A lotus flower grown from a 100-year-old seed has blossomed in Yuanmingyuan, or the Old Summer Palace in Beijing.

The bloom is the result of great care and hard work by scientists at the Chinese Academy of Sciences after 11 seeds were unearthed by a group of archaeologists during an excavation at the park in 2017.

The botanic beauty was made possible because the seeds had been well preserved in the mud at low temperature, low humidity levels and absence of microorganisms. The seeds' hard shells acted as a double shield, keeping water from coming in and air from leaking out.

But the seeds being buried in good conditions does not necessarily translate into easy cultivation. Extended exposure to darkness and the quality of the seeds posed a real challenge. But in order to increase their chances of blooming, the plants were placed in a special pond at the park, and were closely monitored by scientists as well as security guards until a flower was formed.

This is not the first time that the park has witnessed the blooming of a lotus flower grown from old seeds. In 2008, experts studied an unexpected blossom there and determined based on its properties that it originated from a distant past.

Of the 11 discovered seeds, three were sent to Peking University to identify their exact age and the rest ended up at the Chinese Academy of Sciences for scientists to conduct cultivation experiments. Experts believe studying these ancient seeds may give us a clear look at the process of evolution of this species.

(Top image via Xinhua.)

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