First, the custom of enjoying maple leaves.
Many places have the custom of enjoying maple leaves, and the famous sentence of frosty leaves in February is also the custom of this season, but there is no red maple leaf in the cold and dew solar terms until late autumn. The word "reward" is very important, which is different from sitting on the windowsill or going to the street to see the leaves.
The beauty of Beijing is in autumn, the beauty of autumn is in Xiangshan, and the beauty of Xiangshan is in red leaves. When it comes to seeing red leaves in Beijing, we must first mention Xiangshan. Xiangshan is located at the eastern foot of Xishan Mountain in the northwest suburb of Beijing. This is a mountainous area with an altitude of 577 meters. It is covered with cotinus coggygria, which is dark purple after frost. In the first frost season, tens of thousands of acres of sloping land in Xiangshan Fiona Fang were as red as fire. From a distance, I thought it was a petal, but when I looked closely, I knew it was an oval leaf. The best place to see the red leaves in Xiangshan is Senyu Tree Wind Pavilion. Overlooking from the pavilion, the mountain is far from the slope, bright red, pink, scarlet and pink, with distinct layers, just like Xia Hong, which is a famous autumn resort in Beijing.
Second, the custom of eating flower cakes
Because the weather is getting colder and colder, flowers and trees will soon die, so people call this "resignation." 1999 Climbing the mountain, we still have to eat flower cakes. Because "high" and "cake" are homophonic, we should call the cake "Chongyang Flower Cake", which means "step by step". Flower cakes mainly include "coarse flower cakes", "fine flower cakes" and "money flower cakes". Sticking some coriander leaves as a sign, sandwiched with dried fruits such as olives, dates and walnuts: there are three or two layers of fine flower cakes, and each layer is sandwiched with finer candied dried fruits, such as candied apples, peaches, apricots and dates; Money flower cake and fine flower cake are basically the same. But it is very small, like "money", and it is mostly the food of the upper class aristocrats.
Chongyang flower cake practice: first cut the red and green preserved fruit into silk for later use. Make bean paste with red beans, sugar (250g) and soybean oil. Mix glutinous rice flour and japonica rice flour, take 150g, add brown sugar, and add about 50g of water to make paste. Mix the remaining powder with white sugar (750g), add 250g of water and mix thoroughly. Take a cake drawer, spread a clean wet cloth, put in 1/2 cake powder and scrape it flat, spread the bean paste evenly on it, then spread the remaining 1/2 cake powder on the bean paste and scrape it flat, then steam it with boiling water. When the steam exposes the flour, spread the paste evenly on it, sprinkle with red and green preserved fruit shreds, and continue steaming until the cake is cooked and removed from the fire. Take out the cake, cut it into the shape of diamond cake with a knife, and make a small flag with colored paper and insert it on the surface of the cake.
Third, the custom of appreciating chrysanthemums.
Every season, I am looking for flowers that suit my spiritual temperament. September of the lunar calendar, also known as Chrysanthemum Month, is Chrysanthemum Month. Unlike most flowers that bloom in spring and summer, chrysanthemums are out of season. The heavier the frost dew, the more gorgeous the chrysanthemums are. In ancient China, the cold dew was divided into three stages: "The first stage was the swan goose; Second, the sparrow enters the water and becomes a clam; Three waiting chrysanthemums began to bloom. " Among them, "chrysanthemum blooms" means that chrysanthemums are generally open at this time.
Chrysanthemum is the most representative flower in the cold dew season, which can be seen everywhere. Because it is near the Double Ninth Festival, some areas have the custom of drinking "chrysanthemum wine", so the Double Ninth Festival is also called "Chrysanthemum Festival". The ancient book records: "On September 9th, gather chrysanthemums, poria cocos and turpentine, and take them for a long time to make people not old." In this festival, climbing mountains and enjoying chrysanthemums has become an elegant activity. On the day of cold dew, the ancients also took the water from the well and made it into pills or medicinal liquor to nourish the five internal organs.
Speaking of health preservation in this season, people can drink more medlar chrysanthemum tea. In ancient times, people would take a bath with newly added Lycium barbarum after cold dew, which could prevent people from getting old. If it is troublesome, making a pot of wine or tea and drinking it every day can also play a "pleasant" role.
Fourth, climb the customs.
If the weather turns cold and dew begins to appear in the Millennium, the dew will increase and the temperature will be lower when it is cold and dew. At this time, frost will appear in some parts of China. In the north, it is already a scene of late autumn, with white clouds and red leaves and occasional early frost. In the south, autumn is getting stronger and cicadas are dying. The custom of climbing mountains in Beijing is more prosperous. Jingshan Park, Badachu and Xiangshan are all good places to climb mountains. The Double Ninth Festival will attract many tourists.
When the autumn wind is chilly and the rain is raining, people, especially the elderly and vagrants, are more likely to feel sad, melancholy and sad in the face of dead grass leaves and withered flowers and trees. What method can be used to dissolve the sadness in autumn? Mountain climbing in autumn is one of the ways. Our country is known as the custom of climbing on the Double Ninth Festival. At this time, mountain climbing can not only recall the past, cultivate sentiment, but also help people get rid of the troubles of work, relieve stress and relax themselves by contacting nature. Therefore, in the season of crisp autumn and clear skies in Wan Li, it is of great benefit to climb high and overlook, shout a few times and exhale the foul air in your chest. This is the traditional Chinese medicine meaning of "burning gold" and "happiness wins sorrow", and this climbing activity has a good effect of spreading lung.
Verb (abbreviation of verb) farming custom
The cold dew is full of sunshine, which is the solar term with the highest sunshine rate in the whole year. Cold dew weather is very beneficial to autumn harvest. There is an agricultural proverb: yellow fireworks should be collected and fish should be collected. Soybean is harvested in the cold open air, pomegranate and hawthorn are picked. Cold dew peach is a late-maturing peach variety in the north, and its maturity is around cold dew peach, so it is named "cold dew peach".
"It's getting colder and colder in the open air in September, so don't be idle in tidying up the land." After the autumn harvest, besides sowing wheat, picking cotton and planing sweet potatoes, there is still farm work to do. Except for wheat fields and cotton fields, most other farmland is idle. At this time, the temperature is above zero, and the land is not frozen, so it is easy to plow and use winter leisure to raise land. At the same time, overwintering insects and eggs buried underground can also be dried on the surface. Using the characteristics of large temperature difference between day and night and low temperature at night after cold dew, pests and their eggs are frozen to death, thus reducing the pests and diseases of crops in the coming year. As the saying goes, "When the cold dew arrives in beginning of winter, the insects will freeze to death after the cold dew."
Sixth, the custom of closing mountains.
There is a custom of closing mountains in areas where tung trees and camellia oleifera are produced in southern Hunan, and Shan Ye is allowed to be picked after the cold dew is closed. Adults and children will pick tea seeds on this day. Children's greater pleasure is to eat "tea ears" and "tea bubbles".
Seven, pickled fish customs
The custom of making pickled fish with cold dew in Xiangxi Dong nationality. It is said that the fish marinated with rice wine, salt, glutinous rice, Chili noodles, pepper powder, shredded ginger and other condiments on this day tastes particularly good.