Following cherry blossom celebrations across Taiwan in February and March, the tung blossom takes over in April and May. The flowers may appear anywhere from the southern mountains all the way to northern Taiwan. The blossoms on the hills look like waves in the sea moved gently by the winds, and the exquisite tableau of fallen blossoms has won the title of “Snow in May.”

In recent years, the tung blossom has become a symbol of Hakka communities across Taiwan, with the Tung Blossom Festival developing into one of Taiwan’s 12 major annual Hakka events.

With tung blossoms gracing Hakka communities every year, the Tung Blossom Festival has become a major annual Hakka celebration.

Floral discovery

On April 11, the festival’s opening ceremony was held at the New Era Art Resort & Spa in Nan­tou, with events scheduled to take place from then until May 17 in Hakka communities across Taiwan’s 14 cities and counties. A total of 1117 celebrations are being held, supported by 112 public agencies, private groups and schools, and attracting large numbers of visitors to Hakka communities.

The next event was “Discover the Tung Blossom,” held at the He­xing Train Station (on the Nei­wan Line) in Hsin­chu on April 18. The event included a road run and concert organized by the Hsin­chu County Government. The Evergreen Symphony, renowned vocal artist Susie ­Chien, and popular singers Jia Jia and Andrew Tan all performed at the concert, adding aural excitement to the visual.

Some compare the snow-white tung flowers covering the hillsides to a bridal veil, creating a scene of beauty and romance.

Snow-white blossoms

The tung tree, a species in the spurge family of flowering tropical plants, grows rapidly, producing a strong but light wood. Because of its vitality and strength, the tree has come to symbolize the perseverance and diligence of the Hakka people.

According to studies, the tree’s first flower blossom emerges about 20 days after the inflorescences first appear, but the blooms last for only a short period. From when the petals start to emerge from the bud, to blossoming, and finally to full bloom takes somewhere around 36 hours, and the flower withers within a further 48 hours. So tung blossoms in full bloom last for only two days, and soon fall to the ground.

People have different ideas about the relationship between the tung blossom and the Hakka people. Liu ­Ching-­chung, head of the Hakka Affairs Council (HAC), tells us that the five petals of a tung flower represent the five tastes of Hakka peoples’ lives: sour, sweet, bitter, spicy and salty. “This is one of the beauties of Hakka life.”

In fact, the tung tree was once an important cash crop for the Hakka.

In 1977, the tung tree was one of the major species utilized when Taiwan’s government implemented an accelerated reforestation policy on state-owned land in mountain areas. The government encouraged people to plant tung trees, and the wood was processed into products for export, earning valuable foreign exchange dollars. Tung tree oil, a raw material for the manufacture of paint, was extracted from the seeds. And the well-known paper umbrellas produced in the Hakka community of Mei­nong in Kao­hsiung are coated with tung tree oil to make them waterproof.

Set up by the HAC, the Hakka Tung Blossom Festival website publishes information useful to those wanting to see the flowers, and shows the best tung blossom scenic trails throughout Taiwan.

There are around 108 scenic trails across Taiwan, including Tao­yuan Village Forest in Chang­hua, Mt. Feng­huang in Tai­chung, Lu­chu­keng Tung Blossom Trail in Tou­fen Township, ­Miaoli County, Hsin­chu County’s Jiu­qionghu Trails, Xi­ding Road between Xi­zhi and Shi­ding in New Tai­pei City, and Shen­keng, also in New Taipei City. Visitors to these areas will be able to view the beautiful tung blossoms in all their majesty. Why not choose a good time to see the flowers and experience the romance of “tung blossom rain”?

Masses of beautiful tung blossoms create a spectacle on Miaoli’s Mt. Dawo between late April and early May.

Fallen tung blossoms afloat on the rivers signal the end of spring and the beginning of summer.

Winds blow and the flowers fall; tung blossoms carpeting the ground maintain their shape and pure white color.

Winds blow and the flowers fall; tung blossoms carpeting the ground maintain their shape and pure white color.

Tung Blossom Park Trail on Mt. Tianshang in Tucheng District, New Taipei City, is probably the most popular area to view tung blossoms convenient to Taipei, attracting many visitors on hiking expeditions.

When the cherry blossoms finish, the tung flowers take over, a key feature of Taiwan’s mountain regions from late April to early May. Pictured here, a mass of tung blossoms can be seen along the Pingxi railway line.