Exotic feast for the eyes greets visitors

By Yuan Shenggao | China Daily | Updated: 2019-01-29 07:30

Despite the winter chill in Beijing, workers are busy planting exotic trees and flowers in Yanqing district, in preparation for the International Horticultural Exhibition 2019, which is slated to open in April.

The upcoming event, also known as Beijing Expo 2019, will offer a feast for the eyes, showcasing various types of plants, such as flowers, vegetables and fruit trees, herbs and tea, according to Zhou Jianping, executive deputy director-general of the Beijing World Horticultural Expo Coordination Bureau.

Of these are more than 1,200 traditional Chinese floral types and new plant varieties, including over 40 from abroad, according to Zhou.

Flowers are a key part of building a "beautiful China" and the country's flower industry is in full swing, said Jiang Zehui, president of the China Flower Association

Government data showed that flower plantations in China grew from 14,000 hectares in 1984 to 1.4 million hectares in 2017, ranking the country top of the world, the website of China National Radio reported.

The sector yielded 153.3 billion yuan ($22.77 billion) in sales in 2017, growing exponentially from just 600 million yuan back in 1984. Its export value topped $600 million in 2017 from tens of millions of dollars in 1984.

As a result, the country has grown into one of the world's largest flower production centers and a major consumer and trader in flowers.

Beijing Expo 2019 will showcase the latest plant varieties, gardening technologies, ideas and research achievements from China and the rest of the world, Jiang said.

Hosting the expo is spurring the growth of horticulture in its host district of Yanqing.

Local authorities have earmarked nearly 100 million yuan to improve infrastructure and support the industry, creating new jobs for locals, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Horticultural Business District, a new gardening business incubator, is under construction in Yanqing, where more than 99 million yuan has been spent in infrastructural facilities, irrigation projects and research into new plant varieties.

Scores of modern horticulture industrial parks have been built in the HBD, covering germplasm resources, production demonstration and planting centers.

To date, the HBD has attracted 23 horticultural businesses and 10 key research institutions including a national flower research center at Beijing Forestry University, said Wang Shuqin, deputy head of the Yanqing gardening and greening bureau, at a news conference earlier this month.

Of these, seven research institutes and companies have experimented on 1.12 million plants, which involve more than 1,600 varieties.

China Agricultural University is cooperating with the industrial parks in the HBD to have 15 new chrysanthemum varieties developed, which all have been recognized as intellectual property, and another 35 varieties that have market prospects, Wang added.

Nearly 3,000 local farmers work at the HBD, with an increase in per capita income ranging from 8,000 yuan to 20,000 yuan, Xinhua reported.

Capitalizing on hosting Beijing Expo 2019, Yanqing can revamp its horticulture industry, improve its infrastructure and environment and increase jobs for locals, Wang noted.