Fluffy kochia color the park
Approximately 6,000 kochia (summer cypress) bushes turned shades of red and purple at Takino Suzuran Hillside Park in Minami-ku, Sapporo, as the autumn viewing season reached its peak in late October. The cute, fluffy, oval silhouettes aroused the curiosity of visitors to the park.
Kochia is an annual plant of the amaranth family. Seedlings were planted in approximately 3,000 square meters of meadows in early July and, as of October, had grown to diameters of between 30 and 50 cm. As temperatures became colder towards the end of October, the colors suddenly turned and visitors to the park could be seen enjoying photographing the plants.
A woman from Sapporo who visited on October 21 smiled as she said, “I look forward to them changing from the green of summer to the autumn colors, and I come to see them every week. I like the cute shapes, too.”
The kochia were all removed from the fields in the park by November 1, to make way for the planting of tulip bulbs, which will bloom next spring.
Location
Takino Suzuran Hillside Park
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