PLANTS IN CHINA: FLOWERS, BAMBOO AND ORIGINAL GARDEN PLANTS

PLANTS IN CHINA

Golden Lotus Bananas

China is the only country in the world with unbroken transition from tropical to subtropical to temperate to boreal forest. There are over 31,142 species of plant in China, an eighth of the world's total and third largest total in the world after Brazil and Indonesia. All of them are described in the 126-volume “Flora of China”. The gingko, cathaya and metasequoia, — trees that date back to the dinosaur — can still be found growing in the wild in China.

Much of China's natural vegetation has been replaced or changed by thousands of years of human activity. Isolated areas still support one of the world's richest and most varied collections of plants and animals. Large areas in the west are covered by sparse grasses or desert. The most dense forests are in the southeast. There are bamboo forest, where giant panda’s live in Sichuan Province. Nearly every major plant found in the tropical and temperate zones of the northern hemisphere can be found there.

According to the Worldmark Encyclopedia of Nations: In all, more than 7,000 species of woody plants have been recorded, of which there are 2,800 timber trees and over 300 species of gymnosperms. Among flowering plants, 650 of the 800 known varieties of azalea occur in China, while 390 of the 450 known varieties of primrose and about 230 of the 400 known varieties of gentian are also found there. The tree peony, which originated in Shandong Province, appears in 400 varieties. The richest and most extensive needle-leaf forests occur in the Greater Hinggan Ling (Khingan) Mountains of the northeast, where stands of larch, Asian white birch, and Scotch pine flourish, and in the Lesser Hinggan Ling (Khingan) Mountains, with stands of Korean pine and Dahurian larch. In the Sichuan Basin, vegetation changes with altitude to embrace a variety of conifers at high levels, deciduous trees and cypresses at middle elevations, and bamboo in lower elevations. Farther south, in subtropical Fujian and Zhejiang provinces, broadleaf evergreen forests predominate. Forests give way to natural grasslands and scrub in drier western and northwestern areas, especially in the semiarid regions of Shanxi and Shaanxi, in the steppes of Inner Mongolia, and along the desert margins of the Tarim and Junggar basins. [Source: Worldmark Encyclopedia of Nations, Thomson Gale, 2007]

Professor Derk Bodde wrote: ““Among other plants and plant products, two have risen to positions of very considerable world importance within the last few decades. One is tung oil, extracted from the nuts of the tung tree, grown in Central China. Tung oil is used in almost all varnishes made today because it dries so rapidly. The other is that wonder plant of modern biochemistry, the soy bean. Grown in North China since time immemorial, it is now being used more and more in this country. It not only makes a flour incredibly rich in food elements of all kinds, but is converted into plastics and a thousand and one other products used in modern industry. Although Manchuria still remains the chief source of the world's supply, the soy bean is being grown in steadily increasing quantities in our Middle West, and may in time become one of America's leading crops. [Source: Derk Bodde, Assistant Professor of Chinese, University of Pennsylvania, November 8, 1942, Asia for Educators, Columbia University afe.easia.columbia.edu]

Three Friends of Winter: Pine, Plum and Bamboo

According to the National Palace Museum, Taipei: “The “three friends of winter” refer to the pine, plum, and bamboo. The origin of this term is found as early as the “Record of the Five-cloud Plum Cottage from The Clear Mountain Collection” of literary writings by Lin Ching-hsi (1241-1310, a Song Dynasty loyalist); “For his residence, earth was piled to form a hill and a hundred plum trees, which along with lofty pines and tall bamboo comprise the friends of winter, were planted. Every year, as the season progresses from autumn to winter, the days become progressively colder. While many plants and trees begin to wither away or shed their leaves, the pine, plum, and bamboo seem to do just the opposite with their surprising display of vitality. Indeed, this unique quality was not lost upon the ancient Chinese. [Source: National Palace Museum, Taipei, npm.gov.tw]

Chinese Landscape With Pink Plum Blossom Trees

“In Chinese thought, the always green and fragrant pine (bearing craggy and twisting branches) reaches up to the skies with its straight and powerful trunk like an upright person imbued with the strength and virtue to overcome all. In “The Analects of Confucius” (551-479 B.C.), it is written, “In winter, the pine and cypress are known as the last to fade away Consequently, the pine became considered as the ultimate test of time, symbolizing a wise old person who has withstood and experienced much.” Therefore, in “Records of the Grand Historian” by Ssu-ma Ch?ien (145-86 B.C.), the pine was already known as “Chief of the Trees.”

“Although the bamboo may not be nearly as imposing or sturdy as the pine, it too remains mostly green through the winter as segment upon segment reach out with abundance and stamina to withstand the cold. Unlike the pine, however, the stalk of the bamboo is hollow, which came to symbolize tolerance and open-mindedness. Furthermore, the flexibility and strength of the bamboo stalk also came to represent the human values of cultivation and integrity in which one yields but does not break.

“The plum tree is renowned for bursting into a riot of blossoms in the dead of winter. Its subtle fragrance spills forth at one of the coldest times of the year, making it difficult to go unnoticed. Though neither the plum tree nor its blossoms are very striking, they manage to exude an otherworldly exquisiteness and beautiful elegance during the desolation of winter. The demeanor and character of the plum tree thereby serves as a metaphor for inner beauty and humble display under adverse conditions.

“The praise that the Chinese have for the pine, plum, and bamboo derives from the natural ability of these trees and plants to withstand and even flourish in harsh environments. They became symbols that encouraged people to persevere in adversity, providing inspiration through consolation and determination. Consequently, these three became common subjects through the ages in Chinese painting and calligraphy. Because artists bring different sets of conditions, experiences and feelings to these subjects, the result is a variety of forms, expressions, and sentiments in their works.

Bamboo in China

Chinese address pine trees, cypress tress and bamboos as "the three friends in winter time". The great Northern Song Dynasty writer, Su Dongpo, once wrote: "we will do without meat when eating, but we cannot do without bamboos when living". He also described that "we build houses with bamboos, we sit on rafts made of bamboos, we write on paper made of bamboos, we wear bamboo hats, and we cannot part with bamboos for even one single day". [Source: Chinese Academy of Sciences, kepu.net]

Bamboo is a kind of grass that can grow to size of a tree. The stems are hollow, polished and jointed and sometimes reach three feet across. Some flower and seed every year; others only do so once every 60 years or so. Some species of bamboo die off en masse after a single flowering. One such die off killed hundred of giant pandas in China in the 1980s. Depending on the species, the die off can occur everywhere from once every dozen years or so to once every century.

There are 300 species of bamboo in China and more than a 1,000 species worldwide. Some bamboos such as “Bambusa Arundinacea” of India and “Phyllostacys” of China reach heights of 100 feet. Moso bamboo, used to make fabrics, can reach a mature height of 75 feet in two months. Hikers who run out of water in the Malaysian rain forest can get a bout a canteen's worth by boring a hole right above the joint of large stalks of bamboo.

Some of China's earliest records were written on bamboo in the second century B.C. and hundreds of characters in the Chinese language sprang out of pictures of bamboo. Bamboo often appears as a symbol in Chinese art. According to one Chinese scholar, "Philosophers say the smooth expanse between nodes represents virtue, a long distance between faults, and the hollow interior bespeaks modesty and humility."

Uses of Bamboo in China

China is the world’s largest bamboo producer. The province of Guangdong produces about 40,000 tons of bamboo a year. Some of it is exported to Europe for tomato stakes, to Scandinavia for ski poles, and to the United States for fishing poles. Bamboo cuttings used to make these items take only six to eight weeks to mature. Bamboo is also used in making pipes, bongs, vases, and tools. In China bamboo is used in panda food, shoulder poles. and flooring.

The Chinese use bamboo as a construction material: the frames for village huts and scaffolding for high-rise buildings are made of bamboo. Centuries ago Chinese engineers developed the idea of twisting bamboo into cables used on suspension bridges. The great bridge over the River Min in Sichuan, which has stood for over a 1000 years, is supported by seven-inch-thick bamboo cables, which are wrapped around spools and tightened like guitar strings. [Source: Luis Marden, National Geographic, October 1980]

Bamboo shoots, sometimes called bamboo babies, are a favorite spring time food. You can often see people poking around in earth for bamboo before it surfaces, when its is tender and tasty. A day can make the difference between a tender one and a tough woody one. Bamboo shoots are usually boiled and stir fried.

In Chinese medicine, black bamboo is used to treat kidney ailments and prickly heat, while the juice squeezed from plant helps bring down fever.

Bamboo can made into a silky fabric that is highly absorbent and antibacterial, using a process similar to the one that turns wood pulp into rayon. Specialty shops and store chain sell bamboo-based clothing and linens. Green consumers like bamboo-based products because their source is renewable and products are made without many added chemicals. The amount of bamboo for textiles shipped by China increased 10-fold between 2004 and 2006.

Types of Bamboo in China

Q.tunidinoda Hsueh et Yi is a rare species of bamboo indigenous to southeast China. Its big unusually-shaped rings have great artistic and industrial value. In recent years, they have been extensively logged in Sichuan to make walking sticks. In Yunnnan province, people are fond of eating bamboos shoots from this species and collect bamboo shoots in large numbers and cut down bamboo trees for firewood. As a result, Q.tunidinoda Hsueh et Yi is seriously endangered in some places. This precious bamboo species is unique to China and grows best at an altitude of 1800 meters to 2,100 meters. [Source: Center of Chinese Academy of Sciences, kepu.net.cn]

Pandas like eating arrow bamboo and black bamboo. They prefer bamboo roots, shoots, and leaves, especially shoots. Pandas eat different types and parts of bamboo according to the season. In spring and summer, they like eating different kinds of shoots; in autumn, they enjoy the leaves of bamboo; in winter, their main diet is bamboo roots. [Source: China Highlights]

Arrow bamboo grows best on mountains the slopes at 1,300-2,400 in a warm and humid environment such as Sichuan's eastern area. Many people believe that arrow bamboo reproduces annually but that is not case. It flowers every 60 years on average — blossoming once, bearing seeds, and then dying off. When arrow bamboo dies off like this pandas have to find substitute food of they to die off as was the cases in the 1980s.

Black bamboo (Phyllostachys nigra) is a species of bamboo native to Hunan Province but and is widely found elsewhere. Reaching a height of up to 25 meters (82 feet) tall by 30 centimeters (1 feet) broad, it forms clumps of slender arching canes which turn black after two or three seasons, hence the name. The abundant lance-shaped leaves are 4–13 centimeters (2–5 inches) long.

Golden Lotus Bananas

Golden lotus bananas (Musella lasiocarpa) produce rare and interesting flowers. Also known as Chinese dwarf banana and Chinese yellow bananas, they are the sole species in the genus Musella and thus a close relative of bananas and plantauns, and like them isalso a member of the family Musaceae. Golden lotus bananas are native to Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan Provinces in China, where it grows high in the mountains up to an altitude of 2500 meters. The plan’s erect, yellow pseudostems generally appear during the second year of cultivation, and can last a few months. Just before opening, the yellow, flower-like pseudostem resembles a lotus - from which the plant gets one of its names. [Source: Wikipedia]

Golden lotus banana plants are vivacious herbal plants that are is generally less than one meter (only a few feet) in height; Their green leaves look like those of plantain plants. On its stalks grow lotus-like flowers. s of the plantain family. It is primarily found in Yunnan, but can also be and it also scatters in Sichuan province of China. [Source: Chinese Academy of Sciences, kepu.net]

Golden lotus bananas have another name — "lotus of 1000 pedals". They grows in clusters. Their aboveground parts, the leave sheathes, overlap with one another. The leaves are dark green in color, and oblate in shape; the top of the leave is pointed. The leaves can grow as long as 50 centimeters, with a width of 20 centimeters.

Golden lotus banana plant has a long blossoming period — as long as 250 days. The six flower sheaths of the plant form a wheel, which grow on the top or in the armpit of the plant, like pedals in golden shining. The flowers spread out from bottom to top, and can keep unsapless for quite a long time. The flower sheaths are bright and beautiful, just like pieces of lotus flowers in full blossom. The real flowers of the plant are sweet, tender and small; the flowers are yellow alternates with green in color and they pack in the buds; and the flowers only stick out after the buds burst open. Since its false stalks are short and thick, the plant grows flowers first and leaves later. It gives people the impression of growing out of ground suddenly in early spring; therefore, it gets its Chinese name. The flowers are numerous, and are outstanding in beauty, fragrance and color; they win over other flowers not only because they have large flower coronals, but also because they have special features: when they are growing verdantly, they can produce many small flowers in the leave liquids, and form a miraculous scene of "many stars boosting the moon".

The Buddhist Dai people in Xishuangbanna have golden lotus bananas at their Buddhist temples, which are found in almost all villages. Golden lotus bananas are listed as one of the "five kinds of trees and six kinds of flowers to be planted in temples". They are widely planted in Xishuangbanna. In Dai literary works, the golden lotus banana flowers are deemed as the symbol of kindness and holiness. There are descriptions about them in many works. Fai and other peoples use the liquid of golden lotus bananas to dissolve liquor and poison. The false stalks can be used as the fodder of pigs too. Golden lotus banana flowers can be used as medicines, especially those aimed at healing women's illnesses such as whites/

Garden Plants That Originated in China

pink peony

Many common garden plants such as the regal lily, golden-throated white trumpets, white mist poppies, various forsythia bushes, clematis vines, rhododendrons, dogwoods and primroses originated from Hengduan Mountains, a biologically rich area between Yunnan, Sichuan and Tibet. Most of them were described in scientific literature for the first time by British plant hunter Ernest Henry Wilson, accompanied by a dozen men and 15 mules, who collected plants in the area on several expeditions in th

The plants form this area became fixtures of gardens in the West because they were beautiful, hardy and could survive the chill of the British and New England winter. Wilson's input is recognized by the number of species that bear his name. Many of the rhododendrons that grace the world’s gardens originated in Tibet and were collected by George Forrest, a late Victorian plant enthusiast who dodged authorities in China to bring seeds for “R. sinogrande” for the potting sheds of J.C. Williams of Cornwall.

Professor Derk Bodde wrote: “Our flower gardens are indebted to the Chinese for the chrysanthemum and the tea rose, both of which began to be commonly cultivated in Europe during the eighteenth century. Other flowers which came to Europe at about the same time include the camellia, the azalea, the China aster, and the tall woody-stemmed tree peony. [Source: Derk Bodde, Assistant Professor of Chinese, University of Pennsylvania, November 8, 1942, Asia for Educators, Columbia University afe.easia.columbia.edu]

Wild Rose (Rosa rugosa Thunb) is an endangered species in China. Although roses are widely cultured in China, wild ones are quite rare. In recent years, wild roses have been found along the southern coast of Liaoning province and the Jiaodong peninsula of Shandong province. But their number is quite small and because of careless collecting and digging by local people. Wild roses contain genes that could be useful in cultivating new rose cultivars. The plants have 0.03 percent perfume oil that can be used in making high-class perfume, perfumed soap and cosmetics. It is also used in Chinese medicine to regulate qi, invigorate the blood and serve as an astringent. The fruits can eaten or used as medicine. The big and beautiful flowers are wonderful to look at. [Source: Center of Chinese Academy of Sciences, kepu.net.cn]

Magnolias

Magnolias are one of the most primitive plants in evolutionary history and fossil records show that magnolias once existed in Europe, North America and Asia over 100 million years ago. Today they are indigenous only in Southern China and the Southern United States. There are about 80 species of magnolia of which roughly half are tropical.

Magnolia officinalis (commonly called houpu magnolia or magnolia-bark) is a species of Magnolia native to the mountains and valleys of China at altitudes of 300–1500 meters. It is widely distributed in the north subtropical zone. Its bark can be used in medicine. Due to over-barking and logging, the number of trees has shrunk sharply. Now, wild magnolias are rarely seen. Most forests of magnolia are made up of artificially planted trees.

The officinal magnolia is a widely distributed throughout southern China. It has scientific significance to researches on East Asia and North America flora and taxonomy of the magnolia family. The officinal magnolia is valued for both it medical use and as a timber wood. Its big leaves and the shade the tree offers as well as its beautiful big flowers make it a popular ornamental and roadside tree species.

Endangered Plants in China

Fan-shaped fern (Neocheiropteris palmatopedata) is a rare fern unique to China. It has great scientific value to the botanical categorization of fern plants, and for this reason has attracted the attention of botanists from all over the world. The roots of the fan-shaped fern can also be used in medicine. The Fan-shaped Fern is vulnerable species mainly found in the subtropical mountain forests in southeast China. Due to over-logging and change of environment, the area in which it is found has decreased rapidly. This plant has been introduced in some areas with an altitude of 1850 meters.[Source: Center of Chinese Academy of Sciences, kepu.net.cn]

Dipteronia dyerana is the only member of a botanical family. It has unusual fruits and is only found in China. For these reasons, it is of great significance to the understanding of the origin and evolution of some plant families and research on the geographical distribution of some flora. Dipteronia dyerana is sparsely distributed in the mountain areas of central and southeast China. Due to over-logging, the number of full-grown Dipteronia dyeranas is very small. In addition, because of its weak natural regeneration ability, saplings are also very rare. Therefore, this species is in urgent need of protection. It grows best at an altitude of 1700 to 1920 meters.

Invading Plants in China

Hundreds of species of alien plants have been introduced to China since the country started opening up in the 1990s. Of these 400 have been categorized as invasive, with some causing severe damage to the environment. These species have already caused more than $14.5 billion in economic damage according to an article by Chinese and American researchers in the journal. Grass imported from the United States is spreading at a rapid pace.

Among the most damaging are water hyacinth, alligator weed and water lettuce, which were introduced in the 1960s and 70s as cheap animal fodder. These plants grow very quickly and have escaped into rivers, lakes, ponds, and canals, outcompeting local plants, choking waterway, depriving water life of oxygen and light, and blocking water intake pipes. Thus “causing much damage to fisheries, irrigation and natural ecosystems in a many as 20 provinces. Other invaders include ornamental plants.

Subtropical and warm-temperate forests represent the northern and eastern fringe of one of the world's great forest traditions. Starting on the southeastern slopes of the Himalayas, Asia's evergreen broad-leaves stretch in a wide belt clear across southern China to the Pacific seaboard. Along their southern edge they include stretches in northern Myanmar and Vietnam. On reaching the coast, the warm currents permit them to sweep northward to Japan and the very tip of the Korean Peninsula. [Source: Kevin Short, Daily Yomiuri, January 20, 2011]

These forests should not be confused with true tropical rainforests, which throughout the region border them on the south. The component species and overall ecosystem of these forest types are substantially different. To the north, the evergreen broad-leaved forests give way to cool temperate deciduous broad-leaved woods, which in some places are dominated by beech and deciduous oak. Evergreen broad-leaved trees have thick leaves that are often covered on the upper surface with a thick coat of waxy substance that affords some protection from the cold. This coating gives the leaves a bright shiny aspect.

See Reforestation

Image Sources: Wikimedia Commons

Text Sources: New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Times of London, National Geographic, The New Yorker, Time, Newsweek, Reuters, AP, Lonely Planet Guides, Compton’s Encyclopedia and various books and other publication

Last updated April 2025