The ginkgo tree behind the hall is said to have been planted during the Sui and Tang dynasties and is known as the 'Second Ginkgo Tree of China' and a 'living fossil of millennia.' During the Western Jin dynasty, Baita Temple was also known as the Xinxing Zen Master's Pagoda because its founder, Zen Master Xinxing, was buried near the temple after his death. During the Sui and Tang dynasties, it was the ancestral temple of the Three Stages Sect of Buddhism.
Luyuan Temple
Address: Baijiaping Village, Wangchuan Town, Lantian County. It is said that this ginkgo tree was personally planted by the Tang Dynasty poet Wang Wei, and the tree is about 1300 years old. Luyuan Temple was the former residence of Wang Wei's Wangchuan Villa. Today, Wang Wei's shrine and tomb can no longer be found. According to the 'Lantian County Annals', 'The site of the Apricot Hall is east of the temple gate, and there is now a ginkgo tree, which is said to have been planted by Mo Jie. After Wang Wei planted this ginkgo tree here, he named this courtyard Wenxing Pavilion. It is elegant and unique. Wang Wei wrote a poem: 'The apricot tree is planted as a beam, and the fragrant grass is tied as a house. I don't know the clouds in the beam, they go to make rain in the human world.'
Address: Louguantai National Forest Park, Zhouzhi County, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, located at the lower courtyard of Zongsheng Palace in Louguantai, known as the 'First Blessed Land under Heaven'. It is a 1.5-hour drive from Xi'an. It is said that the ginkgo tree in this park was personally planted by Laozi, the founder of Taoism, and it is now over 2600 years old. Unfortunately, it was destroyed by a fire in 1972, leaving the tree hollow inside. However, it managed to survive by relying on a few thick pieces of bark to transport nutrients. Miraculously, it has thrived to this day, bursting with thousands of branches and leaves, full of vitality, and is praised as the 'Panda of Plants' and the 'Golden Living Fossil'.
Bailu Ancient Temple
Address: Shimen Town, Sigou Village, Ganquan County, Yan'an City. Currently, Bailu Temple is the only ancient ginkgo tree temple in northern Shaanxi. According to the 'Yan'an Prefecture Chronicle' during the Jiaqing period of the Qing Dynasty, 'Bailu Temple was built in the Dali period of the Tang Dynasty and rebuilt during the Tianfu period of the Later Jin Dynasty. The temple is backed by mountains to the south and faces the Luo River to the north. The palaces are magnificent and the forests are dense. Throughout history, the temple was expanded during the Song, Yuan, and Ming periods.' For thousands of years, Bailu Temple has been very prosperous with continuous incense offerings. However, during the 'Cultural Revolution', Bailu Temple suffered great disasters, and various buildings and statues in the temple were destroyed, turning it into ruins. Nowadays, many people who travel to Yan'an come to this ginkgo tree during the golden season.
Duling Mausoleum Ecological Park
Duling is the tomb of Emperor Xuan of the late Western Han Dynasty, Liu Xun, located on a highland, known in ancient Han times as 'Honggu Yuan'. When Emperor Xuan was young, he enjoyed traveling on this highland, and after ascending the throne, he chose this place for his tomb. Since the Han Dynasty, Duling has been a tourist attraction in Chang'an, where scholars and literati would climb high to enjoy the scenery and leave behind many poems. Among them, Li Bai's 'Duling Quatrain' is the most famous: 'Climbing Duling in the south, looking north towards the Five Mausoleums. The autumn water and bright moon, the flowing light extinguishes the mountains.' In late autumn and early winter, the hundreds of acres of ginkgo trees in Duling turn into a golden sea, perfect for taking photos and capturing beautiful moments.
