Wintersweet blossom at Wofo Temple

We visited the China National Botanic Garden in Beijing on December 30, 2025—a windy, cold, yet brilliantly sunny winter day—to admire the blooming wintersweets (腊梅) at Wofo Temple, also known as the Sleeping Buddha Temple, located within the garden.

South entrance to the Garden

Wofo Temple is famous for its wintersweet blossoms. The delicate yellow flowers thrive beside the temple’s centuries-old red walls, creating striking contrasts of color and texture. We arrived at the perfect moment: a clear blue sky, bright winter sunlight, and wintersweets in full bloom lining the red walls. Together, they formed a vivid and unforgettable visual experience.

entrance to Wofo temple

Bloomsome wintersweets by the red wall  - zoon in 1

Bloomsome wintersweets by the red wall  - zoon in 2

Away from the red walls, the wintersweets blooming beneath pagodas, set against the deep blue sky, and their shadows cast upon the ancient temple retaining walls each carried a quiet beauty of their own—subtle, timeless, and deeply evocative.

Golden wintersweet bloomsome under blue sky by a pagoda 

It was very cold that day, and after about an hour of wandering among the blossoms, we sought warmth at a teahouse within the temple grounds. There, we enjoyed hot tea served in small cups, accompanied by traditional desserts. Calligraphic scrolls hanging on the walls completed the setting, creating an atmosphere rich with authentic Chinese cultural charm.

Just outside the teahouse, in the courtyard between temple halls, stands a legendary wintersweet bush in front of the Hall of the Heavenly Kings. Said to be more than 1,300 years old, dating back to the temple’s founding, it is known as the “second-blooming plum”, having once withered and miraculously revived—a living symbol of resilience and renewal.

After our temple visit, we continued our cultural immersion with a late lunch at a traditional Chinese vegetarian restaurant located just outside the temple, yet still within the Botanic Garden.

It was a day steeped in winter light, quiet beauty, and a deep sense of Chinese tradition — a true immersion in Chinese culture.

Setting Tea Table

protected 1300 year old wintersweet bush

mural at the traditional vegetarian restaurant

Note

1. Wintersweet whose scientific name is Chimonanthus praecox,  is a species of flowering plant in the genus Chimonanthus of the family Calycanthaceae. The plant is native to China and is known as làméi (蠟梅) in Chinese. 

2. The blog post was polished by Chatgpt.