This attraction introduction is compiled from historical materials in the "Zhangjiajie Tour Guide Network" (33519.com · Scenic Spots section). Ticket prices, opening hours, transportation, and contact information mentioned in the text may be outdated. Please refer to the latest official announcements from the scenic area before traveling; some content consists of historical background/cultural introductions and is for reference only.
Heping Park was built in the early days of New China by the Xiangtan Municipal People's Government to develop urban public utilities. It is located in the northern part of the city, west of the Xiangqian Railway, covering 36 hectares, of which 23 hectares are water surface and 13 hectares are land.
Heping Park is mainly a public recreation area featuring a unique forest climate and elegant natural environment. More than 100 species of tall trees such as catalpa, camphor, nanmu, magnolia, and ginkgo have been planted in the park, along with over 600 species and more than 40,000 plants of potted bonsai, flowers, and bamboos. Land coverage has reached over 80%, with forest land accounting for over 70% of the total area, highlighting the park's characteristic and function of being mainly "green."
The main attractions in the park include: the Bonsai Garden, Zoo, Roller Skating Rink, Hundred Flowers Terrace, and Children's Amusement Park. The Children's Amusement Park is particularly distinctive, with large electric airplanes, swings, hanging rings, seated rail rides, slides, bumper cars, and other facilities set among green trees, with an elegant environment and fresh air.
The flowers and bonsai cultivated and produced by Heping Park have begun to gain prominence nationwide. When the National Flower Association and China Bonsai Association held the first Chrysanthemum Exhibition in Shanghai in 1982, the tied chrysanthemum work "Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl" submitted by Heping Park won first prize. In the two Hunan Provincial Bonsai Exhibitions in 1985 and 1986, most of the various bonsai submitted by Heping Park won awards.
In April 1986, Wang Shoudao, a member of the Central Advisory Commission of the CPC Central Committee, inspected Heping Park and praised its bonsai for their strong Jiangnan flavor, and wrote the plaque "Xiangtan Bonsai" by hand for the Bonsai Garden.
Podocarpus
From the first gate to Hundred Flowers Terrace, along the green belt on the central axis, there are 13 podocarpus trees nearly a hundred years old, with gnarled branches stretching into the sky and dripping with verdant green.
