Beginning at 21:30 on March 27, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying posted four consecutive tweets on her Twitter account, using pictures, text and videos to praise the beautiful scenery of Guizhou Bijie Baili Rhododendron, Gui'an Cherry Blossom Garden and Guiyang Huaxi High Slope. From spring to April, in the "world's largest natural garden" - Guizhou Bijie Baili Rhododendron, the flowers bloom just right, and the spring is deep. Looking at the azaleas blooming in the "Earth Ribbon and World Garden", whose heart will not swing a variety of spring?
"Rhododendrons are like the sea, and the mountains are fragrant." Baili Rhododendron Scenic Area is located in the northwest of Guizhou Province, in the middle of Bijie City, with an area of 700 square kilometers, of which rhododendrons are concentrated in Pudi Township and Jinpo Township at the junction of Dafang County and Qianxi County. As the world's unique original natural rhododendron forest belt, stretching for more than 50 kilometers, about 1 km to 3 km wide, roughly northwest - southeast running through 2 counties, 7 townships and 68 villages (neighborhoods) of the territory, is so far China has identified the largest area and the largest variety of native rhododendron forest, known as "the world's largest natural garden". In the 125.8 square kilometers of the original rhododendron forest belt, there are more than 60 varieties in all 5 subgenera of rhododendrons in the world. There are mainly red dan sand lantana rhododendron, snow white large white flower rhododendron, tree-shaped rhododendron, Yingshan red, dewdrop rhododendron and other flower species. Among them, the rhododendron in the golden chicken basket block has a spectacle of one tree with different flowers and 7 different colors of flowers blooming on one tree. The most rare is the "Millennium Flower King" of 1260 years old and 252 cm thick trunk at the Baima Po scenic spot, which blooms in full bloom and is the largest rhododendron tree found on earth so far.
Jinpohua District of Qianxi County is 22 kilometers away from the county seat of Qianxi County, about 40 minutes by car. Due to slope decline, the rhododendrons in the Jinpo flower area bloom about a week earlier. The Main Flower Area of Jinpo is lantana rhododendron, tree-shaped rhododendron, dewdrop rhododendron, large white rhododendron and so on. Climbing up to the observation deck can photograph the reckless sea of rhododendrons, you can see a mountain of red azaleas connected to a mountain of yellow azaleas, the mountains are red and yellow, and the mountains are full of wildflower clusters, incomparably gorgeous, like being in a sea of flowers. A 15-minute drive from Jinpo Flower District can reach Pudi Flower District in Dafang County. Pudi, together with the three small flower areas of Baina, Dashui and Gamu, brings together the ornamental essence of the Baili Rhododendron Scenic Area, where in addition to lantana and dewdrop rhododendron, there are also charming reddish-purple rhododendrons and splendid rhododendrons. In the "Chronicle of Dading Fu" compiled in the Qing Dynasty, there is a record of "Huangping Shili Rhododendron", Huangping Shili Rhododendron is the epitome, representative and essence of the Baili Rhododendron Area, where the flowers are rich, colorful, yin red like lantana, goose yellow like tuan fan, silver like pink balls, lilac like jade plates, trees are more than ten meters high, dwarfs are less than a foot, thousands of flower trees abound, thousands of flowers and trees can be seen everywhere, it is really dazzling, thousands of purples and reds, and the weather is endless.
In the face of this rare original rhododendron forest, people are interested in its origins, which are related to the soil, climate and landform here. The Ci Hai says: "Rhododendrons are indicator plants of acidic soils. "From a geological point of view, where there is coal there are azaleas, where there are azaleas there are coal. On the rock wall of the Jinpo Dakeng Cave in Dafang County, there is an anonymous ancient poem of the Qing Dynasty: "Qianfeng Stacked Strange Ridge, Ujin Under the Hidden, Rhododendron Flowers Like the Sea, Wild Mountains Flowing With Strange Fragrance", the exposed strata in the Baili Rhododendron Area are mainly Permian strata, mostly mudstone, shale, sandy shale intercolum, which is the main coal-producing area in Dafang and Qianxi Counties, indicating that there is indeed an inevitable connection between coal and rhododendrons. Studies have shown that the rock resistance of the coal formation is weak, under the action of rainwater, soluble alkaline substances are easily leached by water, leaving a large amount of silica and iron aluminum materials, the soil type is mainly mountain yellow soil and mountain yellow brown soil, PH value is 4.5 ~ 6.5, the soil layer is deeper, this acidic soil is the most suitable for the growth of rhododendron soil conditions.
Climatic conditions are another important factor in the formation of the Thyme Rhododendron. This "natural garden" has formed a characteristic of no severe cold in winter and no heat in summer under the warm monsoon climate, creating a unique environment for the growth of rhododendrons. The flower area is located between 27°10′ and 27°20′ north latitude, with an average annual temperature of about 11.8°C and an average temperature of about 20.7°C in the hottest month. The coldest monthly average temperature is about 1.6 °C, the average annual precipitation is 1180 mm, the annual rainy days are as many as 220 days, the average annual number of cloudy days is 235 days, more cloudy days, less sunny days, the climate characteristics are cool and humid, rainy and foggy, belongs to the subtropical monsoon climate, especially suitable for the growth of cuckoos who like shade and humidity.
The geomorphological conditions here are more suitable for the growth of rhododendrons. Guizhou is a sharply rising plateau, high in the west and low in the east, rhododendrons are located in the slope area of the transition from the Qianzhong Plain to the Qianxi Plateau, a series of low and gentle hills in the plateau mountains, the altitude in the area is generally 1500 meters to 1800 meters, and the highest peak Jiulong Mountain is 2026 meters above sea level, the relative height is not large, and the slope is gentle. Moreover, the Baili Rhododendron is in the watershed zone of the Liuzhong River, the Yachi River and the Chishui River, and the watershed has not yet been completely destroyed by the river's cutting, and still maintains a primitive stripped surface. Peeling surface is the original plateau surface in the long-term stable state of the earth's crust, in the period of relative stability of the earth's crust, the soil layer is less washed, the soil is well developed, and the soil layer is thick, which provides good growth conditions for rhododendrons.
When the rhododendrons in the mountains are in full bloom, such as the vast brocade huazhang paving the mountains and covering the mountains, the beautiful Yi songs also reverberate in the valleys, and also echo in the hearts of the people who care about them. The Yi epic poems "Mei Ge", "King Zhiga Aru", "The Origin of the Yi People" and various folklore all have records and descriptions of the Worship of Azaleas by the Yi people, and the Yi compatriots worship the azaleas as sacred flowers. In the many traditional sacrifice activities of the Yi people, the "flower sacrifice god" is indispensable, in the course of thousands of years of history, the Yi compatriots have created the civilization of flowers, the worship of flowers and the culture of flowers, with the belief of flowers blooming rich and noble, but also because of the faith, to preserve today's Hundred Mile Rhododendron.
In the early morning of the day of the festival to the god of flowers, the Yi family will select nine beautiful girls, dressed in beautiful clothes, wash their hands cleanly, go up the mountain to collect nine azaleas of different colors, and insert them into the front bottle of the flower god that has been arranged long ago, which means that the mailu flower god appears to ascend to the throne. In front of the seat, pig, cow and sheep sacrifice offerings, incense paper salute cannons were placed, and the sacrifice procession was vast. With the cloth master: drumming, sounding gold, playing music, sounding cannons, the sacrifice begins, the Bimo sacrifice chanting, the clan sacrifice offering, the Yi family sacrifice skill, the ceremony of the sacrifice of all ethnic groups dancing together, the sacrifice ceremony is carried out in an orderly and undisturbed manner, the ancient solemnity, the rough and wild, the dashing and light and smooth, comforting the flower god, protecting the people's well-being, and blessing the prosperity of the flowers. Thousands of people participate in the festival of the flower god every year, which is just a microcosm of the ancient tradition of the flower god.