Red trees draw appreciative tourists in Guangzhou

Tourists in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, have been eager to visit parks and wetlands to see bald cypress trees, whose leaves — brushed by cold air sweeping down from the north — have turned red.

The bald cypress, which is native to North America, is a temperate tree species with linear and flat leaves, often growing to 50 to 70 feet tall, with branches spreading 20 to 30 feet wide.

The tree is noted for the russet-red color of its needle-like leaves, which first turn yellow in autumn, then turn copper red and finally fall off in the cold of winter.

The changing colors in a bald cypress forest usually last for about one month, presenting one of the most beautiful landscapes of the year.

At the South China National Botanical Garden, one of the best places in Guangzhou to view red bald cypress trees, the number of appreciative visitors has increased significantly, reaching 51,757 during the three-day New Year holiday, according to the garden's administrative office.