China's research on exotic crops in China used to focus on food crops and cash crops (such as tea and cotton), but there were few discussions on non-staple foods such as fruits and vegetables. In fact, there are many kinds of fruits in China, which were applied quite early, and it was the first place to develop a complicated "grafting method". China's extensive use of fruits can be seen from all kinds of sacrifices, ceremonies, meetings and gifts. "Zhou Li, the local official Stuart II": "Field people: take charge of the field of the country, and the fruit of the tree is rare, and it is hidden in time. All sacrifices and guests, * * * their fruits, enjoy the same. " That is, the official in charge of the orchard and the ceremonial use of fruit. "The Book of Songs Wei Feng Papaya": "Give me a papaya, and I will repay it with Joan. It's always good to repay bandits. You will give me a gift of peach, and I will reciprocate with Chiung Yao. It's always good to repay bandits. You give me the wood, I take Joan nine in return. It' s always good to report it. " It shows that fruits were widely used in gifts in early China. The spread and application of fruits in China are briefly introduced in the following places: 1 Fruits in northern China In the ancient books and records of the pre-Qin period, the most common fruits are peaches, plums, dates and chestnuts, followed by pears, plums, apricots, hazelnuts, persimmons, melons, hawthorn and mulberries, and others such as qi, bonus and cherry occasionally appear. These are probably the native temperate fruit trees in northern China in the early days, or the species that were introduced to China very early. Among them, the most common peaches, plums, dates and chestnuts are often used as sacrifices or gifts. In addition to the allusions in the Book of Songs, there are allusions in Zuo Zhuan that "two peaches killed three scholars", while jujube chestnuts are often used in sacrificial ceremonies and are women's "loyalty" (that is, gifts for meeting), which can be seen frequently. Among these four fruits, peach is the most common. Peach-themed poems can often be seen in The Book of Songs, surpassing other plants. The object of the book of songs is often what you see in life, which shows that peach trees are so common that they often enter poetry. In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, there were also many place names with the word "peach", such as Taoqiu and Taolin. China's peaches may have been introduced to Persia from northwest China through Central Asia in the first and second centuries BC, and now they are introduced to Greece and European countries from Persia, so that the early West thought that peaches originated in Persia, and called them Persica, which means Persian meaning. 2. The fruits introduced from the south in the early days were gradually incorporated into the cultural circle of China with the south, and many fruits originating in the south were gradually eaten. These include oranges, pomelos, tangerines, oranges, lychees, longan, linling (also known as bonus), loquat, bayberry and olive. The species sources of these fruits are not only native species in southern China, but also from Indian and Nanyang. Among them, citrus originated in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River was used earlier, and it was very common in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. In Huai Nan Zi, there is a story of "oranges crossing the Huai River are bitter oranges" (pomelo in Liezi). Its content is that someone went to the southern state of Wu (the lower reaches of the Yangtze River) to eat delicious oranges, so they transplanted them to the north of the Huaihe River, but the result turned into sour oranges. This story not only shows that orange pomelo is mainly produced in the south of Huaihe River at this time, but also shows that there has been a high interest in species transplantation experiments during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. At this time, orange pomelo is often called collectively and is considered as a special product in the south. "Shangshu Yugong": "Huai Hai Wei Yangzhou, Jue Bao orange pomelo is Xigong." "Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals": "The beauty of fruit is the pomelo of cloud dream." The former regards orange pomelo as a special product of tribute in Yangzhou (the lower reaches of the Yangtze River), while the latter shows that Yunmeng (the middle reaches of the Yangtze River) is an important producing area of pomelo. Litchi and other fruits, mostly produced in Xishu or Lingnan, were known to China a little later than oranges and pomelo, but at least in the Han Dynasty, these fruits were quite common. According to legend, litchi was introduced by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty when he broke through South Vietnam (via Guangdong), and there is also a legend that Zhao Tuo, the king of South Vietnam, presented it to Emperor Gaozu. Because it is far away in Lingnan, it is a long way and hard to come by. It is generally regarded as a precious fruit. The Han Dynasty once gave Huns Khan oranges, oranges, lychees, longan and other rare fruits in the north. What is more famous is the legend that Yang Guifei likes to eat litchi. Therefore, poets in the Tang Dynasty have many poems about litchi, such as Han Wo's Lychee: "Cleverly cut crimson slices are wrapped in divine pulp, and cliff honey naturally has a special fragrance. It should be the dew of a fairy's golden palm, which forms ice and enters the capsule of Syro." Loquat is also a southern fruit, produced in Xishu, Lingnan, Jingzhou and Yangzhou. Because the yield is not much, it is often called litchi, and both of them were first seen in Sima Xiangru's Shang Lin Fu in the Western Han Dynasty. Lin Ling is a kind of fruit similar to apple, both of which belong to Rosaceae. Originated in West Shu and South China, it can be introduced from India. Until the Jin Dynasty, it was a precious fruit. After the Tang Dynasty, because of the change of climate, there were few records of eating Lin Ling, but there were many poems about Lin Ling's flowers. Olive was transplanted to the north with litchi, longan and citrus in Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, but it seems that it was unsuccessful. Olives are mainly planted in Lingnan in China, which is not common, and there is no habit of using them to extract oil. 3. Generally speaking, fruits imported from the west are believed that Zhang Qian is connected with the western regions and has introduced many western fruits. Although it is still not certain that these fruits were brought by Zhang Qian, it is certain that they are all related to the transportation in the west. These fruits are mainly grapes (early peaches), walnuts, pomegranates (or pomegranates) and pomegranates. Although there are native wild grapes in China, it was not until they were introduced from the west that they began to have the habit of eating grapes and brewing wine. Grapes were almost certainly introduced from the western regions. It was first seen in Historical Records: "Pu Tao is used as wine in Dawan, and the rich hide wine to more than 10,000 stones, and those who stay for a long time are unbeaten for decades." Grape is still regarded as one of the rare fruits in China, but in the Tang Dynasty, grape winemaking was a little common, and there were many poems about wine. However, wine is still mainly connected with the image of Hu people at this time. In the Tang Dynasty, wine was popular because it was addicted to Hu food. At this time, the cultivation of grapes was also more common. The following poem illustrates the situation of grape cultivation at that time: "Wild grapes are born in the field, and one branch is high (one is Artemisia). Moving to the garden, Zhang Wang is getting taller every day. Divergence is vast and complicated, and it is full of twists and turns. Yang Qiao went to Tingke, which means something. Make a long stand for it, and the cloth will be green. Rice (one for Zhu) liquid irrigates its roots, and it depends on percolation. Fanpa group is knotted and suspended. Horse milk with light cream, Long Lin Obsidian early Xu. There is a guest who is cloudy and gloomy, and his eyes are staring in the hall. I said that I am a Jin person, and planting this is like planting jade. The brewed wine is not enough to drink. Hold a fight for you and go to Liangzhou for grazing. " (Liu Yuxi's "Grape Song") In addition to grapes, pomegranate is also a fruit introduced from the West and can be used for wine making. Pomegranate cultivation seems to be more common than grapes in China, and it was very common in Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. And pomegranate wine is often said with wine. However, pomegranate seems to be more commonly used for appreciation, and pomegranate flowers are often the subject of poets' poems. Walnut (or walnut), like grapes, has native species in China, but it was not widely eaten. It was not regarded as a fruit until it was introduced from the west in the Han Dynasty. Like Lin Ling, Xi is also a kind of fruit similar to apple. It grew up in Dunhuang and Jiuquan in Gansu province before it was introduced to China after Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty acquired Hexi. Nai is also a precious fruit, which is rarely seen at ordinary times. After Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, it was even less seen in records because of the turmoil in the north. In addition, many melons, such as cantaloupe, watermelon and so on, were introduced from the western regions. 4. Fruits imported from Nanyang The fruits imported from Nanyang mainly include plantain (banana), coconut, betel nut and sugarcane. These fruits were usually introduced in Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties after the economic center of gravity shifted to the south. Banana is common after Wei and Jin Dynasties, because it crosses the toes (northern Vietnam). In addition to eating, it is mainly used for viewing, as a horticultural crop, or to take its fiber. Although we also know its "satiety" nature, it seems that it is not widely eaten except in the south. Coconut is also recorded in China for crossing toes and southern Vietnam, and it can be used to make wine. However, in China, the Central Plains is less common than plantain, and it is usually talked about in the south, such as Qiongzhou (Hainan Island) and Guangxi. Betel nut was first seen in Shanglin Fu, which was regarded as miasma, but it became a popular snack food in the Southern Dynasties, and there were even many records of betel nut lovers. For example, in Song Shu, Liu Muzhi was poor when he was young, but he liked drinking eat areca and begging for betel nuts with his wife and brother. His wife and brother laughed at him and said that betel nut can help digestion, but you are often hungry and should not need this thing. After Liu Muzhi became rich, once his wife and brother visited him, he entertained him with a golden plate filled with betel nuts. Although there are many records of quitting betel nut (such as Biography of Ren Fang in Song Dynasty), the image of betel nut at that time was not too bad. Su Shi once wrote poems about betel nuts; Ming Liu Ji (Bowen) also wrote a poem describing his novel experience in eat areca for the first time: "Betel nut is written in red and white, and the package is supported by green. The post clerk advised me to eat, but I was already worried. The first shock stung the cheek, and gradually it was like a halberd in the throat. Flowers are full of eyes, and I am dizzy. If you mistake the suspicion for wax poison, you will think about it for no reason. It's a little hot above, and it's light and sweaty. Cool and thorough, coarse and dirty without fiber left. Believe in the words of Yin Wang, dazzle is the cure. After three times, I will sigh forever, and the book will make friends. " Generally speaking, betel nut is a popular food for people with a little money. Until the Qing Dynasty, there were still many dudes in A Dream of Red Mansions who were popular with eat areca, carrying a small betel nut bag and flirting with betel nuts. Sugarcane, called Zhe in ancient times, first appeared in Songs of the South, and was introduced from the south long ago. It is believed that its provenance is in the Pacific Islands. Earlier as a fruit, it was common in the Wei and Jin Dynasties. At this time, there was an allusion of "eating sugar cane upside down and getting better". It was not until the Ming and Qing Dynasties that the technology of making sugar was widely planted in the south. 5. Fruits introduced in modern times Early fruits in China are mostly from West Asia (such as grapes), Central Asia (such as early apples), Mediterranean (such as olives), India (such as some citrus) and South Asia (such as coconuts and bananas). In modern times, due to the developed communication between China and the West, many fruits from different sources were introduced, such as pineapple, tomato, guava, strawberry, apple, pumpkin, lotus spray, passion fruit, kiwi fruit and grapefruit. Some of these fruits come from Nanyang (such as lotus), some from the New World (Cucurbita moschata, pineapple and kiwi fruit in Australia), some are domesticated late (such as various berries), and some of them have been improved by many varieties and are the products of breeding (such as many kinds of apples and grapefruit). This kind of fruit enriches our daily diet.