Flora of China
The events of the continental drift and early Paleozoic Caledonian movement also play a part in creating climatic and geographical diversity resulting in high levels of endemic vascular flora.
[7]Dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) is a deciduous conifer native to the Luchuan country of the Hubei province in China.
[9] Yunnan Cypress (Cupressus duclouxiana) is an endemic coniferous tree species that occur in the low altitude regions of Central China.
[11] Other native plants include Golden Larch (Pseudolarix kaempferi), dove-tree (Davidia involucrata), China fir (Cunninghamia lanceolate), Fujian Cypress (Fokienia hodginsii), Tienchi Ginseng (Panax notoginseng) and Lycium chinense.
Consequently, its significance in Chinese herbal medicine, culture, and cuisine broadened their understanding of the plant, resulting in our more intricate knowledge of fungi.
Northwest China includes the provinces of Xinjiang, Qinghai, Gansu, Ningxia, and Shaanxi making up over 30% of the country's territory, however, only 3887 species of fungi out of 759 genera have been yielded there.
China has become one of the largest edible mushroom producers in the world reaching an estimated annual yield of over 38 million tonnes.
[12] Both northeast and northwest reaches contain mountains and cold coniferous forests, supporting animal species which include moose and Asiatic black bear, along with some 120 types of birds.
Moist conifer forests can have thickets of bamboo as an understorey, replaced by rhododendrons in higher montane stands of juniper and yew.
The climate in this region is milder and moister allowing mixed forests of evergreen coniferous and deciduous broad-leaved trees to dominate.
South China experiences heavy rainfall and long wet seasons, making the climate ideal for bamboo and rice growth.
This region contains a number of valuable ancient and relict trees such as Ginkgo biloba, which is a distinctive paleoendemic species originating from the Permian Era of the Paleozoic.
China's biodiversity today can be linked back to 13,000 years ago marking the end of a global ice age.
The Southwest forest region is an important glacial refuge supporting high diversity as it was not majorly affected by the last ice sheet.
This allowed species that originated from the Mesozoic to the Early Tertiary, such as Amentotaxus argoenia, Podocarpus spp and Dacrydium pierrei, to continue growing.
The paeonia (paeony) is one of the most popular botanical images in Chinese culture with its beauty symbolising wealth, honor and rank.
[2] Recently, it has been reported that Fritillaria delavayi, a small high in demand flower located in Southwest China, has been evolving to camouflage with its environment to avoid getting picked.
This plant has been used for medicinal purposes for the last 2000 years but demand has steadily started to increase, resulting in the flower developing grey and brown leaves to blend in with its rocky surrounding.
[18] In 2008, China's Strategy for Plant Conservation was adopted as a joint initiative of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.
The rapid growth of China's economy, trade and transportation systems provide increased opportunities for the introduction of invasive species.
