Fancun meipu 范村梅譜

Meipu 梅譜, also called Fancun meipu 范村梅譜 or Wucun meipu 吳村梅譜, is a book on plums written during the Song period 宋 (960-1279) by Fan Chengda 范成大, who also wrote a book on chrysanthemums, Fancun jupu 范村菊譜.

The short book begins with the statement that plums are a very special plant on earth and that they grow best in the region of Wuxia 吳下 (modern Zhejiang). The author then narrates how he planted several hundred trees in his garden Yuxuepo 玉雪坡 and additionally bought a piece of land to cultivate even more trees. The author then goes over to the theoretical part, in which he describes around 20 kinds of plum trees in southern China, with detailed information about the name, origin, colour and taste of each tree and its fruits. The book ends with a discussion about the strengths and weaknesses of plum trees, as well as Yang Buzhi's 楊補之 (1097-1169) paintings of plum flowers, which Fan Chengda rates as beautiful but not corresponding to the real appearance of the flowers.

The Meipu is included in Fan Chengda's collected works, and in the series Siku quanshu 四庫全書, Baichuan xuehai 百川學海, Shuofu 說郛, Mohai jinhu 墨海金壺, Zhucong bielu 珠叢別錄, Yipu souqi 藝圃搜奇, Shanju zahi 山居雜志, Xiangyan congshu 香豔叢書, Gujin wenyi congshu 古今文藝叢書, Guoxue zhenben wenku 國學珍本文庫 and Congshu jicheng chubian 叢書集成初編.

Meipu is also a term for books presenting methods and techniques to paint plums blossoms and twigs, like Huaguang meipu 華光梅譜 (attributed to Monk Zhongren 仲仁, 1086-1093), Wu Taisu's 吳太素 Songzhai meipu 松齋梅譜, Zhao Mengjian's 趙孟堅 (1199-1264) Meipu 梅譜, Song Boren's 宋伯仁 (c. 1245) Meihua xishen pu 梅花喜神譜 or Liu Shiru's 劉世儒 (c. 1530) Xuehu meipu 雪湖梅譜 (also called Liu Xuehu meipu 劉雪湖梅譜).