Flower power: China digs for diplomacy with world's largest gardening show

Beijing international horticultural exhibition is intended to give the nation a much-needed publicity boost

If you want to say something, the expression goes, say it with flowers. It is a concept that will take on new meaning in China this week, which on 29 April opens the doors to the world’s largest ever gardening show, a mammoth exhibition of plants, pavilions and soft power that forms part of celebrations marking the 70th birthday of the People’s Republic of China.

At the foot of the Taihang mountains in the Beijing suburb of Yanqing, an area the size of 500 football pitches has been fenced for the massive Beijing international horticultural exhibition, which dwarfs the Chelsea flower show by an eye-watering 495 hectares.

Continue reading...

from World news | The Guardian http://bit.ly/2VvEcRB