In the garden of Deng Shichang Memorial Hall in Haizhu, there is a Sterculia nobilis Smith that Deng Shichang planted when he was young over 100 years ago.

Deng is a Chinese hero who was one of the first-generation modern naval officers trained in China. He died heroically in the Battle of the Yellow Sea, a major naval engagement of the Russo-Japanese War, fought on August 10, 1904.

The tree is about 170 years old, with a height of 8.7 meters, a circumference of 158 centimeters, and an average crown width of 10 meters.

The tree in an old photo. [Photo/WeChat account: gzhzfb]

Feng Baohua, a 69-year-old Haizhu native, said, "My friends and I liked to come to this garden to play. This tree has always been famous, because according to legend, it was planted by Deng Shichang."

The tree was broken by a typhoon in 1991, but it didn't take long for the tree to sprout under the care of the Haizhu staff. This is the new tree that visitors can see now.

A recent photo of the tree in Deng Shichang Memorial Hall. [Photo/WeChat account: gzhzfb]