Water lily champion now runs a flower park

Li majored in horticulture and landscape architecture at Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering. He created his first new water lily species in 2012 and won the titles of the best overall new water lily and the best new intersubgeneric water lily at the 2016 International Water Lily & Water Gardening Society Water Lily Competition held in the United States for the species he cultivated, which he named Detective Erika. It has deep purple flowers.

Li said he hopes his park will have the most water lily species in the country. It will present the species he cultivated to more water lily fans.