Silvergrass in Late Autumn

"The reeds and rushes are ashy grey / The white dew has become frost"--The Book of Odes. The autumn winds give a deep sense of the season, and on Yangmingshan seas of blooming silvergrass plumes sway elegantly in the breeze. As they move, it is as if they were pulling back the curtains for the season.

Silvergrass, or giant miscanthus, grows on plains and low-elevation mountainsides throughout Taiwan. The cycle it follows is different from many plants. Every autumn, just as most plants are losing their leaves and birds are heading south for the winter, silvergrass plumes are just starting to come out. By late autumn, the whole mountainside is awash in flame-red plumes. Then in winter, the plumes' crimson gold luster fades to an ashy white. As they blow in the winter winds, the white comes through the yellow and beige of the foliage--a remarkably vibrant sight.

The blooming silvergrass often gives people a sense of an icy beauty. "Silvergrass, silvergrass, growing on the mountainside, growing in the plains. / You have leaves but no branches, nothing to rely on, bending when the wind blows." Lin Chien-lung's lyrics describe the characteristics of the silvergrass. In Taiwan it grows along the shore and on the mountainside--you can see it growing in any harsh environment. No ostentatious blooming or withering, it just blows in the wind, welcoming the autumn and the winter.

Tingpayen, Chinshan, Taipei County