China’s second national botanical (植物学的) garden, South China National Botanical Garden, was set up in Guangzhou on July 11th,2022.

With a total of 319 hectares of core functional area planned, the new national botanical garden was built based on South China Botanical Garden. It spans Guangzhou and Zhaoqing, two cities in Guangdong Province, with over 280 hectares in Guangzhou and about 667 hectares in Zhaoqing. It is the largest subtropical botanical garden, enjoying the longest history. Also, the climate in Guangdong makes the garden home to thousands of plants, allowing it to have the largest number of plant species.

The South China National Botanical Garden aims to strengthen the conservation, scientific research and knowledge broadcasting of tropical (热带的) and subtropical plants. The garden has three research centers,two national-level field stations and three key laboratories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. There are 17,168 protected plants, 643 rare and endangered plants, and 337 national key wild protected plants in the garden at present.

The garden will participate in plant diversity protection both in China and the world and achieve the conservation goal of 20,000 species. Meanwhile, it aims to play a world-leading role in collection and storage of living plants, among which 6,000 species are economic plants.

Besides, 95 percent of rare and endangered plants in South China will be effectively protected, thus providing plant resources for green development.

China is one of the countries in the world with the richest biodiversity, having more than 37,000 known species of higher plants, accounting for about one tenth of the world’s total.

The South China National Botanical Garden, together with the national botanical garden in Beijing, has formed a system of collection and complete the retention of wild plant groups, which is helpful to maintain the country’s plant diversity.

Flowers, candies, and hidden eggs are all traditions humans look forward to during Easter. But they can also ruin the day pretty quickly if your dog or cat happens to get into them.

Most pet owners know that chocolate can be very dangerous to cats and dogs. Calls to the Pet Poison Helpline rise sharply due to suspected chocolate ingestion around Easter. In fact, the calls concerning dogs that have been poisoned by chocolate increased by nearly 200% during the week of Easter. So it’s as vital as ever to keep Easter baskets and candy bunnies away from pets.

“A common flower that veterinarians (兽医) warn cat owners against is lilies. Even eating a small amount of this flower can cause deadly kidney failure in cats,” Certified veterinarian Amanda Takiguchi, DVM, said in a statement. According to the Pet Poison Helpline, lilies are the most common toxin (毒素) to cats, making up 12.3% of all calls to the hotline.

“Many species of lilies are toxic to cats, so it’s best to avoid lilies altogether. Owners need to be especially cautious around Easter when these flowers are more popular.”Amanda Takiguchi, DVM said.

Egg hunts are fun for everyone but could cause trouble for curious pets. Depending on the type of eggs you use, however, curious pets may get themselves hurt trying to partake in the fun.

Hard-boiled eggs are generally okay for cats and dogs, but the paint used to decorate the shells should not be consumed. If you use plastic eggs and hide treasures inside, it is especially important to ensure all of the eggs have been found by the end of your hunt so your pets don’t discover them later down the road. It’s also important to ensure they don’t have access to the eggs or the treats hidden inside during the hunt.

“Curious cats and dogs could put themselves in danger by chewing or even accidentally eating these decorations,” veterinarian Rebecca MacMillan told TrustedHousesitters. “Fragile egg-shaped baubles could easily shatter, and small fluffy toy chicks are just the right size to be swallowed. This is why you should always keep any decorations out of reach from your pets.”