[Photo from english.zhangjiajie.gov.cn]

[Photo from english.zhangjiajie.gov.cn]

Zhangjiajie National Forest Park is China's first state-level forest park. With the approval of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, Zhangjiajie Forest Farm was formally named as "Zhangjiajie National Forest Park" on September 25, 1982. Up to March 1991, China established eight national forest parks, including Guangdong Shenzhen Wutong Mountain National Forest Park approved and established in May 1984, Henan Dengfeng Songshan Mountain National Forest Park approved and established in October 1986, Zhejiang Chunan Thousand-Island Lake National Forest Park approved and established in October 1986, Jiangsu Changshu Yushan Mountain National Forest Park approved and established in July 1987, Anhui Huangshan Mountain National Forest Park approved and established in June 1988 and Liaoning Dalian Lushunkou National Forest Park approved and established in November 1989. Zhangjiajie is extremely abundant in forest resources. The forest coverage is up to 97.7%. There are 93 families and 517 types of woody plants, twice than that in all of Europe. Zhangjiajie National Forest Park has many precious species of tree plants under state-level protection, such as the dove tree ("Chinese pigeon flower" called by foreigners) under national first-level protection. Plants such as bretschneidera sinensis, gingko, emmenopterys henryi, tulip tree, xiangyenan, eucommia ulmoides, cyclocarya paliurus, decaisnea fargesii (tertiary relict species), tapisciasinensis oliv, taxus chinensis var mairei are under national second and third level protections. Zhangjiajie National Forest Park boasts the world's top five families of plants such as composite family, orchidaceae, leguminosae, rosaceae and grass families. From the perspective of local tree species, the plants in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park account for 27.67% of Hunan tree species and 81.78% of tree families in Hunan. The native tree species include ailanthus vilmoriniana dode in simarubaceae; populus lasiocarpa and chuaner poplar in salicaceae; yichang nanmu, machilus nanmu, yichang pungent litse fruit and cinnamomum bodinieri in lauraceae; acer kawakamii and acer franchetii in aceraceae; bladdernut in staphyleaceae; Chinese hazel in corylaceae; safflower mulan, sepetir namu, manglietia patungensis and ficus tikoua in magnoliaceae; sloanea hemsleyana and pyrenacantha in elaeocarpaceae; hosiea sinensis in ru family; dipelta floribunda in caprifoliaceae; encalyptus in flacourtiaceae, etc. Besides, there is cephalotaxus oliveri in trefoil taxodiaceae of gymnosperm.

Most of these precious trees are national treasures, which are of great value and can be widely used. Dove tree (Chinese pigeon flower) is considered as a living fossil as it witnessed the evolvement of the earth during different geologic ages. Except in a few places in China, such precious species in other parts of the world have been frozen to death and disappeared in the quaternary glacial age. Emmenopterys henryi not only has a good texture but can also give out fragrance. The delicate fragrance diffuses around once an emmenopterys henryi is cut. Maidenhair tree is also considered to be a living fossil. It has a good and beautiful texture, and also bears eatable and medicinal fruit that can be widely used. Sloanea hemsleyana (also known as "sloanea sinensis") is a valuable oil plant. 50 kg of Sloanea hemsleyana seeds can produce 29 kg of oil, which boasts a higher oil yield rate than that of rapeseed and camellia seeds. The white oil is of high quality and is the favorite food of the monkeys living here. Tulip trees (usually known as "liriodendron Chinese") are a very good landscape plant. Cercis gigantea has red flowers covering its branches and is a very beautiful ornamental plant. Red torreya tree has pinkish red color, and is anticorrosive and sour resisting. Food made in the red torreya steamer will not be spoiled after several days in summer, therefore is it a unique treasure in the mountains. Chinese walnut has excellent anticorrosive effects; a buried coffin made of such wood will not corrode after a long time. The large coffin of Changsha Mawangdui female corpse was made of Chinese walnut so it is not corrupted after being buried for more than 2,000 years. Taxus chinensis is as hard as iron. When it is dried, even a steel nail cannot pierce it. Toona ciliata var (usually known as "mahogany") is a superior carving material. Betula insignis not only has a beautiful and soft texture but also has excellent tenacity so it's not easy to break but also is superior aircraft stock. Manglietia patungensis is evergreen. Alpine winter sweet blossoms in the cold of winter. Cephalotaxus oliveri tip is a good cancer medicine and the gutta percha tree can be used as glue and medicine. The park also has numerous economic plants widely used in daily life such as camellia, pine trees, bamboo and so on.

Plants in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park is divided into seven categories: oil plants, medicinal plants, fiber plants, aromatic plants, starch sugar plants, grass tanning plants and ornamental plants. The oil plants include camellia tea-oil tree, sloanea hemsleyana, pavieasia, Cornus wilsoniana, Chinese walnut, beech, fagus lucida, etc.The oil plants like the tung tree, Chinese tallow tree, wild maple, coriaria sinica, rhus chinensis, pungent litse fruit, litsea cubeba, and cinnamomum bodinieri, can not only produce edible oil, but also produce oil for industrial useage. There are hundreds of types of medicinal plants such as gastrodia elata, eucommia ulmoides, golden cypress, mangnolia officinalis (mountain lotus), Chinese goldthread, paris polyphylla, liriodendron Venus (tulip tree), etc. The fiber plants include aspen, Chinese parasol, daphne kiusiana var. atrocaulis, cottonrose hibiscus, small paper mulberry, platycarya strobilacea, fengyang, Chinese walnut, green camphorwood, trema dielsiana, kudzu, sinofranchetia, akebiaquinata (chocolate vine), calamus faberii and a variety of bamboo. Sugar and starch plants include pueraria lobota, pteridiaceae (maidenhair fern), kiwi fruit, bryony, kousa dogwood, castanea mollissima (Chinese chestnut), sloanea hemsleyana, sharp chestnut, quercus (common oak), mountain ginkgo, chuanbang, elm, mulberry, rosa laevigata (Cherokee rose), etc. The tanning plants mainly are rhus chinensis, red fuyang, platycarya strobilacea, quercus variabilis, pistacia chinensis (Chinese pistachio), etc. The ornamental plants include colored flowers, rhododendron, magnolia officinalis (mountain lotus), qingfu flower, michelia alba (white champak), michelia champaca (joy perfume tree), lobster flower, camellia, chrysanthemum, peach flower, plum flower as well as various wild flowers.

Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, covering 13 square kilometers, is known for its unique landscape with lush forests dominated by quartzite sandstone pillars. Bubbling brooks and charming lakes wind around the area and connect giant caves. The State Council established the park in 1982 and is China’s first national forest park.

Zhangjiajie, known as one of China's most beautiful nature reserves, has wonderful hiking trails in a serene environment of staggering natural beauty. Park highlights include: Huangshizhai (yellow stone stronghold), Golden Whip Brook, Yaozizhai, Yuanjiajie, and Zhangjiajie village. The park also houses a hospitality center with a population of 500 local people. Tourist facilities are established including the four-star Xiangdian International Hotel four. Other facilities include Pipaxi Hotel, for government VIP receptions, the three-star Honghegu Hotel, Minsu Hostel, Yalin Hotel, and some hostels like Transport Hotel and Railway hotel. There’s a post office, China Mobile office, a bank of agriculture with ATM access for foreign credit cards, an internet cafe, local restaurants, and shops for daily necessities and local souvenirs.

Transport information: Zhangjiajie National Forest Park is 32 km away to Zhangjiajie, 38 km away to Zhangjiajie Train Station and airport. It will take 40 minutes drive to Zhangjiajie National Forest Park; public buses run between the city and the park.

Origin of the name: The new name of Zhangjiajie was adopted in 1994, after the National Forest Park in the Wulingyuan Scenic Area (武陵源). The new name followed the designation of a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992. Zhangjiajie was selected as the name for the park because it’s the name of a small village located within its bounds. The village is now a popular tourist attraction within the park.

The three-character name (张家界) can be interpreted as follows: Zhang (张) is a common surname in China, jia (家) can be translated as family, and jie (界) can be translated as homeland, giving the completed translation as “Zhang family homeland”. It has been reported that at least one tourist guide has said the name may have been chosen to convey the idea or impression of opening the family door to welcome the world, but this is not the locally-accepted and directly translated meaning of the name.

Location: Wulingyuan Scenic Area

Star rating of attraction: Five-star tourist attraction