In the vast land of China, there are some very special "trees of the earth", naturally carved by rivers and lakes, mountains and canyons, with unique textures and magnificent presence, showcasing nature’s uncanny workmanship.
Coming to the coast, one can watch the tides wash over the tidal flats day after day, carving out tidal trees with distinct branches, which are both a unique coastal landscape and the lifelines that sustain the tidal flat ecosystem.
In the source region of the Yangtze River on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, upon the high-altitude wilderness, glacial meltwater converges and diverges, forming an intricate braided river system, resembling a banyan tree of the earth with lush branches and leaves, vast and spectacular.
In the Qiantang River in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, with the ebb and flow of the tide, the breathtaking wonder of the 'Tree of the Earth' has appeared on the river beach. (Image Source: VCG)
In late autumn, on the Red Beach at the mouth of the Yang River in Jiaozhou Bay, Qingdao City, Shandong Province, the "Tidal Tree" and red seepweed outline the autumn colours of the land. (Image Source: VCG)
Near the Zhangye Qicai Danxia scenic area, there is a wondrous spectacle formed by an arid, dendritic drainage system landform; viewed from a high altitude, it forms a lifelike "tree of the earth". (Image Source: VCG)
At Poyang Lake in Jiangxi, after the water level drops, the lakebed is exposed, and the water flow erodes branching gullies, along which lake grass then grows. From an aerial view, the green veins form a lifelike 'Tree of the Earth'. (Image Source: VCG)
At Qarhan Salt Lake, due to the hot and arid climate, water evaporates rapidly, and the salt in the lake gradually crystallises, forming "salt flowers" as clear and sparkling as jade. Set against the turquoise lake water, they are exceptionally beautiful. (Image Source: VCG)
+3
In Shandong Qinghai, large patches of hornwrack gather in coastal areas, and when viewed from a high altitude, they resemble a spectacular large green tree and are also described as the "grassland on the sea". (Image Source: VCG)
Next to the 2442 kilometre marker on National Highway 317 in Nagqu City, Xizang, flowing water erodes the land due to the special terrain, forming traces like a giant tree when viewed from the sky, resembling a "tree of the earth". (Image Source: VCG)
In winter, the Anjihai Grand Canyon is covered in white snow on its cliff walls, the river at the bottom of the valley freezes, forming a spectacular sight of "ice trees". (Image Source: Shutterstock)
Within the Qarhan Salt Lake, salt flowers and salt stalactites grow intertwined, creating unique salt lake trees, and the salt landscape has a distinctive charm.
The alluvial fan formed by the river's deposition as it emerges from the mountains (a fan-shaped terrain formed by deposition at the exit of a mountain river), resembles an outstretched ginkgo leaf, forming a gentle, tree-shaped landscape on the earth.
Not only water systems and salt flats, but weathering and erosion over long periods have also carved out numerous "trees of the earth".
For example, the Zanda Earth Forest in Xizang, Dahongshan in Siziwang Banner of Inner Mongolia, and the Zhangye Danxia National Geopark, after millions of years of weathering and erosion, have layered patterns resembling tree rings, becoming spectacular giant trees that mark the traces of time.
The "trees of the earth", with their various forms, are all romantic poems painted by mountains and rivers.