According to official figures, in 1972 only 1,600 hectares were under betel nut cultivation in Taiwan; by 1989 this had risen to 33,000 hectares. In southern Taiwan what used to be the odd row of betel nut trees planted at the side of a field have become vast stretches of betel nut plantations.
據農林廳統計，民國六十一年的種植面積只有一千六百公頃，到了七十八年，增加到三萬三千多公頃，將近廿倍。現在到了中南部，從前當做地界單獨一排的景象已成異數，取而代之的是蓊蓊鬱鬱的一大片，如碧傘蓋天。