The Summer Palace's 'Proud and Fragrant' Plum Blossoms

Winter Plum Blossom Spring Flower Exhibition. Plum, is a traditional Chinese flower, with a cultivation history of more than 3,000 years, originally from southern China, spread to the north during the Western Han Dynasty. During the Tang and Song Dynasties, plum blossoms had become an important variety in gardens. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, plum blossoms were cultivated in many places in Beijing. When Emperor Qianlong built the Qingyi Garden, he placed potted plum and winter plum blossoms in places such as Wanshou Mountain, Yulan Hall, and Leshou Hall, and wrote down the plum poems 'Golden Basin Fragrance Through Old Plum Roots' and 'Pot Plum White Jade Struggle'. Emperor Qianlong's poem 'Looking at the Beautiful Pavilion' describes the scene seen by Emperor Qianlong when he passed by Changguan Hall. The poem 'Plum sentiment depends on the warmth of the house, and the willow body is afraid of the cold of the embankment' is a scene of life, with warm plum blossoms in the house and cold willows on the embankment, confirming that as early as the Qing Qianlong period, Changguan Hall had a plum blossom arrangement.