Proclaim

Written by Peter Li-Chang Kuo ( Chinese ) The 2025 Tongluo Chrysanthemum Festival will open on November 15. Autumn rain brings a chill to the air, the nights grow longer, and the days shorter. As chlorophyll fades, yellow-orange carotenoids and red anthocyanins weave together to form a dazzling autumn landscape. Li Bai once wrote: “ The river city lies as if in a painting, the mountains greet the clear dawn; amid cold villages grow oranges and pomelos, autumn colors age on the phoenix trees. ” The poetic imagery beautifully echoes the essence of autumn. Jiuhu in Tongluo, Miaoli, is ideal for cultivating “ Chrysanthemum morifolium ” (Florist's Daisy, Han-chrysanthemum) due to its acidic, iron-rich red soil, high humidity, and wide temperature variations between day and night. After the devastating Typhoon Ellen (1959, the “87 Flood”) altered the soil composition, many paddy fields were converted into dry farmland — ushering in the rise of Hangju as the region’s signature cro...