Scenic Beauty and the Role of Greening the Environment

The peculiar charm of the gardens of Hangzhou as ingenious works of art results from a perfect fusion of what is endowed by nature and the work of man in the way of what is called landscape architecture and gardening today.

In this connection we will take as an example the case of the aforementioned A Placid Lake under the Autumn Moon. Here the salient features are autumnal scenery and moonlit scenery. For this reason, the trees planted here are predominantly orange osmanthus and red maples, supplemented by such aromatic plants as those of the genus of Michelia and tuberose. Different kinds of plant life have different roles to play in different seasons. Azalea in spring and maple in fall are both red in color, but are different shades of red with different visual appeal. Even on a single day a plant may have different kinds of visual appeal as morning turns into noon and afternoon into evening when luminosity seemingly registers imperceptible changes.

In terms of landscape architecture and gardening, different kinds of trees may evoke different artistic sentiments. Broadleaf trees that are not that regular in shape can lend a look of vibrancy and briskness while well-trimmed coniferous trees may help create an atmosphere of solemnity and serenity. The planting of trees and flowers has other useful functions too, for they are pleasant to look at in themselves, make the scenery nearby more enjoyable, fill the air with fragrances or are a source of soft, pleasing sounds. For these reasons, sweet osmanthus with its pleasant smell is often planted where there are tall buildings, and the gorgeous cottonrose hibiscus and lotus are often displayed in or near ponds and rockeries. A case in point is the scenic sight Lotus Flowers Caressed by Breezes in the Old Distillery Garden with its exuberant growth of lotus flowers.

West Lake lotus

On the two sides of the Su Causeway weeping willows and flowers blossoming forth in spring predominate in order to set off the artistic conceptualizations as embodied in the names“Mist-Shrouded Willows at the Six Bridges”and“Dawn over the Su Causeway on a Spring Day”. On Solitary Hill plum trees are the ever recurring theme and at Yunqi Temple bamboo-shaded paths are the main features to give expression to the aesthetic idea of “A path of towering bamboo high enough to touch the skies.”Sweet osmanthus is the flower symbolic of the City of Hangzhou. At the scenic sight called Sweet Rain of Osmanthus at Manjuelong there is a profusion of the plant and Changqiao Park is planted all over with it. Hence its nickname Park of the City Flower.

Of the scenic gardens in Hangzhou, some feature scenery that is season- dependent, such as that at Enjoying the Sight of Fish at Play at Flower Harbor（Hua Gang GuanYu）and that at Lingering Snows on Broken Bridge（Duan Qiao Can Xue） and some feature scenery whose appeal changes with the time of the day, such as that at Morning Light on Ge Ridge（Ge Ling Zhao Tun）and that at the Sound of Bells at Eventide on Nanping Hill（Nan Ping Wan Zhong）. In selecting trees and flowers for meaningful deployment in gardens, their shape and appearance are also an important consideration, for the way they look and impress themselves on visitors may have great symbolic or metaphorical significance and evoke in them some special sentiments and associations. For instance, in the garden of the Seal Engraver's Society, pine trees, bamboo groves and plum trees seem to be everywhere, since in Chinese culture these are symbolic of aloofness from mundane interests and of lofty and noble character. In the gardens of such places as tombs, shrines, ancestral temples, memorial tablet halls, historical sites, etc., sometimes low-hanging and squat-looking trees such as Chinese scholartrees are predominant, as a symbol of the mourning people feel for those who lie at rest there, as in the memorial temple of Yue Fei the Song Dynasty general. Sometimes in a place like this certain growths of trees are given a special poetic name on the basis of their shape and appearance to give expression to how people feel about what they signify, as in names like“Facing Danger Fearlessly（Lin Wei Bu Ju）”and“Outshining All Others in the South（Nan Tian Du Xiu）”, both of which signify the lofty spirit of a noble character.