China man sells his house, buys land, and collects seeds from China and overseas to turn wife’s childhood flower memory into world’s largest hollyhock garden

In an extraordinary display of love and affection, a Chinese husband did something unusual. Zhou Xiaolin turned a simple childhood memory shared by his wife into an extraordinary flower garden spanning about 80 hectares in Chengdu, Sichuan province, according to South China Morning Post. What started with his wife reminiscing about hollyhocks she saw growing up in Beijing eventually became a decades-long project.

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A childhood memory inspired an extraordinary garden

You must be wondering how did this journey begin? The story of Zhou Xiaolin and his wife, Yin Jie, started with a conversation in which Yin recalled seeing clusters of hollyhocks during her childhood in Beijing and spoke about how much she loved the flowers, the report mentioned.


Zhou took the comment seriously. In 2013, he decided he would create a garden where his wife could enjoy the flowers she remembered from her childhood. The idea was simple, but bringing it to life was not easy at all. It required years of work and a willingness to start from scratch.

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But Zhou Xiaolin was determined to do so and despite having no experience in gardening, he sold his house, purchased land in Zhuanlong Town and began teaching himself how to grow hollyhocks.

Not only this, he also collected seeds from different parts of China and overseas, gradually transforming the land into what has been described as the world’s largest and most diverse hollyhock garden.

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From barren land to a sea of flowers

Today, the hollyhock garden in Chengdu covers roughly 80 hectares and is open to the public. It reportedly features more than 700 varieties of hollyhocks, along with nearly 150,000 lilies and about 100,000 Chinese hibiscus plants.

Their unusual love story attracted national attention after the couple appeared on a China Central Television programme, where they were described as a “dream couple.”

Their love story began decades before the garden

Zhou and Yin first met in 1985 when Yin, then a nursing student from Beijing, travelled to Jiuzhaigou with classmates. Zhou was a trainee tour guide assigned to the group.

The two remained friends and exchanged letters for five years before Zhou travelled to Beijing to propose. Their relationship eventually developed into a marriage that has lasted 35 years.

Their life together was not always easy. During one trip through Tibet, they were caught in a severe snowstorm. Zhou carried Yin until they found shelter in a cave, where they stayed for three days before being rescued.

“With a man this good, I knew I would stay with him for life” Even during financially difficult periods, Yin said Zhou made sure she had the best they could afford.

For Zhou, his wife and flowers have become two of the greatest sources of beauty in his life. He summed up his philosophy simply: “Happiness is finding the person you love most, or discovering the work you genuinely love doing.”

Zhou eventually went beyond simply growing flowers. He studied the history and cultural importance of hollyhocks and compiled an illustrated guide that has been described as the first scientific classification of the flower.

What started as a wife’s childhood memory ultimately became a massive hollyhock garden in China — and, for the couple, a living reminder that sometimes the smallest promises can grow into something extraordinary.