Chinese Plum Blossom: History, Cultural Significance, and Varieties Guide

The Chinese plum blossom, one of China's most famous traditional flowers, did not always enjoy the high status it holds today. From its origins in the wild mountains to being cultivated in courtyards, it underwent a long evolution.

During this period, besides being loved for its "supreme natural beauty and pure, elegant fragrance," the plum blossom's cultural status rose significantly as a symbol of "ideal personality." It is grouped with orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums as the "Four Gentlemen of Flowers" in Chinese culture, and with pine and bamboo as the "Three Friends of Winter."

The earliest archaeological evidence of plum blossoms dates back over 3,000 years to the Yin-Shang period, where cultivating plum trees and using plum fruits as seasonings was common. At that time, people focused more on the fruit for satisfying hunger than on the flower's beauty. By the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, with improved productivity, attention shifted from the plum fruit to the plum blossom itself. After the Han Dynasty, people began appreciating its fragrance and cold resistance.

Especially during the Three Kingdoms, Two Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, with China's first large-scale southward population migration, many literati from the Central Plains arrived in the Jiangnan region. They were captivated by the abundant plum blossoms' diverse shapes, varying colors, and enchanting aromas.

As represented in the Southern Dynasties poet Lu Kai's "Poem to Fan Ye": "Plucking a flower (or plum) to meet the courier, sending it to the person at Longtou. Jiangnan has nothing else, just gifting a branch of spring." This exemplifies the profound friendship between the two, becoming a timeless tale of loyalty.

In the Tang Dynasty, Cui Daorong praised the plum blossom for its defiance of cold and snow, and its noble, elegant qualities. His poem "Plum Blossom" states: "A few buds first hold snow, its solitary grace hard to paint. In its fragrance lies a unique charm, its purity unaware of the cold." This set the tone for Song Dynasty literati's aesthetic appreciation of plum blossoms.

The concept of pine, bamboo, and plum as the "Three Friends of Winter" originated in the Song Dynasty. Song people were particularly obsessed with plum blossoms, especially during the Southern Song period after successive defeats. Scholars have calculated that the number of surviving Song Dynasty poems and lyrics praising plum blossoms is 50 times that of all previous eras combined.

The greatest driving force here was the plum blossom's spiritual symbolism: steadfast integrity, purity without conforming to worldly vulgarity, and unyielding resistance to evil forces... Additionally, aesthetic preferences for the plum blossom's posture and early forms of scientific research were established or emerged in the Song Dynasty. Northern Song poet Lin Bu's "Small Plum in the Mountain Garden" has the line: "Sparse shadows slant across clear shallow water, subtle fragrance floats in the dim moonlight," widely regarded as a famous plum blossom verse.

In his later years, Southern Song's Fan Chengda collected and planted over ten plum blossom varieties, authoring "Fan Village Plum Manual." In the preface, he declares: "The plum is the supreme beauty of the world; no one, wise or foolish, noble or base, dares disagree. Gardeners must plant plums first, and never tire of more; other flowers' presence or quantity matters little." This is China's—and the world's—first monograph on plum blossoms.

By the Ming and Qing Dynasties, poems, essays, paintings, and calligraphy about plum blossoms proliferated. Someone summarized the "four virtues and four vices" of plum blossoms: "Plums have four virtues: value rarity over abundance, age over tenderness, slenderness over fatness, budding over blooming." Moreover, plums were first grouped with orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums as the "Four Gentlemen of Flowers."

Plum blossoms come in numerous varieties with diverse colors—white, pink, purple, red—ranging from subtle to vibrant, and petal types including single, double, and multi-layered.

Throughout history, Chinese people have bred countless plum blossom varieties, but naming has been chaotic, lacking systematic protection and seed preservation, resulting in few surviving ancient strains. Most we see today are modern selections.

These 11 variety groups are: Single-Petal Group, Gongfen (Palace Pink) Group, Yudie (Jade Butterfly) Group, Huangxiang (Yellow Fragrance) Group, Lü'e (Green Calyx) Group, Zhusha (Cinnabar) Group, Tiaozhi (Variegated Branches) Group, Longyou (Dragon Tour) Group, Chuizhi (Weeping Branches) Group, Xingmei (Apricot-Plum) Group, and Yinglimei (Cherry-Plum) Group.

Although plum blossom variety groups are numerous and complex, subdividing into hundreds of types, the distinguishing features between groups are clear. The first nine are true plum types, bred entirely from the plum blossom species.

Specifically, the "Single-Petal" group, as a more primitive variety, typically has 5 white petals, with some variations. Many dual-purpose (flower and fruit) varieties belong here, and the 5-petaled plum is a classic symbol in traditional Chinese floral patterns.

Others include: "Gongfen" with double or multi-petaled flowers in light to deep pink; "Yudie" simply as white multi-petaled; "Huangxiang" white flowers with a slight yellow tint; "Lü'e" with green sepals, as the name suggests; "Zhusha" with single, double, or multi-petaled red or purple-red flowers, and new woody branches breaking purple, also called "Bone-Red"; "Tiaozhi" showing different flower colors on the same plant or branch; "Longyou" with branches curving like a dragon; "Chuizhi" with branches drooping like a willow.

The last two groups: The Xingmei (Apricot-Plum) Group is bred from hybrids of plum and apricot blossoms, while Yinglimei (Cherry-Plum) Group from plum and cherry-plum (purple-leaf plum), both close relatives of plum.

"Xingmei" combines the strengths of apricot and plum blossoms, with more and larger flowers, richer colors and forms. I believe its greatest advantage is cold resistance like apricots, allowing more exposure in northern regions.

"Yinglimei" similarly merges the benefits, with large, abundant flowers and leaves like red-leaf plum, often purple-red.