Spring has arrived between 10 and 20 days earlier than in normal years in eastern and southern parts of China, according to the National Climate Center.

The earlier arrival has seen the blooming of flowers in some places.

In early February in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, kapoks along city streets were seen blooming.

Li Jianji, a member of the Ecological Society of Guangdong, told local media ycwb.com, that the flowering period for kapoks in Guangzhou usually occurred in mid-March from the 1970s to the 1990s. However, in recent years, earlier blooming has become common and last year it even occurred in mid-January due to early spring.

Gao Rong, deputy head of the National Climate Center, told a news conference on Wednesday that most of the areas south of the Yangtze River as well as Sichuan province and Chongqing municipality, have entered spring.

Spring has come earlier than usual, more than 10 days and even 20 days earlier in provinces including Fujian, Jiangxi, Guizhou and Yunnan, he said.

Xinhua News Agency reported that last Wednesday, rapeseed flowers in Zhangshu city, Jiangxi province, burst into bloom, attracting many to take out their sketch pads.

In March, temperatures in most parts of the country are expected to be similar to or higher than the same period of the year. In northern China including Jilin province, Beijing and Tianjin, it will be 1-2 C higher, Gao said.

In March, the cold air in China has been relatively weak and the risk of large-scale sustained disasters caused by low temperatures in central and eastern regions is small, according to the assessment of the national weather and climate situation, Gao said.