I finally managed to find some time to write my first real entry.
For those of you who know of my horticultural interests, you will not be surprised to hear that I have spent a big part of my first few days in Shanghai admiring the flora of the city. The street planting is an eclectic mix of ornamental cabbages and camelias. Plants which in Britain and Germany are kept in greenhouses, occasionally taken outside if the weather permits and constantly talked to be an anxious gardener in the hope that his desperate please for survival are heard, are just common natives in Shanghai.
Magnolia grandiflora everywhere in courtyards and Hamamelis mollis, a widely popular type of witch hazel with a strong, sweet fragrance acting as shelter from prying eyes from the street.
This type of witch hazel is native to China from where it was brought to Europe at the turn of the 20th century. The plant’s golden yellow flowers are somewhat smaller than some newer american hybrids.
Also went to see the Botanical gardens. After a disappointing start, it turned into a real interesting adventure. Probably not the right time of the year to visit. Most trees and shrubs where only just setting buds, but again the Hamamelis did not disappoint.
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