On the high mountains in northwest Yunnan and other places, between the forest line and the snow line, there is a special area - the alpine flowing rock beach. It is composed of large and small stones formed by cold chopping, thermal expansion and cold contraction. There are no lush trees and shrubs, and it looks like a desolate "stone sea" with no signs of life, but if you look closely, you will find that there are various beautiful and unique alpine flowers quietly blooming between the stone crevices, and these dotted flowers form a unique landscape belt.
Photography / Cheng Bin
The silent flowing rock beach hides the alpine garden
The mountains in northwestern Yunnan are famous for their snow-capped mountains, such as Baima Snow Mountain, Yulong Snow Mountain, and so on. The scenery beneath the snow-capped mountains is just as magnificent: there is a dense jungle between the valleys, and above the forest sea are meadows, flowing rocky beaches and glaciers that extend from the top of the mountain. In the distance, the drifting rocky beach between the forest and the ice and snow on the top of the mountain is silent, and there seems to be neither lush vegetation nor the majesty and holiness of ice and snow, and even the soil is difficult to see. But when you actually climb to The Rocky Beach, you'll find a wonderful alpine garden.
Ta Huang, Photography / Niu Yang
It's summer, but the snow and ice have just melted. This is an unnamed mountain at the junction of Sichuan and Yunnan, with an altitude of about 4500 meters. Between the thick and thin clouds, a tower yellow plant more than 1 meter tall thrives among the wet rubble blocks everywhere, in stark contrast to the seemingly desolate environment around it.
The delicate body is named after the rock
Grate leaf rock whiskers, photo / Cheng Bin
Rock whiskers, judging from the name, seem to be a kind of small plant that grows in the crevices of rubble, in fact, the true appearance of rock whiskers is far more lively and lovely than the message conveyed by the name. This is a class of higher plants with flowers, the plant is no more than a few centimeters tall, the calyx is bright red, and the bell-shaped corolla is clear and white, like a shy elf.
Himalayan Yanmei, Photo by Peng Jiansheng
On the gravel-covered mountains, there is also a class of petite flowers called "rock plums", whose names are like sisters with rock whiskers, and their flowers are as beautiful as rock whiskers. In the high mountains with strong winds and violent temperature changes, it is difficult to imagine how their weak bodies have multiplied for generations in harsh natural environments.
Blue glorious melody
Graceful Grey Butterfly, Photography / Niu Yang
On the flowing rock beach of Shika Mountain in northwest Yunnan, beautiful blue bells bloom dottedly, and the petals are bluer than the clear sky on the high mountains. Their plants are small and low-key, but the flowers are conspicuous and open to attract pollinators.
Beautiful blue bell flower, photography / Cheng Bin
There are many blue-purple flowers on the mountain, and many people have speculated that such colors can reflect back ultraviolet light with strong radiation damage, so that the petals reduce the risk of being burned by sunlight. Walking on the flowing rock beach, it is often seen that the blue flowers suddenly spread their wings and float into the air, which may be three or five graceful gray butterflies that are startled from the cow dung, and the trajectory of the flight is like a glitter.
Leek of Heaven
Sosha Leek Photography / Niu Yang
"Wind and rain come, don't avoid, humble your head down..." Joey Yung's song seems to be sung for these little purple flowers. The flower's name is the sootosa leek, which is probably the closest to heaven on earth, and it can spread to altitudes of 4600 meters above sea level or even higher. After a brief and rapid storm, the sand leeks on the flowing rock beach bloomed under the blue sky, showing tenderness and stubbornness.
The Philosophy and Art of the Low Flower
Snow cuckoo, photo / Niu Yang
In order to adapt to the alpine climate, most of the flowers on the flowing rock beach are low and colorful. The rhododendron bush is a beautiful scenery of the flowing rock beach, and the rhododendron bushes sometimes flutter with the pearl silk butterfly, which is unique to China and is extremely rare.
Lancang Snow Ganoderma lucidum, photo / Niu Yang
Associated with rhododendron shrubland, it is often a perennial herb, some of which have no obvious stems, and the small branches are intertwined into dense cushion-like or hemispherical structures, which are called cushion-like plants, which can be both windproof and insulating, and can also preserve moisture. These cushion-shaped plants have only a short growth period of about 3 months per year, and most of the time they appear monotonous gray-green or gray-brown, and only in the summer will the plush hemispheric surface gradually bloom into brilliant colors.
Rhodiola Rosea overcomes the positive energy of alpine reactions
Rhodiola Rosea, Photography / Niu Yang
People who are new to the plateau and mountains are usually recommended to take some "Rhodiola Rosea" drugs, saying that they can overcome altitude sickness. The medicinal effects of Rhodiola Rosea are mixed today, but it would be very inspiring to see them in the mountains. Rhodiola Rosea, tibetan name "Su morobao", blooms like a giant cauliflower, with solid plants and safflower blossoms. Rhodiola rosea generally has fleshy stems and leaves that store abundant water and nutrients, keeping the plant alive.
The flower of the goddess on the flowing rock beach
Artemisia annua leafy green, photo by Dong Lei
Artemisia green velvet is known in Europe as the Himalayan blue poppy, and the flowing rock beaches and meadows above the forest line in the Hengduan Mountains of China are their most important distribution areas. Under the dazzling sun, the huge petals of the green velvet artemisia are as thin as silk, and the elegant blue is filled with a goddess-like temperament.
Laughing at the wind and snow and fearing the red dust
Susan Shellfish, Photography / Niu Yang
A dew-hung sand shellfish blooms yellow flowers on the flowing rock beach in northwest Yunnan. The plant has been growing for at least three years: in the first year it grows only one leaf; the second year it grows a second leaf or more; it doesn't bloom until the third or even fourth year. It is a fairy herb that medicinal herb collectors look for, and it may also be picked up and played with by mountaineers and thrown away. The scenery on the rocky beach is beautiful but fragile, and the intentional or unintentional destruction of humans will soon make the place desolate and deserted.
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