Fuzhou is naturally called "Rongcheng" because banyan trees are all over the city, which makes the whole city surrounded by green shade. Banyan is the "city tree" in Fuzhou, and there are nearly 1000 ancient banyan trees in the urban area. In Fuzhou National Forest Park, there is a thousand-year-old banyan tree, 20 meters high, with a crown projection area of 1.330 square meters, which is equivalent to the size of two acres of land. It can be called "a single tree makes a forest", so it is known as "the largest banyan tree in Fuzhou" and "the king of banyan trees".
The largest banyan tree in Fuzhou
The history of planting banyan trees in Fuzhou began with Zhang Boyu, an official in the Northern Song Dynasty.
Zhang Boyu, 1003, was born in Jian 'an County (now Jian 'ou City, Fujian Province). Zhang Boyu studied hard and entered high school at the age of 2 1. Later, he was admitted to the Chinese book, was rated as excellent, and entered the officialdom. Under the recommendation of Fan Zhongyan, a famous minister in the Northern Song Dynasty, he served as a counselor.
At that time, Chen Zhizhong was the prime minister of the imperial court. Chen Zhizhong won the trust of Song Renzong and held power for some time. Zhang Boyu, on the other hand, refused to curry favor with him, saying, "The world has not been ruled, and there is no real prime minister, so it is also." The implication is that Chen Zhizhong is not a competent prime minister. Chen Zhizhong will certainly be very unhappy. He found an excuse to assign Zhang Boyu to other places to be an official. Song Renzong pitied Zhang Boyu's talent and ordered a reward of 50,000 yuan. Chen Zhizhong didn't want to, saying that there was no such practice before. Song Renzong rewarded Zhang Boyu in spite of Chen Zhizhong's opposition.
Zhang Boyu sculpture
After working in the local area for many years, 1065, 62-year-old Zhang Boyu was transferred to Fuzhou to be known as Fuzhou. Since then, Zhang Boyu has forged an indissoluble bond with this city.
Fuzhou is located in the southeast coast of China, and it is extremely hot in summer. At the same time, frequent typhoons and rainstorms have made Fuzhou people suffer from floods, and many people are sick. After Zhang Boyu arrived in Fuzhou, he decided to plant banyan trees in Fuzhou on a large scale after on-the-spot investigation. "Let the avenue dig six feet, and the banyan tree will be planted outside, and it will not thank at the end of the year." Banyan is a tall tree, which belongs to evergreen tree and will not wither all year round. After the banyan tree is planted into a forest, it can not only cool off the heat, but also resist the attack of typhoon and rainstorm, which really kills two birds with one stone.
Because the effect of planting banyan trees is very good, Zhang Boyu ordered the promotion in Fuzhou. Just a few years later, Fuzhou was "full of trees and green trees, not covered." In other words, when the banyan tree grows up, the city is full of shade, and pedestrians don't need to take an umbrella to keep out the scorching sun when walking in the city.
Banyan Tree Fuzhou
What is commendable is that banyan is a perennial tree, and it takes a certain number of years for banyan to become a forest. When Zhang Boyu was in Fuzhou, he was too old to stay in Fuzhou for a few years (he only worked in Fuzhou for three years). Planting banyan trees in Fuzhou is a thankless thing. However, out of the idea of serving as an official and benefiting one party, Zhang Boyu was duty-bound to do it.
Fortunately, future generations have not forgotten Zhang Boyu's contribution. 1068, Zhang Boyu left Fuzhou, and his successor was named Cheng Shimeng. Cheng Shimeng continued to plant banyan trees in Fuzhou according to the practice of Zhang Boyu, and wrote a poem praising Zhang Boyu: "On the third floor, there are still thousands of trees in the corner of the pillow city. I wonder if the Chinese have ever remembered the monarch? "
Banyan Tree Fuzhou
Walking in the green of banyan trees, Fuzhou people will naturally miss Zhang Boyu's achievements. In order to commemorate Zhang Boyu, in 1994, a sculpture was erected at the intersection of Yangqiao Road and Beijiangbin Avenue in Fuzhou, opposite Jinniushan Park. The main character of this sculpture is Zhang Boyu. In the sculpture, Zhang Boyu planted a banyan tree with a hoe in his hand. During the break, he looked at the lush scene with his hoe, and the image of "planting banyan trees" full of people-friendly feelings came to the fore.
Zhang Boyu has left a thousand years of "green wealth" to Fuzhou and won the reputation of "Rongcheng" for Fuzhou. Since then, "Rongcheng" has become synonymous with Fuzhou. Many scholars often refer to Fuzhou as "Rongcheng".
Fuzhou city
1895, after treaty of shimonoseki was signed, patriotic poet Xu Nanying joined the army and led his troops to guard Tainan and Treasure Island. Being outnumbered, Xu Nanying was forced to return to Fuzhou. When he saw off his good friend Li Hui Wuyi, he wrote a poem: "After the rain clouds overturned, they met the ancient Rongcheng. New congenial, moss cen old alliance. Playing the piano wants to change the tune and ask for arguments. Looking up at the sky, it is a weathered Dapeng. " Strong feelings for home and country are beyond words.
1February 8, 985, the 12th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eighth People's Congress of Fuzhou decided to name the banyan tree as the city tree.
Banyan Tree Fuzhou
Since Fuzhou is called Rongcheng, how many banyan trees are there in the whole city?
According to statistics, today, the total number of banyan trees in Fuzhou has reached 6.5438+0.6 million, and it is well-deserved "Banyan Capital" through the hard cultivation of people of all ages. Among them, there are nearly 1000 ancient banyan trees, 6 with a history of thousands of years and more than 600 with a history of hundreds of years. Today, this 1.6 million banyan trees of different ages are distributed in all areas of the city, forming a unique and beautiful scenic line, which attracts many tourists to stop and take photos.