Camphor laurel

Vegetation: There are green plants on the plains all the year around. As the climate varies with altitude, so does the natural vegetation. Stands of mixed bamboo, palm, and tropical evergreen grow in the lowlands; subtropical evergreen forests including camphor laurel are found from 2,000 to 6,000 feet; broad-leaved evergreen forests of the temperate zone are represented by cedars, cypress, junipers, rhododendrons, maples, and cryptomeria (Japanese cedar) from 6,000 to 8,000 feet; and coniferous forests are found above 7,500 feet.

With many mountains, Taiwan has abundant timber. The Taiwan Forest Bureau, in charge of the national forest land, is responsible for the planting, protection, and logging of forests. The annual production of forest products, including plywood, reaches an average of about 1,200,000 cubic yards, exclusive of firewood.

Agricultural products: The single most important crop is rice, with a total planted area of about 1,000,000 acres. More than 60 percent of the paddy fields are double cropped and nearly two-thirds of the rice produced is higher-grade pon-lairice. Sugarcane is another important agricultural product, with a total planted area of 235,000 acres. Tea plantation is mostly in the north.

Hemp and jute are grown in the middle and eastern part, while a different variety of hemp is grown in the south. Pineapple is one of the principal export products. Fruits and vegetables, such as bananas, litchis, longans, peaches, watermelons, and oranges abound; all these fruits are canned for export. Vegetables are much sufficient to meet the consumption needs of the island.

kingfisher

Animal life: Similar to that in southern Chinese mainland, includes deer, wild boars, bears, monkeys, goats, wildcats, and panthers. Birds include pheasant, geese, flycatchers, kingfishers, larks, and many other species. Fish abound in the coastal areas.

Fishery production has increased to over 650,000 tons annually. About 12 percent of this is produced by fish farming. The balance is caught in rivers and in coastal water. The warm currents in the Pacific Ocean off the east coast provide good deep-sea fishing grounds, especially for tuna. The Taiwan Fishery Bureau was established to help develop the fishing industry, and the number of fishing vessels also increase.

chinataiwan.org