The great range of environmental conditions here, from alpine slopes to temperate forests and high grasslands, has given rise to one of the richest and most diverse temperate floras in the world. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, and into the early twentieth, the great plant-hunters Ernest Wilson, George Forrest, Joseph Rock, and Purdom and Farrer travelled through Sichuan and collected what, today, are some of our best-known garden plants, and introduced them for the first time into cultivation in European gardens. It is only in recent years that Sichuan has become accessible again to travellers from outside China, making it possible for intrepid plant enthusiasts to see in the wild some of these species. The sheer range of plants is breathtaking, and there is still a long way to go in assessing their potential in horticulture. Change is happening very fast but the vast reaches of western Sichuan are still infrequently visited by Westerners. We begin our journey in Chengdu, the capital of the province, which lies on the western side of the Red Basin. Then, leaving the subtropical plain behind, we head into to reserves of Huanglong and Jiuzhaigou, which are listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Set in the Min Shan range, and now designated World Heritage Sites, these reserves provide some of the most spectacular scenery in the world. Despite the arrival of classical tourism it is very easy to get away, appreciate the country and discover botanical wonders. We spend four nights at Huanglong with its hundreds of impossibly blue lakes, and three at Jiuzhaigou with its Y-shaped valley set amongst snow-covered peaks fringed in thick forests.
Leaving Baxi we head south down the Min Valley, through gorges in which we will look for Lilium regale. Stopping for the night at Wolong, grown up as the center for Giant Panda conservation and research as well as as well as a heaven for many bird and animal species. However, it is the Pitao Valley and its many side streams, as well as the Balang Shan pass, on which we focus, for they are a botanical paradise. To do this we will spend three nights at Wolong and explore hillsides of Iris chrysographe and meadows where Primula sikkimensis and Anemone and Pedicularis species grow in profusion, amongst them such treasures as the statuesque Veratrum nigrum and the slipper orchid Cypripedium tibeticum. Near the pass we may find the scarlet Meconopsis punicea, a plant that Wilson travelled six hundred miles to collect. Leaving Wolong we head west to another hilight in this journey, Rilong, where Mt. Siguniang is situated. Mt. Siguniang consists of 4 peaks, altitudes of which are all obove 5000m. And the highest is at an altitude of 6225m. which is regarded as the Queen of Sichuan mountains. The whole area is reputed as Oriental Alps for its flora and ecology as well as its landscapes. We will ride horse along a stockman's trail to our camp situated at the foot of Mt. Siguniang. Along the way you can explore Habenaria glaucifelia, Orchidaceae and various blue poppies. Heading south again, we return to Chengdu via Mt. Jiajinshan and Baoxing, paradise of rhododendron forests, finishing this great journey of plant-hunter's paradise.
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In the far west of China, where the atlas marks in streaks of purple the great plateau of Tibet tumbling to the south and east into the plains of China, the great province of Sichuan lies. Its subtropical fertile plain, known as the Red Basin, is ringed by mountains, and its remoteness from the political center and its relative inaccessibility, until recently ensured that this region was China's 'Wild West', to both Chinese and foreigners alike. The west of the province, dominated by those great mountain ranges with peaks towering to over 7,000 metres, was Kham Tibet and Jiarong Tibet. Today the Tibetan people of western Sichuan cling fiercely to their distinct way of life, language and culture, as do other ethnic minorities such as the Hui and Qiang, despite the modernization since 1978.
Leaving Huanglong and Jiuzhaigou we head north to the village of Baxi. Along the way, both the approaches and summit ridge are rich with alpine plants as well as haveing wonderful views of the surrounding sparsely populated country. Meconopsis of all persuasions are profusion along with Primula, Ligularia and much else. After we climb the 4,000 m Lamaling Pass we then descend to rich forests, reaching the small village of Baxi, still Tibetan but leading a more agricultural life style than their wild cousins on the plain. We will make a camp outside the village.