My love for ancient trees
Text/Zhang Futang
Time flies so fast, to May 10, 2023, my cycling history will be a full seven years! In the process of riding, I gradually developed a strong interest in ancient trees, people often say that "ancient trees are feng shui", most of them have experienced the baptism of the years, witnessed the warmth and coldness of the world, and most of these ancient trees grow in temples or ancient cemeteries, and survive under the protection of the gods. Some of these ancient trees are also regarded as sacred trees by the local people, and they are worshipped, and the ancient trees are also protecting the good people. Some of the trees are obviously from the south, but they have grown in the north until now and have become ancient trees. It's amazing that some of the trees that were originally shrubs have grown into trees.
In the face of this ancient tree, I am thinking, the ancient tree with its vicissitudes and heavy history to carry the process of human beings from ignorance to civilization, human beings to the ancient trees are just a hurried passerby, the change of dynasties, spring and autumn, ashes, trees are not human. If we can read the vicissitudes of the ancient tree, understand the ancient echo of the ancient tree, feel the soul of the ancient tree, and feel the inner spirit of the ancient tree, then we will reach the realm of transcendence.
In view of this, in March 2023, I will sort out the ancient trees I found in northern Shaanxi during my seven-year cycling and share them with you. In the past five years, I have found and appreciated a total of 22 types of ancient trees (jujube tree, jujube tree, pear tree, apricot tree, locust tree, cypress, willow tree, maple tree, mulberry tree, willow leaf buckthorn tree, honey locust tree, linden tree, eucommia tree, Tsubaki tree, elm tree, ginkgo tree, peony tree, white Du tree, canopy fruit tree, barberry tree, caragana tree, catalpa tree) a total of hundreds of ancient trees, some of which are more than 2,000 years old, and some are hundreds of years old. Due to the past few years, some photos can't find the original picture, coupled with my limited photography level, some photos may be taken at a bad angle, and some photos are forwarded from the circle of friends or screenshots on Kuaishou, resulting in low clarity of the photos. Thank you for your valuable comments.
Barberry with fine leaves
Berberis poiretii Schneid. is a deciduous shrub of the family Berberis, a small genus, that can reach up to 2 meters in height. Old branches grayish-yellow, young branches purple-brown, with ribs, leaves papery, leaves inverted-lanceolate to narrowly inverted-lanceolate, occasionally lanceolate, spoon-shaped, with small pointed heads, base tapering, dark green above, lateral veins and reticular veins distinct, glabrous on both sides, leaf margins flattened, spike-like racemes with flowers, including peduncles, often drooping, peduncles glabrous, flowers yellow, bracts stripe, small bracts lanceolate, outer sepals elliptic or oblong-ovate, inner sepals oblong-elliptic, petals obovate or elliptic, ovules usually solitary, berries oblong, red, flowering in May-June, fruiting in July-September。
It is distributed in Jilin, Liaoning, Inner Mongolia, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hebei in China, and also in North Korea, Mongolia and Russia. It grows at an altitude of 600-2300 meters above sea level in mountain shrubs, gravel textures, steppe deserts, ravines, river banks or underforests. The roots and stems of Barberry fine-leaved can be used as a substitute for Coptis chinensis, mainly for the treatment of dysentery, jaundice, joint swelling and pain, etc. It has a well-developed root system and more lateral roots, which has the effect of slowing down the surface runoff velocity, retaining flood and silting, stabilizing the slope surface, and consolidating the land and preventing erosion, and is a good soil and water conservation tree species in mountainous areas.
My name is Barberry Tree, more than 500 years old this year, I grew on Nangong Mountain, Huaishucha Town, Zizhou County, I am a shrub, I have more than 50 branches, the height of the tree is about 5 meters, and the diameter of the tree is about 200 centimeters.
Caragana chapter
Caragana arborescens Lam. (scientific name: Caragana arborescens Lam.) is a small tree or shrub, 2-6 m tall, with dark gray, smooth, ridged branches, green or yellowish brown when young, and oblong-obovate leaves. peduncle 2-5 clusters, 1 flower per peduncle, joints in the upper part, bracts small, bristle-like, calyx bell-shaped, corolla yellow, flag petals rhomboid, broadly ovate, keel petals slightly shorter than flag petals, petal petioles slightly shorter than petals, ears blunt or slightly triangular, ovary glabrous or pubescent. The pods are cylindrical and glabrous. The flowering period is from May to June, and the fruiting period is from August to September. It is produced in Heilongjiang, northeast Inner Mongolia, Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi, eastern Gansu and northern Xinjiang. Born in the woods, at the edge of the forest. It is used for garden ornamentation and greening, and can also be used as soap and paint. Caragana is light-loving, but also more shade-tolerant, cold-resistant, can safely overwinter in a low temperature environment of -50 °C, drought resistant and barren, the soil requirements are not strict, it can grow normally in mild saline-alkali soil, avoid water accumulation, and long-term water accumulation is easy to cause seedling death.
My name is tree caragana, this year is more than 500 years old, I grew in Zizhou County Huai Shucha Town Nangong Mountain, I am a shrub, I have more than 20 branches, the tree height is about 5 meters, the diameter of the tree is about 150 centimeters, the crown width is about 30 square meters.
A recent photo of the author Zhang Futang
About author:Zhang Futang, male, born on June 5, 1973, member of the Communist Party of China, university education, from Tianzhuang Town, Suide County, now works in the People's Government of Tianzhuang Town.