In 1996, the State Council issued the Regulation on  Wild Plant Conservation which has 5 chapters and 32 articles. The Ministry of Agriculture and the State Forestry Administration are appointed as the competent administrative departments for protecting wild plants resources all over China. The key points are:

• Nature Reserves should be established in accordance with relevant laws and administrative regulations in areas where national-key and local-key wild plant species are naturally abundant.

• Rescue measures should be taken for key national protected wild plants and local protected wild plants whose growth has been threatened in order to protect or recover their habitats. We should also establish breeding bases and species resources bases or take ex-situ conservation measures if necessary.

• Collection of national first-grade wild plants is prohibited. The collection for special use like scientific research, artificial breeding and cultural exchange should be by application to the competent department or other authorized departments under the State Council for collection license after the competent provincial department for the collection site has given preliminary approval.

• Sale and purchase of the first grade national protected wild plants are prohibited. Sale and purchase of the second grade ones need the approval of provincial administrative departments or other authorized agencies.