Park Flora

Pride of India

Its’ hard wood is resistant to rot and bright red in color. At its’ country of origin, it’s often used to build furniture, boat cars, bridges, electric poles, wooden pillows, and buildings; it’s also usable under water, making its’ economic value comparable to teak.
Sweet Osmanthus

Many sweet osmanthus are planted at the front and side gates of the park’s restaurant. In folklore, the words “August 15th brings the aroma of osmanthus flowers” refers to the lunar calendar; osmanthus truly bloom around the end of September in our calendar. The fragrance of its’ flowers are very light and often used in desserts. The god tree in Mid-Autumn Festival folklore “Wugang Chops Osmanthus” is the tree you’re now looking at.
Banyan Tree

Banyan trees are commonly found across Taiwan. “Grandpa Banyan” lives to an old age and you’ll also find many “whiskers” on them, making them look like a kind and gentle grandpa. What are the whiskers? They’re air roots that allow the tree to absorb humidity in the air. Don’t pull them out of curiosity! Just like your grandpa, it would be painful!
White Paperbark

The evergreen’s trunk is a pale white with many protruding tree tumors. The bark is brown or grey-white and flexible, and soft like sponge. Each year the cork cambium grows a new year, pushing out the old bark; however, the old bark is still clearly attached on the trunk, layer by layer forming the eternal look of having “torn clothing”. If you want to know a white paperbark’s age, carefully count their many layers of bark to find out its’ age. The cork cambium of white paperbark is very developed and many layers can shed into white-grey spongy flexible bark that children often tear in play or as erasers.
Black Pine

This black pine is different from the Heysong sarsaparilla that kids drink. Black pine originated in Japan and can look quite different. They’re often cultivated in bonsais or as scenic trees planted in temples and gardens. They can be used to guard against the wind and their timber can be used in buildings. Pines don’t wilt even in winter and can live long lives; the trees look classic, elegant and can often be seen in longevity paintings with white cranes as a symbol of faithfulness. Black pines are cultivated by seed or graft breeding; spring is the perfect season for planting black pine, and it’s more successful in the higher, colder regions of Taiwan.
Bischofia javanica

Bischofia javanica originate from Taiwan and have very long lives; they often grow to gigantic sizes and are worshiped by common folk like banyan and camphor trees. Old bischofia javanica have a dense crown and brown trunks that are wide and rough like a weathered senior; that is why the bischofia javanica is also called “chongyang wood”. The end of each leaf has 3 small leaves that protrude; we call them “sanchu sub leaves” and their edges are serrated. When dried, the leaves can be used as tea and the fruit, when ripen can be used for pickling. They taste quite sweet. The 4 kings of old trees in Taiwan’s low altitude (1,500 meters and below) regions are the banyan, camphor, bischofia javanica, and Formosan gum.
Woodland elaeocarpus

The woodland elaeocarpus is an evergreen tree that grows to 20-25 meters. The leaves grow in alternate and are lance-shaped, one end is swollen, and they are a rich green; however, new leaves are brilliant red and old leaves turn from green to red before they fall. The tree sheds leaves throughout all 4 seasons of the year. It enjoys warm, humid climates but is resistant to cold. It is a plant native to Taiwan and can be found in the west of Japan’s Honshu, Awaji Island, Shikoku, Kyushu, and Indochina.
Hoop Pine

Originating in Australia, the branches of this tree extend horizontally from the main trunk. The end branches are arranged densely in rows and the crown of the tree is cone-shaped. The leaves are long, soft, and sharp but do not prick the hands. The trunk is straight and can reach heights of 30 meters; the branches extend horizontally and look like feathers. The young leaves of the tree are needle shaped and slightly bent while older leaves are triangular egg shaped. The tree is dioecious with spherical blanket like fruits that have apical scales and sharp pricks; they rarely flower in Taiwan but can be bred with side branches. However, the surviving branches can only grow in creep and not a straight trunk. The crown is naturally cone-shaped. As the tree is beautiful and grows quickly, it’s listed as one of 4 world renowned trees for planting in gardens.
Japanese camellia

The Japanese camellia was designated by Hsinchu as the county’s flower to distinguish the county’s features. As the county’s tea farming and production accounts for 1/3 of the industry in Taiwan, it has garnered fame both locally and abroad. The trees have myriad shapes, some straight, drooping, expanded, bushy, and creeping, their height is also irregular as some can grow to 4-50 meters while others are merely a few meters tall after several centuries. That is why Japanese camellia are shrubs and flowers while also being large trees. The leaves are light green to dark green and bright in color while the edges of the leaves have small serrations and teeth; the head, base, and stem of the leaves differ in size and shape, resulting in beautiful differences. The flowers of Japanese camellia are even more diverse with single or double flaps that bloom during season into varying flowers. When not flowering, the tree is enjoyed for its’ different shapes and leaves This county mainly focuses on agriculture and produces tea leaves; therefore, the selection of the Japanese camellia represents the county’s agricultural prosperity and benefits.
Barringtonia racemosa

The barringtonia racemosa is also known as: Hengchun zongzi (south of Taiwan), zuigonga (Yilan), flower of Kenting (Kenting), devil’s tree (Lanyu), binyurui, and shuiqiedong. It’s classified as a lecythidaceae plant and flowers between May and February of the following year. Its’ spikes can reach up to 1 meter and the flowers bloom in order from top to bottom. The long strands of flowers droop like spikes and the string of flowers look like firecrackers. The flowers of the barringtonia racemosa last merely a little more than 10 hours and emit a light, elegant aroma when bloomed. They grow mainly along the coasts of Taiwan and are mainly produced in Keelung, Yilan, and New Taipei City in Northern Taiwan; in Southern Taiwan, they are found in Hengchun and other areas. Due to recent coastal development, their numbers in the wild have drastically reduced and are rare trees facing extinction in Yilan. The biggest feature of barringtonia racemose is their valuable flowers while their root system is especially vigorous and can prevent soil loss; therefore, they are the perfect tree to plant for preserving water and soil.
Camphor Tree

In the Qin Dynasty, Li Shizhen wrote in Compendium of Materia Medica: The wood of camphor trees has many chapters, so a “mu” character is added next to the “zhang” character to derive the name “zhang shu”. Truthfully, this is incorrect. The character “zhang” was derived from the tree’s aroma; as “zhang (deer)” and “she (musk)” are similar animals and camphor trees had a rich aroma, it was named “zhang” which is identical in meaning to the animal “zhang (deer)”. Camphor is refined from the tree (today, mostly artificial substances are used) and was an important export for Taiwan during the Qin Dynasty. As the wood was aromatic and resistant against water and pests, it was often used in sculpture of furniture. This led to Taiwan’s title as the Camphor Kingdom for more than half a century, as camphor, tea, and sugar were known as “the 3 treasures of Taiwan in the past”. Taiwan’s herbal proverbs once said: “yi zhang, er qiong, san bu jiang, si ku lian, ba le tou wu lu yong”, showing the amazing value of camphor.
Cherry Blossom

When it comes to winter, one thinks of cherry blossom season. The park has planted more than 80 cherry blossom trees including types such as: Fuji, Yoshino, Kawazu, and Taiwan cherry blossoms. Each year between January and March, the cherry blossoms flower and guests can enjoy them all along the main path to Hokkaido Ski Resort.
Madagascar Almond

This short-term deciduous tree can grow from 5-10 meters tall. Plant height can go up to 2-3 floors high as the trunk is extremely straight, thin, and long while the branches grow in rotation and spread out horizontally in clear layers. The leaves are small and shaped like upside down eggs, delicate, and thin. The branches are clustered and raised. It defoliates in winter, but does not turn red before losing its’ leaves. It’s very beautiful and sprouts during spring.
Abies kawakamii

The Abies kawakamii is of the podocarpaceus branch and is an evergreen, commonly called mountain fir. The leaves grow opposite and have no midrib, instead having many horizontal ribs. The seeds are drupes, spherical, and not obvious how they’re cared for. The evergreens span from 8 to 20 meters and can withstand shady and wet soil. It is one of many famous landscape trees and its timber is similar to Chinese fir, which is why it’s called “mountain fir”. The tree has a conic shape and is straight, making its crown perfect for beautifying gardens. They are best planted in sandy loam with good drainage; their young trees bear flower and fruit well with enough sunlight. This tree was chosen as the county tree by Hsinchu to signify “evergreen prosperity”.
Melaleuca linearis

The melaleuca linearis bears petal-less flowers with cylindrical spikes at the end of their branches. The flowers are bright red and dazzling, blooming from the end of winter until spring and summer. The flowers of the melaleuca linearis are very similar to melaleuca leucadendra (weeping paperbark) but the former has greater inflorescence.
Griffith’s ash

The lumber of this tree is highly durable and has a waxy finish similar to chicken oil, but is whiter which is why it’s also called “white chicken oil” (Taiwan beech). Griffith’s ash grows beautifully, and its fruit grows as long feathers that hang on the tree swaying in the wind; it is a charming sight. Their sap is a favorite food of the Japanese rhinoceros beetle.
Chinese elm

The Chinese elm possesses a beautiful shape, chic posture with spotted bark and densely delicate leaves. They are perfect for planting in gardens alone, in clumps, and go well with pavilions or rocks. They are also selected to add greenery to factory areas. The Chinese elm’s timber is very hard and can be used as an industrial material; its strong bark fiber can be used to make rope or artificial fibers; the roots, bark, and tender leaves can be used in medicine to reduce inflammation, pain, detoxify, and reduce fever. When used externally, it can soothe burns; the leaves can be used to make natural pesticides to kill red spiders.
Acacia confusa

The timber from acacia confuse can be used to make pillows, mine shaft supports, and farming tools; it’s also used for firewood and planting along roads or landscaping trees. Long ago, if one suffered scrapes in the wild, its tender sprouts were often chewed into a paste and applied to the scrape to quickly heal it. Acacia confuse is Taiwan’s best firewood; during the agricultural era, the government issued acacia confuse firewood to the nation’s public workers for use as firewood in their kitchen. This is unimaginable in modern times!
Australian pine

As the entire tree is made up of thread-like branches, wind passes through its seams and don’t cause any pressure to the tree; even in windy coastal regions, they can grow into large trees. Australian pines are one of the few non-legumes that possess nodules and as the bacteria in nodules can stabilize nitrogen in the air, the tree can withstand barren lands. The Australian pine is resistant to wind, drought, and salt which is why they’re often planted along the coast.
Perfumed Pomelo

Pomelos are large, round, and symbolize “family gathering”; in Chinese, it is a homophonic for “wandering child”, hoping that children who have left their homes can return during Mid-Autumn Festival. “Pomelo” is another homophonic for “blessing”, signifying blessings of safety to family members. In Nanfang dialect, it’s also homophonic for “with son” so eating pomelo during Mid-Autumn Festival also carries the auspicious meaning of having a son.