A record high 25 tons of flowers winged their way north to cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Chengdu and Xi'an to bring fragrance to the hearts of famished lovers.

This winter, flowers from Guangzhou to the cities around the country have been the main freight item on most airlines in China.

Records from the Transportation Office of South China Airline show that from January 22 until Valentine's Day, an average of 20 tons of flowers were transported by major Chinese airlines every day.

For South China Airline, the freight volume in flowers over this period was 30 percent higher than in the same period last year.

The flowers mainly come from the flower bases in the Pearl River Delta. Attracted by the convenient and busy flight network out of Guangzhou, flower dealers from other provinces, such as Southeast China's Yunnan Province, prefer Guangzhou as a distribution center for flowers for the entire country.

Since air freight prices are not affected by the seasonal rise in transportation costs, air cargo is considered the best route by flower farmers.

At present, the air expenses from Guangzhou to the hottest destinations such as Beijing and Chengdu is around 5 yuan (60 US cents) and 4.5 yuan (54 US cents) per kilogram.

The heavy demand for flowers from Guangdong Province is predicted to continue until May when the flowers in the North begin to blossom.

In recent years, flowers to send as gifts or to decorate homes and hotels have become trendy in cities thanks to the increasing supply and lower prices.

(China Daily 02/15/2001)