The flowers of the Qinkou wintersweet (Chimonanthus praecox 'Qinkou') open only halfway, resembling the shape of a qing, making it an excellent variety of wintersweet.

Qinkou wintersweet is a classic variety among wintersweets, named for the way its petals draw inward when the flower is in full bloom, opening only halfway rather than spreading wide, so that the blossom resembles the mouth of an ancient qing stone chime. Its flowers are large with rounded petals; the outer tepals are waxy yellow, while the inner ones often carry purplish-brown markings, and its fragrance is rich and lingering. It has long been regarded as a superior wintersweet and is often listed alongside such ornamental favorites as the pure-hearted wintersweet and the sandalwood wintersweet.

Like most wintersweets, Qinkou wintersweet blooms from winter into early spring, and its flowering period is fairly long. Just when most flowers have withered, its golden blossoms cover the branches, making a striking display. It can be planted in the ground in a courtyard or grown in a pot for shaping, and because its branches are sturdy and its flowers elegant, it is also a common material for cut branches in vases and for wintersweet bonsai.

As for care, Qinkou wintersweet likes sunlight and tolerates a certain amount of drought and severe cold, but it dreads waterlogged soil. For cultivation, choose a loose, fertile, well-drained sandy soil, water according to the principle of watering when dry and letting it dry out between waterings, and during the rainy season be sure to drain excess water promptly. Prune after flowering, removing spent flowers, weak branches and leggy growth; this favors flower bud differentiation the following year and keeps the plant's shape more attractive.

Many flower lovers easily confuse Qinkou wintersweet with plum blossom, but the two are not the same: wintersweet is a shrub in the family Calycanthaceae, while plum blossom belongs to the family Rosaceae, and there are clear differences in flower shape and flowering period. When choosing, you can judge by the texture of the petals and the scent: wintersweet tepals have a waxy quality and a strong fragrance, while Qinkou wintersweet is mainly characterized by rounded petals and flowers shaped like a qing mouth, which sets it apart from ordinary varieties such as the dog-tooth wintersweet.