Tropical Gardening: An amazing trip to Vietnam and Myanmar

Courtesy of VOLTAIRE MOISE This pagoda, along with hundreds of smaller pagodas and tepas, is covered with gold leaf and priceless jewels. People from all over Southeast Asia come daily to meditate and pray. It is truly a place of peace and tranquillity.

Courtesy of VOLTAIRE MOISE The actual scion of the sacred Bo tree (Ficus religious) where Buddha is said to have achieved enlightenment. It is estimated to be more than 1,000 years old. The tree resides at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar.

Courtesy of VOLTAIRE MOISE Since most of the land is at sea level, the main vegetation besides the coconut palms is mangrove and Nipa palms, which are shown here.

Courtesy of VOLTAIRE MOISE Harvested nuts are processed by local formers who depend on the river for transportation.

Courtesy of VOLTAIRE MOISE The main agricultural enterprise is coconut palms, covering thousands of hectares. The region is affected by saltwater intrusion because of global warming and dams constructed up river in China.

Courtesy of VOLTAIRE MOISE The Mekong delta is composed of hundreds of islands separated by the river’s meandering waterways.

Courtesy of VOLTAIRE MOISE Ipomoea aquatica in flower.

Courtesy of VOLTAIRE MOISE Local flower sellers make their sales off the ever present motor bikes along with sales of everything from pots and pans to chickens and pigs. With limited resources, the people here are great at salesmanship!

Courtesy of VOLTAIRE MOISE A favorite vegetable in Vietnam is the Morning Glory (Ipomoea aquatica) grown in the wet rice paddy environment. Young stems and leaves are cooked like spinach. This is a potential crop for our local farmers and back yard gardeners as well.