More than 100,000 tulips will bloom and welcome visitors in Xiamen's botanic garden, Fujian province during the upcoming Spring Festival.

The tulip exhibition will be the largest in the garden and will highlight some 100 "Guotai" tulips.

In 2014, first lady Peng Liyuan, at the invitation of Dutch Queen Maxima in Amsterdam, poured champagne to celebrate a newly cultivated variety of tulip. Peng named the plant Cathay, or in Chinese "Guotai". The queen offered it as a gift to Peng.

Several botanical gardens and flower parks in China soon showed interest in importing the new variety and placed orders for fresh-cut flowers and bulbs through various channels.

Since Oct 1, Guotai tulip bulbs have been transported to multiple cities, including Changchun, Shenyang, Beijing, Hefei, Shanghai, Wuhan, Changsha and Xiamen.

Guotai bulbs have arrived in Xiamen, with other varieties to be delivered to Xiamen from Beijing by the end of December. They will be planted in the botanic garden and are expected to be in full bloom during the 2016 Spring Festival.

Guotai tulip flowers on display in Beijing on Feb 11, 2015. [Photo/ Asianews Photo]