Page 42 - An Overview of Penghu

Australian pine tree, Indian almond, albizia lebbeck, and Formosa acacia for reforestation, and protected
them from humans and animals with densely-planted agave on the periphery of the forest.Compared with the
original 28-year plan, the new plan could be completed 12 years earlier and helped to save up to 42,636
Taiwanese yen while presenting a better result.

Ÿ Windbreaks for field protection:

To solve the problems long besetting Penghu, namely shortage of food supply for the islanders and
forestry facilities, the government set up “cooperatives of windbreaks for field protection” in towns and
villages. The government initiated a ten-year plan from 1929, drafting 12,000 Taiwanese yen of subsidies to
protect about 310.3744 hectares of fields by creating a windbreak that was 3 ft wide and 174,544 m long. To
maintain the windbreak, the government needs to plant 1.6 million Australian pine trees. That amounts to 33
trees per 3.31 m2, 545.454 m of trees every 0.96992 hectares, or 5,000 trees per 495.87 m2.

An additional 2.6 shao of river tamarinds per 3.31 m2 (note: 1 shao equals to 0.018 litters), or 24 shi
(note: 1 dan equals to 180 liters) per 310.3744 hectares, were planted in the same area to keep the field dry
and prevent desertification. A densely-planted windbreak that was 3 ft tall and 2,181.8 m wide was erected at
the side where the wind was most ferocious. To implement the project with more efficiency, the government
stopped planting river tamarinds in 1931, as they hampered the growth of Australian pine trees when planted
together. However, the budget for this project was cut to 3,011 Taiwanese yen per year, so the government
had to modify its goal accordingly, reducing the land protected to 77.5936 hectares and the size of the
windbreak to 363.633 m.

Ÿ Basic windbreak

Basic windbreaks are windbreak walls protecting fields. Since they are the most effective measure
against winds, the government chose to install them at the northern edge of major fields, aligning them
vertically with the direction in which seasonal winds blow. The wall was four feet high and wide, and had a
layer of five to six feet tall satintail growing on it, which served as the first protection mechanism against the
wind. Inside the satintail layer, an eight-foot wide layer of Australian pine trees was planted, with a density
of 42 trees per 3.31 m2, in order to block the vicious seasonal winds.

The budget of this project came from the disaster relief funds in 1929. The Government-General of
Taiwan earmarked 39,300 Taiwanese yen of subsidies to help set up 15,454.53m windbreakers in Magong
Town, Huxi Village, Wangan Village, and Baisha Village. It even extended the project in 1931, planning to
build 66,727.206m windbreaker fences in areas of up to 242,645.72 m2 in the following ten years, meaning
that it had to build 6,363.63m fences for 13,000 Taiwanese yen per year. However, the project was hit by a
cut in funding and could only receive 6,890 Taiwanese yen in 1931, forcing the government to lower the
target length of windbreaks to 2,727.27m. The deadline for the project was thus extended proportionately.

Ÿ Straw-clay windbreak fences for field protection:

The government had earmarked 2,000 Taiwanese yen annually for three years, starting from 1926, to
build 72.7272m straw-clay windbreak fences. Since the fences proved to be effective installations for
preventing winds, the government extended its fence-building project for another ten years, starting from
1929, and planned to build 7,272.72m windbreak fences for 2,000 Taiwanese yen every year. The windbreak
fences were built in the following way. A one-foot deep foundation was laid underground first, and then two
coral stone or basalt stone walls of 2 to 2.5 feet were erected on both sides, with soil being placed in
between. Satintail plants were grown 2 feet apart in the soil. Fences of 1.81817 m were rewarded 0.45
Taiwanese yen of funds from the government, which distributed 1,800 Taiwanese yen of funds in 1932.

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