Based on the daily meteorological data from 108 meteorological stations in the Yangtze River basin of China in 1961-2013, and by using linear trend estimate, Mann- Kendall mutation test, the methods of inverse distance- weighted interpolation, the spatio temporal variation patterns of maximum temperature, minimum temperature and mean temperature in four seasons, growing-season of major crops and annual were studied in this paper. The results showed that in recent 53 years, maximum temperature changed from 10.2 ℃ to 11.7 ℃; minimum temperature changed from 19.2 ℃ to 21.0 ℃; mean temperature changed from 14.7 ℃ to 16.4 ℃.And all of them experienced a sudden rise in the 1990s. The warming trend of the maximum temperature, minimum temperature and mean temperature were respectively 0.150, 0.221 ℃/10 a and 0.186 ℃/10 a. At the same time, all of them increased most inconspicuously in summer (0.069, 0.161, 0.115 ℃/10 a); maximum temperature and mean temperature increased most obviously in spring (0.218, 0.216 ℃/10 a); minimum temperature increased most obviously in winter (0.294 ℃/10 a). Spatial analysis results showed that maximum temperature, minimum temperature and mean temperature decreased from the southeast to the northwest across the basin. For maximum temperature, 17.6% of the stations passed through the 0.05 significance test; 18.5% of the stations passed through the 0.01 significance test. For minimum temperature, 7.4% of the stations passed through the 0.05 significance test; 78.7% of the stations passed through the 0.01 significance test. For mean temperature, 16.7% of the stations passed through the 0.05 significance test; 63.9% of the stations passed through the 0.01 significance test. The spatial distribution of the trend of maximum temperature and mean temperature were similar in summer and winter; minimum temperature was similar in all seasons. The research would provide the basis for agricultural water resources management and optimizing cropping system to adapt to climate change.