Five new colors enhance rapeseed flower appeal

Last month, a vivid reddish-pink flower that bloomed unexpectedly during field trials drew particular attention. After 12 years of screening nearly 1.8 million rapeseed plants, researchers identified the unusual color in a small number of newly flowering plants at the university's agricultural science park in early March.

After confirming the shade did not match any in their existing database, Fu and his students compared it with standard color charts and named it "deep rose red".

The other four newly bred colors include "tiger-stripe orange", "metallic purple", "lavender purple" and "blood glutinous rice red", the team said.

Featuring deeper hues, richer saturation and improved ornamental traits, the new varieties enhance visual appeal, Fu said.