Flourishing array of botanical wonder

Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG), ringed on three sides by the Luosuo River, a branch of the Lancang - or Mekong River - was founded by leading botanist Cai Xitao five decades ago and has since evolved into a comprehensive research, popular science, tourism and conservation center.

As the nation's largest botanical garden, it covers 900 hectares and has nearly 12,000 species of plants, some of which have been introduced from other parts of the world.

Since its founding, XTBG scientists have completed some 900 research projects, 3,000 academic papers and published more than 30 books.