East-West horticultural aesthetics converge at Futian Flower Fair

The 2026 Futian Spring Festival Flower Fair recently opened at Shenzhen Festival Avenue in Futian District and runs through Feb. 16. For the first time, Futian has invited world-class horticultural brands, drawing large numbers of foreign visitors and local residents.

An international visitor captures the lively atmosphere of the flower fair on his phone. Courtesy of the event organizer.

Visitors film with their phones, carefully choose New Year flowers at the stalls, and bring children to try traditional folk activities such as writing Spring Festival couplets and cutting window-paper decorations.

“It’s so lively — the fair is full of smiles and flowers. It feels like the whole city is celebrating,” said Anna Schmidt, a visitor from Germany. She said she has long been fascinated by China’s Spring Festival and chose Shenzhen as the first stop on her trip. “The scenes here really impressed me and made me excited for the New Year.”

One of this year’s highlights was the debut of Canada’s Butchart Gardens and Belgium’s century-old floral firm NV Jules Block. Guided by the concept of “natural beauty conservation and sustainability,” Butchart Gardens combined Cattleya orchids, tulips, lilies and daffodils into a series of miniature symbiotic gardens. Crowds gathered at the booth to photograph and admire the displays and to chat with the team.

A senior horticulturist from Canada’s Butchart Gardens presents the booth.

“The Futian Flower Market is wonderful — I highly recommend everyone come and see it,” said Keith Kennedy, a senior horticulturist representing Butchart Gardens, who introduced the booth while wearing a festive Tang suit. “There are flowers, exhibits and food everywhere, and so many joyful people celebrating the Chinese New Year. Shenzhen’s warm, humid climate also extends the display period — a real stroke of luck. We hope visitors will immerse themselves in the horticultural charm of Butchart Gardens through these miniature landscapes.”

Nearby at the NV Jules Block booth, red-edged, white-centered Griffioen rhododendrons stood out alongside kumquats and Phalaenopsis orchids. These alpine Belgian varieties are prized for their subtle gradient coloring and gentle temperament.

“These rhododendrons have been carefully cultivated over generations,” said Anton, a company representative. “Their shy, springlike red-and-white blooms suit the festive atmosphere perfectly. We see this exhibition as a valuable chance for cultural exchange with China and Asia’s horticultural community.”

To welcome international visitors, the Futian Flower Fair has set up multilingual information desks offering assistance in Cantonese, English and other languages, and provides clear cross-border travel guidance and details on free shuttle buses from border crossings — ensuring a seamless experience for visitors from Hong Kong, Macao and overseas.

Several international visitors explore the flower fair.

“Through the flower fair we aim to showcase Shenzhen’s international character,” said Liu Kening, director of the Futian District Urban Management Comprehensive Affairs Center. “Inviting top international florists not only enriches the fair, it also builds a platform for cultural exchange, highlights the openness and inclusiveness of Chinese New Year customs, and lets Shenzhen residents experience global horticultural beauty on their doorstep.”