Friday, February 16, 2001, updated at 20:44(GMT+8)
Life
"King of Cypress in World" Garden Opens in Tibet
A scenic spot featuring plateau cypresses has opened to the public in Linzhi, the Tibet Autonomous Region.
The unique cypresses, concentrated primarily in Linzhi, grow on a mountain slope 3,040 meters above sea level. There are nearly 1,000 cypresses on the slope. The average height of the cypresses is 50 meters and the average diameter of them is one meter. The whole timber reserve is estimated at 5,400 cubic meters.
The tallest cypress is nearly 50 meters high with a diameter of 5.8 meters. It is about 2,500 years old. It takes 12 adults to encircle it by joining hands. So it is called the cypress king in China.
With the approval of the Tibet Autonomous Regional Government, the cypress wood protection zone was established in 1982. Coastal Guangdong Province donated more than 3.6 million yuan to build the ¡°king of cypress in the world ¡± garden, including a top-grade road, winding paths in the woods, pavilions and ecological protection facilities.