A scientist in Vietnam’s southern Binh Duong province is out to prove that bamboo’s many gifts, from wood products to soil improvement, make it worth protecting and studying.

During the Vietnam War, Phu An village in Binh Duong Province was part of the ‘Iron Triangle’. The other two sides were Cu Chi District and Tay Ninh province’s Trang Bang, while the triangle referred to an arrowhead pointing implacably towards Saigon, as Ho Chi Minh (HCM) City was called.

But with the opening of the Phu An bamboo eco-museum and botanic garden recently, this land, which once saw death and destruction rain down upon it, is set to turn into a ‘green arrow’.

"Bamboo is my brother," says a Vietnamese proverb carved on a stone plaque at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, London.

It not only underscores bamboo’s importance in the life of the Vietnamese, but was also the incentive for Dr. Diep Thi My Hanh, the celebrated researcher from HCM City’s University of Natural Sciences, to set up a bamboo ecomuseum in her hometown.

It took the biologist almost nine years to turn her idea of collecting and preserving all species of the grass into a touch-and-feel museum and garden.

"Bamboo has played a meaningful role in the historical development of Vietnam and continues to be of commercial, environmental and aesthetic importance to all Vietnamese," she says.

"Bamboo contributes valuable wood products and food and helps beautify the landscape."

But she explains the raison d’etre for the garden and museum. "Bamboo can also be used as a metal-accumulating plant for environmental clean-up based on phytoremediation, an emerging technology."

But no research centre or institute in Vietnam has ever bothered with this valuable grass, she says, adding that she had to go hunting at major biological research institutions around the world for materials.

Fortunately, she found more than abundant materials. Hanh then began a three-year quest for bamboo plants in 43 provinces before kicking off work on the removal of toxic metals from the environment using bamboo.

She says European experts have been using bamboo for waste-water treatment. Growing bamboo absorbs heavy metal present in soil and is ideal for areas polluted by industrialization.

"The idea is good, but you need money to breathe life into it. At first, only Helvetas Switzerland, the Swiss Association for International Cooperation, helped us with $3,000.

"It was only enough to build a small building and a garden. Later, France’s Rhone Alpes Region, Binh Duong Province, the Pilat Natural Park and HCM City’s University of Natural Sciences offered us around $687,000."

Thanks to their generosity, an area in Phu An village is thickly covered with bamboo and the ecomuseum and botanic garden have been set up. There are 204 specimens growing well while a herbarium has a further 301 samples of extremely rare species like square bamboo. "All data collected by the conservation centre will help conserve bamboo in the long-term," says Nguyen Ha Phuong, one of Hanh’s students working at the museum.

Julie Logel, a French volunteer at the botanic garden said, "Supply of seeds to other areas is critical for the sustainable development of the conservation centre.

"We have carried out studies on acrisol soil, which is clay-rich. It’s associated with humid, tropical climates and supports forested areas."

In addition to persuading local farmers to use their research results, Hanh and her colleagues have also joined hands with local residents and authorities to turn the green village into a tourism destination.

The bamboo collection is sub-divided into smaller sections featuring specimens from the country’s three distinct regions.

Shadowy lines of bamboo and green-grass-covered hills scattered with tiny yellow flowers and aged limestone make for a serene picture, evoking thoughts of a wonderland. For those wishing to meditate, a stone yard under the shade of the bamboo trees is just perfect. At the ecomuseum, visitors can learn about the bamboo’s life and uses or play music on traditional instruments made of bamboo.

Joe Yus Kartis, an American visitor at the village, said, "Thank you for giving us the opportunity to know this oasis of peace and serenity. You are doing an incredible job, given the difficulties you must be encountering."

Nguyen Van Tung from neighbouring Cu Chi District, said, "Touring Phu An village, there are three things I can feel — a deep love for nature, the sophisticated and wise vision of a dedicated scientist and a heartfelt devotion to the motherland.

"I hope there are more scientists like Dr. Hanh in the country."