Chinese Flowering Crabapples at Yuan Dynasty Wall Relics Park

Chinese flowering crabs or crab apples, as their name suggests, are the unique specie of crabapple trees growing in China. The crab-flowers are borne in corymbs with five petals which are white, pink or red and stamens that produce copious pollen. Chinese flowering crabapple trees blossom in spring and fruit in autumn.

The crab-flowers in China are associated with joy, beauty, and mildness. They frequently symbolizes drifters’ nostalgia and the emotion of separation.

They also represent bitter love. In ancient times, they were billed as “heartbroken” flowers, which were often used to express the sorrow emotion.

Chinese flowering crabapple blossoms are regarded as the elegant flowers loved by people with both refined and popular tastes. In Chinese royal gardens, Chinese crabapple flowers are often accompanied by Yulan Magnolia, peony and Osmanthus, conveying an artistic concept of “Wealth and Nobility”.

Chinese flowering crab trees bloom in the spring – later March through April. If you are planning your Beijing tour in spring time, it is worthwhile to visit some parks to view the spring flowers in Beijing.

The best place to see Chinese flowering crabapple blossoms in Beijing is Yuan Dynasty City Wall Relics Park, built on the original city wall relics in Yuan Dynasty ( 1271-1368 ), about 9 kilometers long crossing Haidian and Chaoyang districts from west to east.

The original city walls were commissioned in 1267 and completed in 1276 and the construction lasted 9 years. Today not much has been left on the original wall site on which the present long and narrow park is built. This slender strip of parkland is free to the public, a multi-functional park providing emergency shelter, leisure and relics protection.

In April every year “Chinese Flowering Crabapples Festival” will be held in Yuan Dynasty Wall Relics Park, one of the three biggest “Flower Events ” in Beijing and the other two are “Peach Flower Festival” in Beijing Botanical Garden and “Cherry Flower Festival” in Yuyuantan Park.

How to get there:
Subway 1 or 10 and get off at Jiandemen（exit at Exit D) or Subway 10 and get off at Beitucheng ( exit at Exit C2).
Public Bus: 941, 21, 734 and get off at Jiandemen.

Add on
A List of Spring Flowers in Beijing
Beijing Spring Flower Tour
Guided Chinese Flowering Crabapple Viewing