Hangzhou’s floral season has a new star: carpets of spider lilies are unfurling across the Botanical Garden, creating sweeping swathes of bloom that are already drawing camera-toting visitors. Paths framed by these umbrella-like clusters make for instant photo moments — some guests even traveled from Shandong straight to the garden after getting off the high-speed train.

Garden staff say each plant bears four to seven small buds in its umbel, and the display is currently at mid-bloom. This year’s high heat and recent typhoon weather have pushed the season back by roughly half a month, they add, so the best viewing window is still opening up.

If you’re in town this weekend, consider an early stroll through the grounds to catch the spider lilies before the peak passes — it’s a quietly dramatic chapter in Hangzhou’s year-round floral story.