Yuxuan Sun / 孙宇轩

Yuxuan Sun / 孙宇轩

he/him

Master's student at Department of Landscape Architecture

Summer Practice: Investigation and Conservation Strategy Research Project of Ancient and Famous Trees in Wuhan, China

3 minute read

Published:

By Yajun Li, Yujie Chen, Jingjing Gao, Yifan Yang, Yuxuan Sun and Kaiwei Xiong.

This is a record of the summer practice in 2015, aimed at writing practicing. Part of the content is from “古木之歌”暑期社会实践记录 originally written in Chinese by Yajun Li.

Against the backdrop of increasing importance placed on the protection of ancient and famous trees in China, we formed a team from the School of Landscape Architecture at Beijing Forestry University, traveled to Wuhan to conduct field investigations in areas where ancient and famous trees are concentrated within the city. The team conducted scientific assessments of the growth locations and surrounding environments of these ancient trees.We aimed at mastering the methods for investigating ancient trees, and gaining an understanding of specific protection measures for them.

Fig.1

Fig.1 Survey sites 1

We selected several concentrated communities of ancient trees and famous trees, including Wuhan University, Baotong Temple, Shouyi Park, and East Lake Area (including Wuhan Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy Of Sciences), for on-site survey and recording.

Fig.2

Fig.2 Survey sites 2

We recorded information such as tree height, diameter at breast height, crown width, growth status, site environmental conditions, damage from pests and diseases, protective measures, etc., as depicted in Figure 3-5.

Fig.3

Fig.3 The Gleditsia sinensis in Wuhan University, lived for over 100 years

Fig.4

Fig.4 The Xylosma congesta in Wuhan University, lived for over 120 years

Fig.5

Fig.5 The Celtis sinensis in Wuhan University, lived for over 100 years

We visited Wuhan City's most famous ancient tree (a ***Ginkgo biloba***) and interviewed experts in the maintenance of ancient and famous trees from the Garden and Forestry Administration. We sought to understand the current resources of ancient and famous trees in Wuhan and consulted them about techniques related to the maintenance and rejuvenation of ancient trees.

Fig.6

Fig.6 The famous Ginkgo biloba, lived for over 500 years

In this field survey, we investigated a total of 41 ancient and famous trees, representing 14 species from 12 families, as is shown in Table 1.

Table.1 Record of tree species

NumberSpeciesNumber of TreesPercentage of Total / %
01Gleditsia sinensis12.4
02Sinojackia xylocarpa24.9
03Celtis sinensis12.4
04Ginkgo biloba819.5
05Choerospondias axillaris12.4
06Quercus mongolica717.1
07Acer buergerianum12.4
08Liriodendron chinense12.4
09Celtis julianae1331.7
10Platanus orientalis12.4
11Camphora officinarum12.4
12Pterocarya stenoptera12.4
13Pinus thunbergii24.9
14Ulmus parvifolia12.4

Among them, there were 8 Ginkgo biloba from the Ginkgoaceae family, accounting for 19.51% of the total, and 13 Celtis julianae from the Ulmaceae family, accounting for 31.71%. Among these 14 species, 10 are indigenous species, accounting for 87.80% of the total number, such as the Sinojackia xylocarpa, Ginkgo biloba, and Celtis julianae. Some are long-standing introduced species, such as the Pinus thunbergii introduced from the south temperate zone of Asia, the Platanus orientalis introduced from Europe, and the Camphora officinarum introduced from the subtropics.

You May Also Enjoy