Canola flowers. [Photo/Xinhua]

Nothing says spring like spring flowers. They are the surest sign that warmer weather is coming, and we have survived the long winter.

The season of spring is pleasant, inspiring, and full of vigor, and ancient Chinese poets loved to extoll on the arrival of spring. For example, the following Tang Dynasty poem, chunxiao "Spring Dawn", by Meng Haoran:

chun mian bu jue xiao

I wake up at the dawn of spring,

chu chu wen ti niao

And hear the birds everywhere sing.

ye lai feng yu sheng

As sounded the wind and rain overnight,

hua luo zhi duo shao

I wonder how many blooms alight.

Our list of early spring flowers will give you ideas for the best flowers to look out for, when you plan to spend some time outdoors in search of nature in the capital.

Canola flowers

Canola plants not only provide us with the world's major source of vegetable oil, but also stunning spring scenes, when fields of canola flowers transfer the landscape into a huge golden blanket. Canola flowers in Beijing bloom later than those in warmer southern cities, and the best time to view them is late April to early June.