Giant Tree of Alishan Introduction
Alishan Sacred Tree is a red cypress that intertwines two trees and is over three thousand years old. It was once the largest in both age and diameter in Asia, located beside the 69th kilometer of the Alishan Railway, and is recognized alongside Alishan's sunrise, sea of clouds, high mountain railway, and cherry blossoms as one of the five wonders. In 1906, Japanese engineer Tomijiro Ogasawara discovered the Alishan giant tree group, with an average age of two to three thousand years. However, due to plans to build a forest railway through the area, three hundred thousand towering cypress trees were nearly all cut down. The lone old red cypress that remained was spared because its heartwood had been completely consumed by lotus root fungus, rendering it "useless" and allowing it to escape the axe, even being enshrined and revered. In the 42nd year of the Republic of China, the sacred tree tragically suffered from a lightning strike, where the lightning fire burned along its hollow trunk down to the ground, yet it still clung to a shred of life. Nevertheless, a second lightning strike in the 45th year of the Republic of China finally took off the branches from the upper half of the tree, leading to its complete death. In July of the 86th year of the Republic of China, the entire sacred tree could no longer withstand the wind and rain and collapsed, splintering into four large pieces, crushing the nearby Alishan Forest Railway. The Forestry Bureau then decided on June 6 of the following year to artificially lay the tree down in place, allowing visitors to pay their respects to the remains of this towering giant. To welcome 2007 and showcase Taiwan's resilient spirit, the second-generation Alishan Sacred Tree election was held. The tree formerly known as "Guangwu Cypress" was selected through a voting event organized by the Chiayi County Government, Alishan National Scenic Area Administration, and Chiayi Forest District Office, receiving a total of 13,846 votes. This tree is over 2,300 years old, stands 45 meters tall, has a diameter of 3.92 meters, and a circumference of 12.5 meters, making it quite massive and majestic, thus being elected as the second-generation sacred tree, and was renamed "Alishan Xianglin Sacred Tree" on January 1, 2007.
