Colorful flower verges on green lawn and lines of carefully pruned Casuarina equisetifolia trees have added green attraction to the median strip on Nguyen Tat Thanh Avenue...
Colorful flower verges on green lawn and lines of carefully pruned Casuarina equisetifolia trees have added green attraction to a median strip on Nguyen Tat Thanh Avenue at the section just past Bai Dai site. The eye-catching green view has been kept by many workers, regardless of weather conditions.
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| Regular pruning keeps plants healthy and in shape. |
“We are lawn maintenance workers. It’s not a hard-working job but we have to sit for a long time. We both like planting ornamental plants and flowers, so we apply for working here. The salary is quite good, so we have worked here for nearly 10 years,” says Nguyen Thi Thu Ly, Thuy Trieu Village, Cam Hai Dong Commune, Cam Lam District.
“After days of rain, shrubs grow fast and soon get out of shape, so they need pruning to keep them healthy and in shape,” adds a pruner named Dang Ngoc Tri, Thuy Trieu Village. “The plants also need watering at least twice a day even in rainy days to keep leaves clean,” says Le Quoc Thai, Tan Hai Village, Cam Hai Tay Commune, Cam Lam District. “There is heavy dirt from many trucks carrying stones and sand passing by. Leaves shrivel up and the trees can’t develop without regular watering,” Le Quoc Thai explains.
Reportedly, the street tree maintenance on the 12km median strip used to be carried out by Northern Cam Ranh Peninsula Tourist Service Center. However, since January, 2016, Cong Minh Green Tree Company (Binh Phuoc Province) has won the bidding for the street tree maintenance under the public participation funding.
According to Le Minh Phuong, Head of the Cong Minh Green Tree Company Branch in Khanh Hoa, former workers are still employed to create jobs for local residents. At present, its 43 staff who are mainly residents in the 2 communes of Cam Hai Dong and Cam Hai Tay earn a monthly average income of VND4-6 million each. The public participation funding has helped assure things run smoothly, thus meeting the criteria for a green environment. For example, the land is often overgrown with weeds after rain, so some workers can be hired to do the seasonal work.
“Taking care of plants on a large area of arid sandy soil in the sunny and windy weather is a hard job. Therefore, we have increased salaries and assured workers’ rights and benefits, so that they feel more secure at work and make long-term commitment to the job,” says Le Minh Phuong.
Nam Anh – Dinh Lam
Translated by N.T
