Jiaozishan National Nature Reserve in SW China’s Yunnan builds gene bank for alpine azalea atop montane terrain

Photo shows azalea flowers blossoming at the Jiaozishan National Nature Reserve in southwest China’s Yunnan province. (Photo/Guo Minghai)

The Jiaozishan National Nature Reserve in southwest China’s Yunnan province has built an alpine azalea germplasm resource base covering an area of 100 mu, or about 6.7 hectares, after years of efforts, according to the reserve’s management bureau.

The base, jointly built by the local management bureau and the National Engineering Research Center for Ornamental Horticulture, has increased alpine azalea varieties from more than 30 to 128 and has grown over 20,000 azalea plants through artificial breeding and transplantation, said Hu Chunxiang, a researcher at the management bureau.

While effectively protecting biodiversity, the base has also rationally exploited alpine azalea germplasm resources to promote tourism. In recent years, the reserve has always put ecological protection first in building facilities and tapping its tourism resources, in a bid to reduce the impacts on the natural environment.

Located at the boundaries of Dongchuan district in Kunming city and the Luquan Yi and Miao

Autonomous County, the reserve covers a total area of 16,456 hectares. With its altitude gradients ranging from 1,200 to 4,344.1 meters, the reserve boasts a complex ecosystem and rich animal and plant resources.