Maple and plum blossoms take turns blooming at Shimen Reservoir – red foliage and white blooms create a captivating mix

Cold fronts keep coming, and plum blossoms at Shimen Reservoir are blooming in full force. (Photo provided by cloud user Gary)

Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

Red maple leaves and white plum blossoms paint a picturesque scene. Currently at Shimen Reservoir, the maple leaf season is gradually giving way to the plum blossom bloom. While the red leaves have not yet completely faded, the white plum blossoms are starting to flourish, creating a stunning contrast of red and white throughout the landscape. The Shimen Reservoir Management Center noted that this overlapping period of red and white blooms will last for about another two weeks, encouraging visitors to seize the opportunity to admire this rare and beautiful sight.

According to the reservoir management center, the maple leaves in Acer Park and Xizhou Park are gradually entering their fading stage but have not completely fallen. Meanwhile, nearly 300 plum trees in the park have begun to bloom snow-white flowers due to the successive cold fronts. Beyond just plum blossoms, some pinkish flowers have also started to appear on the branches of nearby mountain cherry trees, giving the entire area a "colorful" and vibrant look.

▲ At Shimen Reservoir, the red maple leaves have not yet completely faded while the snow-white plum blossoms have started blooming, bringing together a mix of red and white hues across the park. (Photo provided by cloud user Gary)

Management staff estimate that the maple leaves will fully fall in about one to two more weeks, so those hoping to catch the rare view of intertwined red and white blooms should do so soon. As for the plum blossoms, they are still in full bloom, and once the weather clears up and warms following a cold front, the snow-white blossoms will quickly burst forth in greater numbers, emitting a delicate fragrance. Mountain cherry blossoms, on the other hand, bloom later, typically around the Lunar New Year.

In addition to Shimen Reservoir, other scenic spots in the Taoyuan area where visitors can enjoy plum blossoms include the Jiaobanshan Scenic Area in Fuxing Township, the Chiang Kai-shek Residence at Jiaobanshan, and the Fuxing Villa run by the Youth Corps. Among them, the Jiaobanshan Scenic Area spans 6 hectares and is planted with nearly 200 plum trees. The plum blossoms are now gradually covering the whole valley, and the area features comfortable walking trails – making it a great spot for visitors to personally experience Taoyuan’s “plum blossom scenery.”