Rare flowers blooming at expo thanks to scientists
Print Edition
China鈥檚 achievements in the conversation of wild plants as well as its agricultural developments are on display at the Beijing International Horticultural Exhibition.
Scientists from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences searched 4,000 meters above sea level near Shangri-La, southwest China鈥檚 Yunnan Province, for rare wild peonies.
Seeds were carefully collected and brought back to Beijing as part of a conservation program for endangered plants.
China has more than 1,500 peony varieties but some of the wild varieties are endangered, said CAAS expert Wang Shunli.
The CAAS has bred more than 20,000 wild peony seedlings and transplanted hundreds back to their native places since 2012.
Dubbed the 鈥済iant panda of flowers,鈥 paphiopedilum is another critically endangered plant rescued by the program. This orchid was discovered in the 1970s on a few mountainsides along the Nujiang River in Yunnan Province.
Researchers from the CAAS have mastered artificial propagation and cultivation methods of some wild orchids that can effectively protect them in the wild.
Raising living standards
They have cross-fertilized wild plants to breed new paphiopedilum varieties with a wider range of colors, said CAAS chief flower expert Ge Hong.
They also have the potential to raise living standards in remote areas. Peonies can grow on less productive land and their seeds can produce oil while the stamens can be made into tea.
Flowers bred from wild varieties such as peonies and paphiopedilum are on display at the expo.
Meanwhile, China is one of the few countries in the world to have mastered plant factory technology, which is also on display.
Vegetables growing in nutrient solutions line shelves under red and blue lights. A computer automatically controls the temperature, humidity, light, carbon dioxide concentration and nutrient solution.
And nano-pesticides developed by Chinese scientists are on display.
It is estimated that nanotechnologies can cut pesticide use by 30 to 50 percent compared with traditional pesticides, significantly reducing residue pollution, while being just as effective.
Chinese scientists are expected to take the lead in realizing nano-pesticides鈥 large-scale industrialization.
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