Sea of rapeseed flowers ushers in springtime in SW China’s Yunnan

Photo shows a sea of rapeseed flowers in Luoping county, Qujing, southwest China’s Yunnan Province. (Photo/Hou Ying)

A sea of golden rapeseed flowers recently came into full bloom in Luoping county, Qujing, southwest China’s Yunnan Province, drawing hordes of visitors. These bright flowers, basked in warm sunshine and rippled in gentle breezes, made a visible presence almost everywhere across the county — from dotted hills to terraced fields.

Thanks to its diverse terrain, the county offers a wide range of options for viewers to enjoy the rapeseed scenery from different locations. In local mountainous areas, for example, waves of rapeseed blossom, stretching from mountain tops to their feet, rise and fall along the rolling landscape.

Luoping, as one of the 31 rapeseed production counties in China, is hailed as the “rapeseed oil granary of east Yunnan.” The local agriculture department said this year’s rapeseed flowering is half a month later than previous ones, due to a lack of rainfall at the earlier growth stage, and millions of mu (0.07 hectares) of flowers began to usher in full bloom in late February.

Over recent years, the county has taken full advantage of local flower resources, established a new bussiness model by integrating agriculture and tourism, and formed an industrial layout featuring a mutually reinforcing relationship between the two sectors. This has brought prosperity to locals and laid a solid foundation for rural vitalization.