Ancient trees are some of the largest living organisms on the planet, playing environmental roles that younger trees cannot fulfill. They are crucial for recycling soil nutrients and influencing the direction of river flows. With the sharp decrease in the number of large ancient trees in many parts of the world, the integrity of these ecosystems and biodiversity is seriously affected.

In recent years, regulations related to the protection of ancient trees have been introduced, and the Jiange government has included the number and growth status of cypresses as an important metric to be shared among county and township Party and government leaders to keep track of.

On the trunk of each ancient tree, there is an information plaque. In addition to basic information such as age, species and the person responsible for it, there is also a QR code that can be scanned to see more information about the tree's health.

"Sichuan provincial and Guangyuan city forestry experts often visit to train forest rangers on improved ways of inspecting and protecting trees. Each tree has its own ID card, and both the management and protection of the trees have become more scientifically standardized," Shi said.

Yang said, "The cypress trees are the symbol of Jiange. We must protect the world's largest artificial cypress forest just like we protect giant pandas."

Yan Zhongqian contributed to this story.