Top Places to See Rapeseed Flowers in Beijing

Rape flowers (油菜花) , also known as rapeseed flowers, are grown for the production of edible vegetable oil.  The plant called “rape” has disturbing connotations though it is from a Latin word for “turnip”. The rapeseed plants in China are classified into two kinds – winter rapeseed and spring rapeseed, which belong to the cabbage family,  the mustard family and cole family.  So rapeseed flower is also called cole flower.

Another word for rapeseed is “canola”, a word coined in 1970s by Canada growers.  They bred a new variety of rapeseed with a lower content of the toxic erucic acid, they named the improved plant “canola”. Now the word “canola” is widely used, not just only in North America.

Nowadays people  tend to be more intoxicated by the golden yellow flowers of rapeseed plants than their nutritious oil. A canola field with a sea of yellow flowers and  countryside fresh air, plus pristine country life, is enough to make urban residents crazy.

Each March and April, northerners, the people from North China, including Beijingers, would flock down south to Wuyuan (婺源), or other rapeseed destinations in the southern China to see rape flowers.  Wuyuan is located in the north of Shangrao ( 上饶) in the northeast of Jiangxi Province. Actually it is situated on the boundary of three provinces ( Jiangxi, Anhui and Zhejiang). It used to be one of the counties in the ancient Huizhou, a cradle of Huizhou culture. Wuyuan is home to the famous Hui style architectures and the mesmerizing rapeseed flowers.

Now people in Beijing don’t have to bother going down the southern China for a glimpse of rapeseed flowers. Though blooming a bit later than in the southern China,  the rapeseed flowers  in Beijing are just equally beautiful, attracting more and more local and oversea visitors. We’ve listed a few top places for viewing rapeseed flowers in Beijing, hopefully it will help you a bit when you are planning your Beijing tour.

1. Rapeseed Flowers at Changgou Town, Fangshan  房山长沟油菜花

Changgou Town is located in Fangshan District, about 75km southwest of Beijing city center. Changgou has long been reputed as “Water Town” with over ten thousand spring heads which generate ponds, streams, lakes and wetlands, dotted with farm courtyards, a large roll of mesmerizing Chinese painting.

Changgou has the largest rapeseed field in Beijing with area of  1300000 m2. It looks gorgeous with the blooming rapeseed flowers.

2. Canola Flowers at Beizhuang Town, Miyun  密云北庄油菜花

Beizhuang Town is located in Miyun County, 110km northeast of Beijing city center. There are four canola fields in Beizhuang with the middle one the favorite for rape flower lovers, crossed by tree-lined paths. Just walk along the tree-covered paths, you are on your pace to view and take pictures of the golden yellow rape flowers.

Fed by the water and mountains in Miyu, it is gorgeous to look at the yellow rape flowers in the northern China though they  blossom later than their competitors in the southern China. The high mountains in a distant, blue sky and white clouds, strolling on the rapeseed fields is a pleasant escape from the hustle bustle  of Beijing.

3. Rape Flowers at Qiaozi Town, Huairou 怀柔桥梓油菜花

Qiaozi Town is situated in Huairou District, about 60km north of Beijing city center. The rapeseed fields are part of the Zhongtian Hanhai Agricultural Sightseeing Garden (中天瀚海农业观光园). in Qiaozi Township. The garden is about 45km north of Beijing.

The agricultural sightseeing garden is surrounded by the mountains in Huairou, it is a comprehensive garden of leisure, recreation, sightseeing, fruit-picking and scientific education. The rape flowers at the garden is a hit during the blooming season. People are circled in a sea of yellow flowers.

4. Cole Flowers at Taihu Town, Tongzhou 通州台湖油菜花

Taihu Town is located in Tongzhou District, about 30 km southeast of Beijing city center.  Taihu Town has 21 administrative villages. The township government has actively transformed the local conventional functions and promoted and developed the modern services for eco-agriculture, leisure, sightseeing and so on. Over 10 related agricultural gardens have been  built with a total area of  40 hectares, attracting over 5000 visitors each year.

Taihu Town has an canola field of over 300,000m2 along the roads. Driving along the road, you feel as if you are driving in a picture of yellow flowers.

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