Horticulture major pursues sweet bloom of success

The water lily is capable of absorbing lead, mercury, phenol and other toxic substances in water through its root system, making it a rare and useful plant for water purification, greening and urban beautification. Additionally, the plants have a long flowering period.

"I've found that the interest in gardening has been rising recently, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic," Li told China Daily.

"Many people now like to grow special and exotic plants or raise pets at home, and that creates space for the development of the water lily sector in the years to come."

He said that water lilies were first introduced to botanical gardens in China in the late 1970s.

"Unlike the lotus, which has been cultivated and appreciated since ancient times, the history of water lilies in China is short. It is still a new flower here," he said, adding that there are now many domestic enthusiasts and that professional institutions have started to study and cultivate water lilies. Those institutions have achieved rapid progress in recent years, he said, with some breeders even producing unique varieties that are competitive on the international market.

Li currently grows water lilies in large buckets on the rooftop of his ninth-floor home in downtown Guangzhou. He checks on them every day.

Passionate about the flower since he was 10, he previously ran a 0.73-hectare water lily park in Gaoming district of Foshan city, where he worked for a private horticulture company after graduation.