Meiyu in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River since 1736

“Yu Xue Fen Cun” records during the Qing Dynasty are used to identify the starting and ending dates of Meiyu at the period of 1736–1911. These results, along with the instrumental meteorological records, are used to reconstruct the series of length and precipitation of Meiyu during 1736–2000 over the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. The characteristics of Meiyu are analyzed since 1736. Moreover, the strength of East Asian Summer Monsoon and locations of rainband are discussed, based on the relationship between the length of Meiyu and the Index of East Asian Summer Monsoon. It is found that the starting and ending dates and the length of Meiyu have significant interannual and interdecadal variations. Apart from 7–8 years, 20–30 years and 40 years cycles for the lengths of Meiyu, the centennial oscillation is also presented. The length of Meiyu, monsoon rainband movement over eastern China, and the strength of East Asian Summer Monsoon (EASM) have a very good correlation, which can be expressed in the following: during the periods of 1736–1770, 1821–1870 and 1921–1970, the EASM was stronger, and the monsoon rainband was located in North China and South China easily, corresponding to the decreased length of Meiyu. Whereas during the periods of 1771–1820, 1871–1920 and 1971–2000, the EASM was weaker and monsoon rainband usually stopped at the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, corresponding to the increased length of Meiyu. Supported by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. KZCX2-YW-315-2), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 40331013 and 40625002) and Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. 066U0105SZ)