Editor's Note: A plant species originating from China, smuggled into Vietnam by traders who then “inflated” its value by claiming it can produce agarwood from a young age, selling it at exorbitant prices (from 150,000 VND to 500,000 VND per seedling) depending on the variety. The sales network spans from the North to the South, with many farmers investing in seedlings after believing the flowery claims that “1 hectare can yield over 10 billion VND after 6-7 years.” Is this a reckless gamble? According to silviculture experts, there is currently no research project on this plant species in Vietnam.

Meeting the “tycoon” in Tam Dao

Anyone who has researched the Ky Hai Nam (general name) plant variety, which is claimed to have the ability to create agarwood and agarwood essential oil and originates from China, is no stranger to a man named Nguyen Van B - director of a plant seedling center in Hop Chau town, Tam Dao district, Vinh Phuc province (formerly), now Tam Dao commune, Phu Tho province. This is because B is a familiar face in videos posted on the YouTube channel “Trung tam Cay giong Tam Dao” (Tam Dao Seedling Center) (with 23,000 subscribers).

Nguyen Van B - director of a plant seedling center in Tam Dao (Phu Tho) introducing Chinese Ky Hai Nam varieties at the facility's 4-hectare nursery. Photo: Dong Thai.

Currently, this facility is advertising nearly a dozen Ky Hai Nam varieties including: Quoc Huong (oil heart), Hong Ky, Kim Sa, Hac Dau Vuong… with prices starting from 150,000 VND/seedling. Among them, some varieties (such as Quoc Huong, originating from Hainan Island, China) have the ability to crack their own bark and create agarwood from a very early stage without the need for drilling holes. Notably, it can be harvested after just 6-7 years of planting.

Related articles

Ky Hai Nam - billionaire tree or a seedling scam?: [Part 2] Smuggling methods for Chinese seedlings

Ky Hai Nam - billionaire tree or a seedling scam: [Part 3] Don't 'bring firewood to the forest'!

Ky Hai Nam - billionaire tree or a seedling scam: [Part 4] Don't destroy the agarwood industry!

Posing as a buyer for Ky Hai Nam seedlings, we approached B's plant seedling center. This man said that the facility currently has about ten thousand Ky Hai Nam trees. Among the Ky Hai Nam varieties, only the yellow oil variety is grafted by the center in Vietnam, while all other types must be imported.

During the product PR process, B claimed: “A Ky Hai Nam tree after about 7 years of planting can yield from 1.5 - 1.8, or even more than 2kg of agarwood. On average, selling one tree for 4 million VND is easy.” The director of this center can even sign a contract to lock the price and guarantee the purchase of products for customers at 2 million VND/tree at harvest age.

B instructed us in detail: It is recommended to plant at a density of 1m x 1m or 1.5m x 1.5m, and to ensure the trees can grow healthily, it is necessary to invest in a proper irrigation system. “If you plant them, I will transfer everything to you, from planting techniques to care. Before planting, I will also fly there, and send an engineer to guide you.”

To increase credibility, B opened his phone to show us a series of models that this center has invested in or provided Ky Hai Nam seedlings for in localities such as Tuyen Quang, Bac Giang, Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai (formerly)… In which, the scale in Tuyen Quang is 17ha (currently in the process of expanding the planting area).

“In the North, we focus on Hong Ky and Kim Sa varieties, while in the South, we focus on Hac Dau Vuong.” The Hong Ky variety is priced at 250,000 VND/tree, while Hac Ky is 150,000 VND/tree. Specifically for the Quoc Huong line (also known as Tam Dau), the Center signs a contract with customers at 500,000 VND/seedling,” B said.

Trees in pots already have agarwood

To build trust with customers about the agarwood-creating ability of the Ky Hai Nam variety, B took us to see a seedling in the nursery, with a base only as thick as a thumb and about 70cm tall, then pointed to a branch cut and said: “This line is Kim Sa, the agarwood eats into the center. Previously, the branch broke and then a new branch grew, creating agarwood from that cut. Wherever you cut the branch, it creates agarwood. But from the 3rd year, you have to drill along the trunk so the oil traces are even. If you don't drill, it only creates agarwood from the branch cut for a short distance.”

Ky Hai Nam seedlings at the seedling center directed by Nguyen Van B. Photo: H.K.

Next, B pointed to a batch of Hac Dau Vuong seedlings still in soil pots (not yet planted), nearly 1 year old, and said: “This tree was taken by a former district leader, and this lot is ordered by a commune leader next door. These trees already have agarwood, every tree has produced agarwood. 650,000 VND/tree.” Next, B took out his phone to show us a Ky Hai Nam planting model in Bac Giang and said: “I just went to Bac Giang, they also took 200 big trees. They are doing a 13ha project over there. He cleared all the Cat Sam to get the Quoc Huong line in Quynh Son, Yen Dung district (formerly).”

“Dong Nai, Binh Phuoc also have them all. Binh Phuoc has a lot… I filmed a flycam video in Binh Phuoc, near Dong Xoai, surrounded by rubber trees. The whole area is finished with land preparation, and everything from here down is planted,” B continued to open videos on his phone to show off to us.

“Plant for 3 years, 20 million/tree”: Truth or advertising “bubble”?

During the process of selling Ky Hai Nam seedlings, B frequently appears with a man named Q (from the T.D. Agarwood and Kynam Cooperative). On the YouTube channel, Q and B frequently post videos visiting Ky Hai Nam planting models on Hainan Island (China) and “interviewing” the garden owners.

At a Ky Hai Nam garden planting the Quoc Huong variety (also known as Tam Dau) about 3.5 years old, the garden owner said that the tree does not need to be drilled but already has agarwood. Someone has ordered the entire number of trees in the garden for 5,000 yuan/tree (equivalent to nearly 20 million/tree). Now it has agarwood but no oil yet. This tree does not need to be drilled but creates agarwood on its own, even branches as small as a rope have agarwood. All small branches for grafting have been ordered until next year, the price of 15 million/kg is still not enough to sell.

Video titled: "3 years 20 million/1 tree? Quoc Huong Tam Dau Ky Hai Nam garden in the homeland of Hainan Island" interviewed by Q and B with the Chinese garden owner attracted more than 5,000 views. Photo: Cut from video.

Such videos attract many thousands of views, leading many people into the dream of “harvesting billions” after just a few years of planting. However, at a Ky Hai Nam garden (Hong Ky line) in China, B himself also said: “This tree is faked a lot… Most people who buy Ky Hai Nam are cheated… so the Ky Hai Nam tree market in Vietnam is miserable now, most of you who plant it are cheated.”

The Chinese garden owner himself also said that this Hong Ky species has only been in China for a few years, and there are not even any trees ready for harvest yet. Even in China, there are people who bought fake varieties, about 300 trees. Revealing to us, B admitted that in Vietnam, there are no Ky Hai Nam trees of harvest age yet, and it will take another 2 years.

Advertising sign for Ky Hai Nam varieties at a seedling center in Tam Dao, Phu Tho.

“Now there are many young people advertising to sell online, even those who don't have a garden are selling Ky Hai Nam trees, I am also very concerned because in Vietnam now there is a lot of self-grafting. I also don't know if those self-grafted trees can create agarwood or not. We have also tried grafting a lot but most of the grafting results create very poor agarwood, even failure, no agarwood,” shared Nguyen Van B, director of the seedling center in Tam Dao.

Forestry and Forest Protection Department issues warning document

On September 16, 2025, the Forestry and Forest Protection Department (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) issued official dispatch No. 1773/LNKL-PTR on strengthening the management of forestry plant varieties sent to Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The Forestry and Forest Protection Department stated that the unit has received information reflected by some organizations and individuals about some localities trading and planting the “Ky Hai Nam” tree species of unknown origin.

Official dispatch No. 1773/LNKL-PTR on strengthening the management of forestry plant varieties issued by the Forestry and Forest Protection Department on September 16, 2025, sent to Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development of provinces and centrally-run cities. Photo: Dong Thai.

To ensure the management of forestry plant varieties in accordance with the law, protect biodiversity, ensure the safety of forest ecosystems, and protect the rights of the people, and to perform the state management function, the Forestry and Forest Protection Department requests the Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development of localities to inspect and review all organizations and individuals engaged in production, trading, storage, and use of forestry plant varieties in the area… At the same time, strengthen the inspection of compliance with legal procedures for each batch of imported forestry plant varieties: Original records of the seed batch, certificates of origin, inspection certificates, import permits, and technical records accompanying the seed batch as prescribed in Decree No. 27/2021/ND-CP dated March 25, 2021, of the Government on the management of forestry plant varieties and related regulations.

The document of the Forestry and Forest Protection Department also clearly states: “In case of detecting imported forestry plant varieties that have not been recognized, have no records, have not been tested according to regulations, or show signs of being invasive alien species, they shall be seized and handled promptly in accordance with the law.”

Speaking with reporters from Agriculture and Environment newspaper, Mr. Trieu Van Luc - Deputy Director of the Forestry and Forest Protection Department said: The Forestry and Forest Protection Department has not issued official import permits for any forestry plant variety named “Ky Hai Nam”. So what is the path of Ky Hai Nam seedlings from China to Vietnam? Everything will be revealed by the owners of these seedling supply facilities themselves.

Reporter Group