With strict Covid-19 control and prevention measures, Expo 2021 Yangzhou opened on 8 April in the ecological garden park of the Zaolinwan Tourist Resort. The International Horticultural Expo is taking place after five years of preparation and despite last year’s obstacles brought on by the global pandemic. It is hosted with approval from the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) and organised by the Yangzhou Municipal People’s Government. The ongoing Coronavirus travel restrictions foreshadowed many who could not attend the opening performance.

AIPH President, Bernard Oosterom, sent a video message congratulating Yangzhou people for continuing to “make something beautiful, in the middle of adversity”. He said: “The world will look on enviously as millions will enjoy the spectacular horticulture features you have created and all the national and international gardens.“

“As ‘the worlds champion for the power of plants’, AIPH fully supports your efforts to raise the profile of plants and gardens and to highlight the importance they play in making better lives and creating better cities for the future“, Oosterom is quoted. „Now, more than ever, having spent so much of the last year unable to travel freely, the world is appreciating the benefit of ‘living green’ in their lives. Access to beautiful green landscapes is vital for health and wellbeing, as well as helping us to tackle the climate crisis we all face.”

The AIPH-approved International Horticultural Exposition covers 230 hectares depicting the unifying theme of “Green City, Healthy Life”. The Expo site is located at the west gate of Yangzhou at the junction of Ningyang, in Zaolinwan Tourism Resort, the largest hilly ecological park in East China, and the provincial tourism resort. There are 64 outdoor gardens, made up of 51 newly built gardens and 13 Jiangsu city park gardens. The exposition is supported by the global horticultural industry and jointly sponsored by the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, China Flower Association, and Jiangsu Provincial People’s Government.