Daan Water Umbrella Plant Ecological Education Park Introduction
Daan Water Hyacinth is a national treasure-grade endangered plant species, blooming from October to February, and is endemic to Taiwan. In 2000, a coastal ecological education park was completed locally, which not only cultivates Daan Water Hyacinth but also features many other coastal plants, including Bitter Reeds, Taiwan Coast Olive, Narrow-leaved Mandarin, Water Yellow Skin, Yellow Leaf Banyan, Taiwan Thousand Layers, Weeping Fig, Yellow Mallow, Elaeagnus, Lin Tou, Qionghai Begonia, Matsu cherry, Three-leaf Ginger, and Taiwan Tamarind among dozens of coastal species. The Daan Water Hyacinth Ecological Education Park is situated in a pond on the southern bank of the Wuliao River in Daan District, primarily aiming to rehabilitate this endangered plant. The Daan Water Hyacinth is a perennial aquatic herb, with upright stems in a quadrangular column shape, and dense hairs at the nodes. The leaves are arranged oppositely, are paper-like, and lanceolate in shape, producing purple tubular flowers. The fruit is oval-cylindrical, making it a rare species endemic to Taiwan. The "Water Hyacinth" is only distributed in the coastal wetlands of Daan District, Qingshui District, and Longjing District in Taichung City. Due to habitat destruction, its population is extremely scarce, necessitating careful protection and rehabilitation efforts.
