Few years ago, a suburban area of Ha Noi became famous suddenly after the images of local people planting green vegetables on the separator of highway were screened. They planted different kinds of vegetables including cabbages, lettuces, spinaches and tomatos. Every morning and evening, the household living on the two side of this highway came to their “fields” to sprinkle water. One woman said that she waited for the trees growing up every day and taking care of them was her happiness.
When the havest time came, the atmosphere along the separator was very exicting. They gathered vegetables and prepared for a new crop. With short-term varieties, people could pick them up two or three times a week. They didn’t sell them. They were enough for familly meals. And they were safe vegetables without chemical!
Unfortunately, planting vegetables on the separator of highway was not considered safe for both vehicles and planters. Crossing the highway to reach the vegetable was a big risk. They both could have serious accidents. As the result, planting vegetables on the seperator was banned by the local authority even though a lot of passengers when asked said that the green of vegetables along the separator helped them reduce the stress.
Recently, Ha Noi people find another way to create “green” for both decoration and meal. They plant organic vegetables which can be called “sprout vegetables”. This movement maintains until now and spreads to every corner of Ha Noi. Those sprout vegetables are planted in used tools like pots, vases, carton boxes… People put them on sidewalks, under terraces, on balconies, in living rooms.
A recent research shows that the green space in Ha Noi is the lowest in the world with only 0,05m2/person. There are not enough green parks for relaxing, so that Ha Noi people spend spare time on planting vegetables at home.
Sometimes coming back home exhaustedly from work, I wonder that how can we still survive in this concret city? Well, the right answer might be that we just learn from those green vegetables.
