Loài cây quý hiếm bậc nhất thế giới, chỉ có duy nhất 1 lá trong đời, ở Việt Nam cũng có

The unique plant mentioned here is the one-leaf plant (Nervilia fordii) belonging to the Orchidaceae family (orchids) and it also has other names such as thanh thiên quỳ, one-leaf orchid, flag orchid, châu diệp, slam lài, bửa thoọc, bầu thoọc, and many other names.

This rare plant prefers shade, especially a humid environment, and often grows in rock crevices, under dense evergreen forests or broad-leaved canopy, at altitudes from 600-1500m. Therefore, the one-leaf plant is also very difficult to find in Vietnam.

In our country, the one-leaf plant is found in border regions such as Lạng Sơn, Cao Bằng, Hà Giang, Tuyên Quang, Sơn La…

The single-leaf plant enters a dormant state from November to March of the following year before becoming active again.

Usually, the plant blooms in March, April, and May; capsules appear in April, May, and June. When blooming, the tip of the upper petal clusters together, making the whole flower look like a lantern. The fruit is diamond-shaped, with a surface sectioned into segments like a small starfruit, about 2–3 cm long. Usually, after the flower fades, the leaf begins to develop, so we often only see the plant bearing flowers or fruit without leaves, or just see a plant with leaves, often only one leaf.

The single-leaf plant is a terrestrial plant, a long-living grass, 10–20 cm tall. The stem is very short, the bulb is large and round, weighing up to 1.5–20 g. From the bulb, only a single leaf grows, solitary, with the leaf developing after the flower has faded.

The leaves are heart-shaped, round, with a diameter of about 10–25 cm. The leaf veins radiate evenly from the petiole, arranged in a palmate pattern. The petiole is about 10–20 cm long and has a pinkish-purple color.

A notable feature of this plant is that its leaves begin to grow only after the flowers have faded. Therefore, at certain times, a tree may have only flowers or fruits without any leaves, or you may only see leaves without flowers or fruits.

As a rare plant, the one-leaf plant is very difficult to find in Vietnam. This plant prefers shade, particularly humid environments, and often grows in rock crevices, under the canopy of moist evergreen forests or broadleaf trees, at altitudes of 600-1500m.

The one-leaf plant has high medicinal value, with its parts used in various applications. The leaves and tubers of the plant have a slightly sweet, mildly bitter taste and are used as medicine to clear heat, moisten the lungs, reduce cough, disperse stasis, detoxify, and relieve pain.

The one-leaf plant naturally regenerates through bulb rays, so within a group of plants in the wild, there are often many plants of different ages.

Some health remedies from the one-leaf plant:

- Detoxification: Take 2 – 3 leaves of the one-leaf plant, wash them clean, dry them, cut them into small pieces, steep them in boiling water for a few minutes, then take the liquid to drink, three times a day.

- Treating tuberculosis and cough: Each day, use 10 – 20 leaves of the one-leaf plant, put them in a pot to decoct or steam with sugar, or make into a liquid extract to drink, which is also very effective.

- Treating infections, boils, and ulcers: Use fresh one-leaf plant leaves, crush them, apply to painful areas, boils, or infected skin ulcers; very effective.

- Nourishing the body: Use about 1kg of dried leaves and roots soaked in 5 liters of alcohol. The soaking time should be at least 30 days before use. Take a small glass each time, once a day.

- Acute stomatitis and sore throat: Take a few fresh leaves of the plant, wash thoroughly, and chew well.

- Supporting the treatment of tuberculosis: Take about 15g of the plant and cook it with pork, use it like soup.

- Helping children digest food easily and prevent malnutrition: Take 5-10g of the plant’s root, cook it with lean pork or chicken eggs to make a dish to serve with rice.

Note, the one-leaf plant has many medicinal uses, but should not be overused. If you need to use it, you should consult a practitioner or qualified doctors for specific guidance to use this medicinal herb in the correct dosage and manner to help alleviate illness.

According to the An Ninh Thu Do newspaper, the one-leaf plant is a species with valuable medicinal properties, so it is mainly used for export, with very little domestic use. For this reason, many people living in areas where the one-leaf plant grows rarely get the chance to see it. Many even say that finding a one-leaf plant is as difficult as finding a ginkgo leaf. Recognizing the high value of this plant, researchers are currently working on propagating this rare medicinal plant in Lang Son. Lang Son is a province with favorable climate, soil, and terrain conditions for the growth and development of many rare medicinal genetic resources, including the one-leaf plant, according to To Quoc newspaper. After a period of experimentation, studies on the propagation techniques of the one-leaf plant have shown that the best planting season is from March to April each year (with survival rates ranging from 96.0-96.7% and germination rates from 87.33-95.3%). The size of the tuber greatly affects the growth of the one-leaf plant. Seed tubers with diameters from 1.0 to over 2.0 cm all show high germination rates (87.33-97.33%).

Currently, the number of single-leaf trees in the wild is not many (in Pù Mát National Park, there are 10 - 15 trees per 100m2), making this tree species rare and at risk of extinction. The single-leaf tree is listed among the tree species that need protection in the "Vietnam Red Book".