Although there is still more than a month until the Spring Festival, the bustling flower market has already ushered in the peak of purchasing. Buying a few pots of fresh flowers to decorate the home has become a "ritual" for many people to welcome the New Year.
Shanghai: Lunar New Year flowers are gradually hitting the market.
New varieties are vying for attention and continue to be bestsellers.
In Shanghai, many new flower varieties have appeared at the flower market this year, and they are popular with many consumers.
In a flower market in Qingpu District, Shanghai, more than 200 flower shops are gathered in an area of over 680 acres. With more than a month to go before the Spring Festival, potted flowers with longer blooming periods and easier maintenance are the first to see a sales peak. This year, many new imported varieties of potted flowers have been launched and are popular with consumers.
Zhang Chen, the owner of a flower shop in Hongqiao Flower Valley, Qingpu District, Shanghai: The colors are more abundant now, unlike a few years ago when the colors were more limited. They are also easier to care for now. The best-selling flowers are pansies, violets, and primroses.
Among various New Year's flower sales, Phalaenopsis orchids have always been the "top seller" in the market. With the increase in new Phalaenopsis orchid varieties this year, the total market sales volume has increased by 20% year-on-year. At a flower shop specializing in Phalaenopsis orchids, a reporter saw Phalaenopsis orchids of various colors, such as red, yellow, purple, and green, lined up in a row, vying for attention.
Cao Li, owner of a flower shop in Hongqiao Flower Valley, Qingpu District, Shanghai: This year, our Latin Dance Skirt, Golden Peach, and Fangmei Legend flowers have been quite popular. The Latin Dance Skirt is black with a hint of pink and a distinctive hem; Fangmei Legend and Golden Peach are retro pink. In the past two years, more young people have been buying New Year's flowers, and we currently sell about one or two hundred pots a day.
Shanghai resident Guo Ziming: I would put it in the living room; it would create a warm atmosphere and become a highlight when friends come over. I prefer fresh, unique colors and varieties.
Jiangxi Nanchang: Dragon Lanterns, an Intangible Cultural Heritage, are in Full Swing
Traditional crafts are given a new lease on life.
With the Spring Festival approaching, a dragon lantern production base in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, has recently ushered in a peak season for production and sales, and intangible cultural heritage techniques are constantly being innovated.
At the dragon lantern production base, workers are busy making dragon heads, pasting on dragon bodies, and sewing dragon scales, working hard to meet orders. Staff explained that an average of more than 30 finished dragon lanterns are produced here every day, and shipped to all parts of the country and overseas.
Shi Kebin, representative inheritor of Chengnan Dragon Lantern Intangible Cultural Heritage: Our order volume is gradually expanding. This year, the demand for dragon lanterns has increased by 10% compared to previous years.
Chengnan Dragon Lantern is a representative project of Jiangxi Province's intangible cultural heritage. In order to keep intangible cultural heritage products in line with the times, Shi Kebin has innovated the color matching and structural design of the dragon lantern this year, incorporating elements of the Year of the Horse, and designed adorable little horse lanterns and DIY handheld dragon lanterns, allowing this ancient craft to enter everyone's daily life in a lightweight and fun way.
Shi Kebin, representative inheritor of Chengnan Dragon Lantern Intangible Cultural Heritage: We adjust the shape and gameplay of the dragon lantern according to market demand, hoping that these old crafts can show more diverse forms and let more people feel the charm of this traditional culture.
Source: CCTV News Client
