The virtually consistent rain in the early spring of 2019 has meant many people have not yet had the chance to savour this year’s fascinating beauty of flower blossom. With improvement to the weather, however, Nanjing now enters its delightful flower viewing season.
Plum Blossom
This year, due to the prevalence of rain and low temperatures, Nanjing’s plum blossom period has been slow to show its beauty. Meihua Shan is the first plum mountain in China, where the current Chinese flower varietals such as Green Cricket are already in full bloom. Elsewhere, in Xuanwu Lake Park, more than 2,000 plum blossoms have been gradually blooming.
Cherry Blossom
Cherry blossom in Nanjing has become a symbol of the city, and an expectation for all Nanjingers in March. Without question, the most famous cherry blossom viewing location is beside Jiming Temple. It is a tradition that once the very first tree blooms, a formal announcement is made. Under the backdrop of the ancient buildings of Jiming Temple and Nanjing Paleontology Museum, this is the most beautiful cherry blossom road in Nanjing.
There are also more than 3,000 cherry trees around Xuanwu Lake. You will surely regret missing out on the tall, stretched weeping cherry.
A new choice for Nanjing cherry blossom viewing is the Nanjing Friendship Cherry Blossom Garden, located in Xiaoniu Shan, Dazhou Village, Niushou Shan Scenic Area. There are 18 cherry blossom varietals in the park, including early cherry, late cherry and mountain cherry. The annual flowering period is approximately 45 days, making now the best viewing period; the Nanjing Friendship Cherry Blossom Garden is open until April 30.
A total of 1,200 cherry trees are also planted along both sides of Huashen Avenue and in the central green reservation.
Peach Blossom
In many people’s minds, peach blossoms signal the real arrival of spring. In Nanjing, although peach blossoms are not as famous as plum blossoms and cherry blossoms, they are also widely cultivated. The peach blossom’s flowering period is between 1 and 1 and a half months.
There are 100 acres of “Peach Blossom Island” in the Provincial Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and more than 4,000 peach trees are to be found therein.
Baima Park is a garden dominated by Peach Blossom. As the temperature rises further, so the 10,000 peach trees in the park enter their flowering period, lasting until the end of April.
Violet Orychopragmus
Finally, this oft-forgotten sea of purple flowers is another kind of spring to be found in Nanjing. Each year, the essence of Nanjing University of Science and Technology is Violet Orychopragmus, while in the past few years, the Zhongshan Botanical Garden has planted 2 km of February Lantern on the hillside south of the Rose Garden, another spectacular sight this spring.
