the Buffalo Farm (Experimental Center, now in Loc Son ward, Bao Loc city). The tree in the Botanical Garden died in 1945, leaving only one tree in B'Lao (another name for Bao Loc). That tree still flowers and bears fruit, but no saplings grow naturally because it does not regenerate according to its normal cycle.
The journey of sowing golden seeds for the plateau.
Faced with its fragile yet proud beauty, Mr. Bui Tho wondered: if one day the "mother" tree grew old and disappeared, would the golden flame tree only remain in memory? Thinking this, Mr. Tho immediately contacted Mr. Huynh Minh Bao, an engineer at the College of Forestry under the National School of Agriculture, Forestry and Animal Husbandry in B'Lao. Through research, they determined that the golden flame tree is related to the flame tree, belonging to the Caesalpiniaceae (Schigolobium excelsum) family. Based on this scientific foundation, Mr. Tho embarked on the journey of propagating the tree.
The flamboyant tree at Bao Loc College of Technology and Economics is one of the saplings that were propagated and planted.
For nearly two years, and despite numerous setbacks, he finally managed to cultivate his first 20 saplings. These first successful seedlings were donated by Mr. Bui Tho to temples, monasteries, churches, Thang Long Primary School in Bao Loc City, Bao Loc College of Economics and Technology, and Hong Lien Ecological Park… In the spring of 2008, exactly ten years after he began cultivating and donating the seedlings, the first golden flame trees bloomed at Phuoc Hue Temple and Thang Long Primary School. That golden hue quickly became a "rare phenomenon" in B'Lao, captivating the local people.
Unlike the red flamboyant trees of summer, the yellow flamboyant trees bloom in spring. That is when Bao Loc is at its most vibrant.
Today, one can easily spot the flamboyant tree at Bat Nha Monastery (Dam B'ri commune), Tan Thanh Church, Bao Loc College of Technology and Economics, and along many other roads, schools, and public areas. The city is also gradually building the image of a "city of flamboyant flowers," transforming this rare flower into a distinctive tourist attraction of the plateau.
Tourists take a commemorative photo with teacher Tho.
Yellow flower carpet under the schoolyard
After listening to Mr. Bui Tho's story, I looked up at the golden flame tree's canopy, spreading wide like a giant umbrella against the deep blue sky. The fallen petals formed a velvet carpet on the ground, a warm, comforting yellow amidst the chilly highland air of the first day of the year. I silently admired the enduring beauty of this flower, and even more so, the man standing beside me – the one who had quietly preserved this golden hue for Bao Loc.
After thanking and bidding farewell to our teacher, we continued our journey to Da Lat, and unexpectedly saw the newly bloomed flame trees reaching towards the sky, as if yearning for intense brilliance after being reborn.
