Abstract: A new ground-cover chrysanthemum cultivar‘Desert Great Wall’was bred through pyramid hybridization involving Ajania fruticulosa,introduced from Alxa,Inner Mongolia,and a paternal Opisthopappus taihangensis. This germplasm was successively crossed with‘Golden Yurt’and‘Taihang Dragon Pool’. At last the ground cover with better palatability was selected from one of the two-year-old progenies.‘Desert Great Wall’plants typically reach 0.8 m in height and 1.5 m in crown diameter,exhibiting a dense,hemispherical form with single yellow flowers. This cultivar demonstrates vigorous growth,strong stress tolerance,and low management requirements,making it suitable for ecological restoration in Gobi and semi-fixed deserts,arid-zone landscaping,degraded land rehabilitation,and slopes or green roofs in regions such as Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area.

Key words: healthy grass, pyramid breeding, weedy crop