The initiator of the proposal, Chen Junyu, a 90-year-old professor at the Beijing Forestry University, has conducted research on the plum blossom for more than 50 years.

He says only the two flowers in conjunction with each other can fully represent the whole of China, because the peony is more popular in the north and the plum blossom is more popular in the south.

The elderly researcher says he expects to collect more than a 100 signatures to support his proposal. A local Nanjing newspaper reported he arrived in the city on Friday to drum up more support for the suggestion.

This is the fourth time that Professor Chen has put forward his proposal for two national flowers . His previous attempts have failed to gain enough support.

Chen first proposed making the plum blossom China's national flower in 1982, then came up with the twin national flower scheme in 1988. Two years ago, he issued his second call for the twin proposal.

Professor Chen says his hopes for success are high this year, after a horticultural engineer and National People's Congress (NPC) deputy, Li Lei, in Nanjing agreed with his scheme.

Li says the plum blossom, which originated in China, is deeply rooted in Chinese history and culture. It represents the spirit of all Chinese people.

Li Lei says she will submit the proposal at the annual plenary session of NPC this year that is to open on Monday.