Chinese tanbark-oaks are now in full bloom in Songyang county. [Photo/Tide News]

Castanopsis sclerophylla trees, also known as Chinese tanbark-oak, in Songyang county – administered by Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province – are now in full bloom, bringing beauty and vitality to ancient villages in the area.

In the Pingshan Mountain farm of Gaoting village, three Chinese tanbark-oaks stand out from a distance. Their blooming flowers form a giant ball on the tree crown.

According to officials, the oldest is more than 1,000 years old. It has a height of 32 meters, a girth of 5.6 meters, and a crown width of 27.5 meters.

There are 341 ancient trees older than 500 years in Songyang, and 19 ancient trees older than 1,000 years. Among them, 37 are Chinese tanbark-oak.

Wu Weijian, an engineer at the forest resource protection and management station of Songyang county, said that they have taken measures to strengthen the protection of ancient trees. They have conducted technical surveys on each ancient tree, and recorded them in the ancient tree protection information database.

"Each ancient tree has its own exclusive ID. If you scan the QR code with your phone, you can read about the tree," Wu said.