Flowers bloom along Lanxiang Lake in Minhang District

Ti Gong

A gentle landscape, rice paddies and blooming flowers are decorating Lanxiang Lake in Minhang District, offering a peaceful autumn backdrop for tourists this September.

As one of its greenery projects, Wujing Town in Minhang planted a plot of rice paddies covering 39,000 square meters in early summer. It's taking form this month, featuring bright green paddies, intertwined with ripples of pale green and purple crops. It's a salute to its location – Pujiang First Bay – with its Chinese name embedded in it.

Meanwhile, the 46,000-square-meter zinnias, which were planted during the same period, are approaching their blooming season, along with 23,000-square-meters of hairawn muhly, or pink grass and 15,000-square-meters of European verbena.

Zinnia

Blossoming season for zinnia can last from May to October. The flowers bloom in succession, unfolding their petals in bright colors of pink, white and yellow. In addition to their written character – celebrating long-lasting friendship, one interesting aspect of their bloom is that their flowers tend to compete for height when blooming, hence the Chinese nickname for zinnia "步步高."

Best viewing time:

August-September

Rice paddies

The colored paddies, formed with purple, green, yellow, red and white crops at the Pujiang First Bay, is becoming another landmark representing the nature for Wujing.

Best viewing time:

September-October

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Pink grass

In their blooming season for about 30 to 40 days, hairawn muhly, or pink grasses, show their grandeur of a sea of pinkish "mist and cloud," where tourists can pose for photos.

Best viewing time:

September-November

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European verbena

European verbena has royal purple spikes. Its calyxes usually stretch out in five wings, with its fruit embedded inside the calyxes and turning into four pieces of nuts when ripened.

Best viewing time:

August-October