Maolin National Scenic Area"

Shenwei Tiantai Temple is the largest Yiguandao temple in Taiwan. Located near the 14km mark of the Provincial Highway No. 27, the temple compound covers an area of over 300 hectares. The temple complex consists of a front, middle, and rear temple, which shines brightly under the sunlight and radiates solemnity. The Buddha statues sitting inside the temple are carved out from the largest white jade in Asia. They are held up by a table made of a hundred-year-old Cinnamomum camphora.

Taoyuan Township has 800 hectares planted with plum trees. Every winter in plum blossom season, visitors come to enjoy the scenery with its white plum blossoms. From March to April, when plums begin to mature, fruit farmers are busy picking the harvest. If picked ten days before the harvest season, the plums are not ripe yet and must be processed as bitter plums. In the middle of April, the harvest is used to make wine, produce preserved plums and dried plums, etc. Plums are thus one of the most important economic resources of Taoyuan Township: They add natural beauty and help the tourism industry, and they're delicious, too!

The Baolai Hot Spring Area is located in Baolai Village of Liugui and can be accessed by Baolai Bridge No. 1. It is now a famous Hot Spring Resort in the south, but it used to be a pristine forest in the Japanese colonial era. Back then, the region was covered by cypress, camphor, and zelkova trees, forming a lush forest that prompted the Japanese people to name the place Penglai Paradise, later known as Baolai.

Monkey Head Mushrooms are a kind of large-size fungus, whose surface is full of acicular growths that look almost like hair. They get this name because their appearance is similar to a monkey's head. The mushroom contains plenty of protein and polysaccharides, as well seven kinds of essential amino acids for the human body. The content of glutamic acid is pretty high and it is a very famous and delicious edible fungus. People believe they can raise immunity levels, lower cholesterol, cure gastric ulcers, and have anti-cancer effects. In Chinese tradition, the “king of mushrooms” along with swallow’s nest, bear's paw, and sea cucumber are considered four famous tonic dishes. Taoyuan Township's Baoshan Village mountain area has the high altitude, moisture, clouds, and mists to successfully grow Monkey Head Mushrooms. This local specialty ranges in price from $150 to $200 for each Taiwanese kilo (approximately 0.6 kilogram). Taste them in Baoshan, and don’t forget to bring some home: whether cooked in soup, deep fried or sautéed they make an unusual delicacy!

─Taoyuan Township office
─Kaohsiung Farmers’ Association