Cherry blossoms bloom brilliantly on the plains, thanks to researchers who spent their lives breeding 6 varieties
For humans, climbing a mountain takes only a few days, but for cherry blossoms, coming down to the lowlands takes decades. Winter cherry-blossom viewing has become a nationwide activity, and in recent years beautiful seas of cherry blossoms can be seen even in the urban plains. Yet cherry trees are by nature a species found only in temperate zones and mountain areas, so why are they now seen everywhere? In the past, people often heard of low-elevation cherry trees dying because they could not adapt, but now they are blooming brilliantly everywhere?
It turns out that people's ability to enjoy cherry blossoms nearby is thanks to the creation of plains varieties of cherry blossoms, built up over the lifetimes of many researchers: the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute collected seeds of Taiwan's native cherry blossoms for experiments and broke seed dormancy to raise the germination rate; the Department of Forestry at National Ilan University found methods for stable quality and mass propagation; and the Taiwan Agricultural Research Institute and the Taoyuan District Agricultural Research and Extension Station, building on earlier research, used the highly adaptable Taiwan cherry (Prunus campanulata) for breeding. Only now do we have healthy plains cherry blossoms to enjoy.
At present, there are 6 cherry blossom varieties in the country that can grow on the plains, and breeding each one took at least more than ten years. Chien Ching-te, a retired researcher at the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, said that researching trees requires a long wait, and results often take ten or even decades, "Compared with cherry blossoms introduced from abroad, native cherry blossoms are better suited to the local environment."
Cherry varieties at popular scenic spots mostly come from abroad, and when transplanted to low elevations they cannot tolerate high temperatures
On winter holidays, at famous cherry-viewing spots such as Lala Mountain, Wuling Farm and Alishan, you can see long lines of cherry fans. In recent years the cherry-viewing craze has also spread to the plains, and cherry blossoms can be seen in urban suburbs as well, for example at Donghu Lehuo Park, the Kanggaokeng Creek Trail and Luozhuang Boulevard in Yilan.
Most cherry blossoms at popular mountain scenic spots were introduced from abroad, especially from Japan, such as Yoshino cherry, Kawazu-zakura and Showa cherry. These temperate-zone cherry blossoms can only grow at mid- to high elevations in Taiwan, which lies in the subtropics; when brought to the plains they mostly fail to adapt, and deaths are frequently reported.
Compared with foreign cherry varieties, the country's native cherry blossoms are better adapted to the local climate, but to flourish as groves on the plains, many hurdles still had to be overcome.
According to the "Flora of Taiwan" (A Brief Flora of Taiwan's Vascular Plants), Taiwan has 10 native species of the genus Prunus (including 1 variety): Taiwan cherry, Wushe cherry, Alishan cherry, alpine little white cherry, Lanyu wild cherry, black-star cherry, Taiwan bird cherry, round-fruited spiny-leaved laurel cherry and yellow-earth tree. The 10 native cherry species differ in shape and color, and the ones most often seen at scenic spots today are Taiwan cherry, Wushe cherry and Alishan cherry.
