Although it is cold in Chengdu, Sichuan province, at this time of the year, flowers and plants are sold briskly in its Wenjiang district.

Along highways in Wanchun, Hesheng and Shou'an towns, trucks carrying flowers and plants can be seen from time to time. According to the district flower and gardening bureau, 36,080 trucks of flowers and plants were sold in the district last year.

Sales amounted to over 1.8 billion yuan ($286 million), up 20.6 percent over the previous year.

Thanks to the thriving business, farmers in the district, a major flower and plant producer in Sichuan, witnessed an annual average income growth of 760 yuan last year.