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島嶼行旅

Calla Lilies

Calla Lilies

Chang Chiung-fang / photos Jimmy Lin / tr. by Jonathan Barnard

June 2015

There’s beauty in numbers: a sea of green sprinkled with white bursts demonstrates the captivating allure of Zhu­zihu in early summer.

Thanks to the cool temperatures and ample rain, the calla lily season at Zhu­zihu on Yang­ming­shan lasts from March until May. When veiled in fog or set against the mists of distant Mt. Qi­xing, the fields of calla lilies seem just that much more pure, delicate, and mysterious.

The calla lily’s white funnel-shaped “bloom” is actually just one form of leaf. Botanically speaking, the plant’s true flowers are found on its yellow spadix.

With its pristine mountain spring water and perfect climatic conditions, Zhu­zihu offers the best possible environment for growing calla lilies. A farmer has gone out to the fields at break of day to pick calla lilies that he will bring to market.

With an appearance that is at once innocently pure and impressively grand, the calla lily is elegant in shape, color and fragrance. It’s eye-catching without being overly showy.

You take my picture, and I’ll take yours. A pretty girl strolling amid beautiful flowers only adds to the field’s appeal.

Themselves not much taller than the flowers, young children find the same joy in the green and white calla lily fields as they would in a maze.