Li Rongfu teaches students in this self-constructed library. [Photo/chinajilin.com.cn]

A botanic garden, funded and built by Li Rongfu, a biology teacher of Tianbei Primary School, was established in Jiaohe, Jilin province, on April 23.

The garden cost Li Rongfu a total of 400,000 yuan ($57,990).

At the beginning, Li just used a 200-square meter area to plant some herbs to give students courses about identifying Chinese herbs and agriculture.

Li's courses became more and more popular and he started to plant more kinds of plants in the area.

However, the school was renovated in 2014 and the garden area was built into a part of the playground. Therefore, Li decided to plant a new garden in his own yard where students can continuously learn through action.

Now, the botanic garden features cropland, a forest, a reservoir, and a library with books about botany and ecology. It is free for students and the public to visit and learn about local plant resources.

According to Li and other plant experts, there are more than 1,000 wild plants and over 600 Chinese herbs in the botanic garden.

Li said he hopes to increase students' interests in botany and help students know more about herbs.

"I also want to make my students care about nature after learning," he stressed.

He hopes to raise local people's awareness of environmental protection and he also initiated a wild bird protection activity, which has attracted many students and parents to join.