The ancient Bryophyta clan carpets mountain slopes in velvety green tapestries, thriving where few plants dare to settle. These moisture-loving pioneers stabilize soil and create microhabitats for forest life. In China, mosses have quietly shaped classical garden aesthetics for centuries – their emerald cushions adorn scholar's rocks in Suzhou's UNESCO-listed gardens, embodying the Daoist ideal of harmony between ruggedness and softness. Today, these humble plants are gaining attention as bioindicators of air quality in Chinese cities.

This elegant fern unfurls arching fronds resembling bamboo leaves, its golden veins glowing against deep green foliage. Thriving in East Asia's damp forests, it's prized by Chinese gardeners as a living bridge between woody and herbaceous textures. Traditional herbalists once used its rhizomes in poultices, though modern science has yet to verify these applications. In Zhejiang's Tianmu Mountains, wild specimens cascade over mossy boulders, creating ethereal landscapes that inspired Song Dynasty ink painters.

Glossy-leaved and resilient, this evergreen shrub forms understory thickets across East Asian mountains. While its Korean name "sollapeu-cha-namul" hints at medicinal tea uses, Chinese horticulturalists value it differently – as a hardy, deer-resistant hedge plant. The Fujianese cultivar 'Winter Ruby' astonishes hikers when its leaves blush crimson during cold snaps, creating fiery accents in winter forests. Its tiny spring flowers sustain early pollinators when few other nectar sources exist.

This Chinese endemic tree is a living fossil – surviving Ice Age upheavals in remote Yangtze valleys. Its summer spectacle of creamy bracts surrounding pink-veined flowers earned it the nickname "Queen of Chinese Trees." Only 3,000 mature specimens remain, mostly in Hubei's Shennongjia forests. Local Tujia communities once carved its aromatic wood into ceremonial masks, though it's now strictly protected. Recent cloning breakthroughs at Wuhan Botanical Garden offer hope for this IUCN Red List species.

Spring's first orchid in Jiangxi's misty forests, this jewel blooms solitary purple-veined flowers on leafless stalks. Its life cycle remains semi-mysterious – after fruiting, the entire plant vanishes until next bloom. Poached nearly to extinction for collectors, it's now the focus of China's "Orchid Ark" conservation program. Traditional Chinese Medicine never utilized this rare species, possibly due to Daoist taboos against disturbing plants of such exquisite purity.

Dappled with chocolate spots like a big cat's coat, this running bamboo transforms entire hillsides in Zhejiang. Its markings intensify with age, making each culm a natural artwork. For centuries, Chinese literati prized spotted bamboo for brush holders and scroll rods – the patterns symbolized scholarly refinement. Modern genetic studies reveal the spots result from a symbiotic fungus, creating a unique ecological partnership now being replicated in sustainable plantations.

A living emblem of purity, this deciduous tree erupts in porcelain-white blooms each spring, its fragrant flowers symbolizing dignity in Chinese tradition. While famously cultivated in Shanghai’s Jing’an Temple, Xinyang’s Buddhist sites like Lingshan Temple also feature centuries-old Yulan specimens – their blossoms scattered as offerings during Qingming Festival. The petals once flavored imperial delicacies, and today, Xinyang chefs occasionally candy them for modern desserts. Remarkably, fossil records show its ancestors grew in Henan 20 million years ago, making this "jade orchid" a true homecoming queen.

This arching shrub dazzles in April with cascades of pearl-like buds that burst into snow-white blooms. Though native to northern China, it thrives in Xinyang’s transitional climate – local gardeners prize its drought resistance and use it to stabilize slopes in Nanwan Lake’s watershed. Its straight stems were historically harvested in Henan for making pipe mouthpieces, while modern florists use its branches in minimalist arrangements. Recent studies at Xinyang Agriculture College reveal its roots harbor fungi that improve soil nitrogen, making it an unsung hero of mountain ecosystems.

Xinyang’s autumnal crown jewel, this "living fossil" turns the Jigong Mountain foothills into molten gold. A 1,300-year-old ginkgo in nearby Luoshan County is revered as a longevity deity – locals tie red ribbons to its branches during the Double Ninth Festival. Beyond its iconic fan-shaped leaves, Xinyang’s ginkgo nut (白果) trade thrives; street vendors roast the seeds with local chestnuts for a crunchy snack. The tree’s resilience mirrors Henan’s history: surviving the 1938 Yellow River flood, ginkgos in Xinyang’s Shihe District still bear scars from that catastrophic silt deposition.