English lotus
Other names are Lotus, Lotus, Shuizhi, Shuifurong, Hanhan, Furong, June Spring, Yunshui, Honghu and Yuhuan.
Classification of Nelumbo in Nymphaeaceae
The flowering period is between late June and August.
Originated in tropical and temperate Asia, China has a long history of cultivation, which was recorded as early as the Zhou Dynasty. It likes warm and humid.
brief introduction
Lotus is a perennial aquatic herb of Nymphaeaceae. Underground stems are long and thick, with long nodes and round leaves. Flowering from June to September, it is solitary at the top of the pedicel. There are many petals embedded in the receptacle hole, which are red, pink, white, purple and other colors, or have colorful words and borders. Nuts are oval and seeds are oval. There are many kinds of lotus flowers, which are divided into ornamental and edible categories. Originated in tropical and temperate Asia, China has a long history of cultivation, which was recorded as early as the Zhou Dynasty, with a warm and humid climate. Lotus is a very important water greening plant in the garden because of its large leaves, beautiful flowers, overflowing fragrance and pollution-free sludge. Lotus is precious, lotus root and lotus seed can be eaten; Lotus seeds, rhizomes, lotus nodes, lotus leaves, flowers and germ of seeds can all be used as medicine, which can treat many diseases.
Nine, the application of lotus in the garden
Lotus, one of the top ten famous flowers in China, is not only colorful and fragrant, but also has strong adaptability. It can be widely planted in lakes, which is spectacular and can be potted in bottles. Since ancient times, precious aquatic flowers in palace gardens and private gardens have been favored by people more and more, and are widely used in modern landscape gardens.
(A) Lotus Waterscape
Lotus garden 1:
Recently, there are three kinds of special lotus gardens in China: one is the garden botanical garden in Moshan, East Lake, Wuhan, which opens up a large area of aquatic flowers to watch and study lotus flowers; First, Nanjing Mochou Lake, Hangzhou new "Qu Yuan Feng He" and other large parks, mainly to enjoy lotus; The other is the lotus folk tourism resource scenic spot which is mainly based on wild interest and combined with tourism, such as the Lotus World in Sanshui, Guangdong, and the Tuanhu Scenic Spot in Yueyang, Hunan.
2. The theme of landscape garden is waterscape plants: As the saying goes, "A garden without mountains is not strong, and a mountain without water is not beautiful". In China gardens, it is very common to decorate water features with lotus flowers. There are many famous gardens in Jiangnan, and there are terraces to enjoy the lotus. There is a "lianhua bridge" on the bank of the Slender West Lake in Yangzhou. The jade pavilions on the bridge are patchwork, simple and elegant in shape, exquisite and unique, which set each other off with the lotus flowers in the lake. It is the best place in Slender West Lake. Lotus Square in Jinxiyuan, Yueyang is built by the water, connected with the winding fence, fragrant cattails and enjoying lotus in the rain, which is deeply loved by the masses.
3. Be a summer flower that can be enjoyed in all seasons: different landscapes in all seasons are the gardening rules that China gardeners abide by. Plum blossoms resist winter, willows welcome spring, green lotus relieves summer heat, and tung leaves surprise autumn. The green viewing period of lotus is as long as 8 months, and the flowering period is about 2-3 months. In summer and autumn, cicadas are few, peaches and plums are silent, and graceful lotus flowers exude a refreshing fragrance in a clear water, which makes people feel relaxed and happy.
4. Foreground, middle scene and main scene in multi-level arrangement: China gardens pay great attention to the change of levels when arranging plants, so as to form rich landscapes with different heights and distances. The combination of willow and lotus is a typical technique. Liu E once summed up Daming Lake in Jinan with "lotus flowers on all sides and willows on three sides, and a city with mountains and lakes on half sides". Yuhu Park in Xiangtan, Hunan Province, with catkins flying in the spring and small rivers pointed; In summer and autumn, the flowers and leaves are graceful and the willows are green; In winter, the snow is covered with willow silk, and the residual lotus is audible, which is a beautiful scenic spot.
5. As a "filter" for polluted water by industrial wastes, the underground stems of lotus root can absorb the products of pollutants decomposed by aerobic microorganisms in water, and lotus root can help the polluted water to restore the food chain structure and promote the water ecosystem to gradually realize a virtuous cycle.
(2) Lotus potted plants and bonsai
Lotus has a strong adaptability to the growing environment. It can not only spit red and wave green in lakes and ponds, but also be elegant and decorate the world in small pots and bowls. In the history of Dutch culture in China, the form of potted lotus was originally used for private courtyard viewing. Nowadays, potted lotus is widely used in gardens all over China. The combination of potted plants and pond planting improves the ornamental value of potted lotus, which often appears in garden waterscape and garden sketches. Lotus waterstone bonsai is a new kind of bonsai in Hangzhou in recent years. It is an organic combination of lotus potted plants and water stone potted plants, which not only reflects the firmness and straightness of rocks, but also shows the delicate and charming lotus flowers. Lotus bonsai can choose coral stone, sand stone, axe stone, English stone and other rocks as materials.
(3) Lotus arrangement
Chinese flower arrangement began in the Six Dynasties and originated from offering flowers before the Buddha. As the sacred flower of Buddhism, it can be said that arranging flowers facilitates the lotus to form an indissoluble bond when it rises. During the Tang and Song Dynasties, offering flowers was still the main form of flower arrangement. In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the art of flower arrangement developed greatly. At this time, the depth and skill of lotus flower arrangement rose to a new height, which can be called the heyday of ancient flower arrangement art in China. Today, people have made more in-depth research on lotus flower arrangement. Not only the materials such as lotus, lotus leaf, lotus root and lotus fruit are widely used in flower arrangement, but also the ornamental effects of these materials are scientifically compared. It is generally appropriate to choose small and medium-sized varieties for lotus flower arrangement, and it is also appropriate to match branches, leaves and fruits of other plants, so as to strive for bright colors and bright composition, and the ornamental effect can last for 3-4 days.
Ten, carry forward the "harmony" culture in China.
China's excellent traditional culture has always attached importance to advocating peace and harmony. The most representative words in this respect are Confucius' two sentences. One is "harmony but difference"; One is "harmony is precious". The "harmony" in China culture is by no means a reconciliation that does not emphasize differences and contradictions. It refers to the integration of differences and diversity. This kind of integration is the most valuable. There are 56 ethnic groups and 34 administrative regions in China, and there are differences and contradictions among ethnic groups. In the face of such differences and contradictions, it is most valuable to always adhere to national unity and the reunification of the motherland and adhere to this "harmony" stance. Abandoning this position of "harmony" means abandoning the excellent traditional Chinese culture.
China people have always believed that "harmony" is the principle to solve conflicts between countries, and advocated "one world under one roof". The harmony between countries shows the fine peace-loving tradition of the Chinese nation and is an important embodiment of the idea of "noble harmony" in China's traditional culture at the national, ethnic and cultural levels. "Harmony of nations" embodies the political ideas and moral norms of ancient sages, and is a national culture and spirit, which promotes the great integration of the Chinese nation and the establishment and prosperity of a unified country.
The Fourth Plenary Session of the 16th CPC Central Committee put forward the task of mobilizing all positive factors most extensively and fully, and constantly improving the ability to build a harmonious socialist society. Carrying forward the "harmony" thought of the Chinese nation is of great theoretical and practical significance for us to integrate social forces, coordinate the interests of all parties, reduce social contradictions, maintain social stability, consolidate the party's ruling position and promote economic development and social progress. On the one hand, the idea of "noble harmony" can make money, "harmony" can lead to auspiciousness, and "harmony" can gather strength. On the conceptual level, "harmony" means the recognition and tolerance of different opinions; On the level of social structure, "harmony" refers to the establishment of harmonious social communication between different individuals and groups. Therefore, "noble harmony" is to seek common ground while reserving differences in the unity of opposites and interdependence of many factors on the premise of acknowledging the original contradictions and necessary struggles of things, so as to resolve contradictions, so as to seek common ground instead of differences on the basis of "reserving differences", achieve overall balance and harmony, and then select the best and eliminate them, thus promoting the emergence and development of new things. On the other hand, the idea of "noble harmony" is not exclusive, and "harmony" is not afraid of evil. Emphasizing "harmony" does not mean timid and unprincipled concessions and compromises.
Under the new historical conditions, carrying forward the concept of "harmony is the most important" is conducive to coordinating the interests of all parties, properly handling the interests of different classes and aspects, improving the ability to properly handle contradictions among the people under the new situation, guiding the people to express their interests in a reasonable and legal way, resolving conflicts of interest, maintaining stability and unity, and striving to build a harmonious socialist society, thus promoting the construction of social material, spiritual and political civilization. To carry forward the concept of "harmony" and build a harmonious socialist society, we must correctly handle the relationship between democratic political construction and economic development, development and stability, efficiency and fairness.
Because "lotus" is homophonic with "harmony" and "lotus" is homophonic with "Lian" and "Lian", in China traditional culture, lotus is often regarded as a symbol of peace, harmony, cooperation, resultant force, unity and unity. The nobility of lotus symbolizes the cause of peace and the nobility of a harmonious world. Therefore, in a sense, rewarding the lotus is also a promotion of China's "harmony" culture. Lotus varieties are rich and colorful, which means "harmony but difference", but together they form a noble lotus world, which means "harmony but difference is more precious". I sincerely hope that in the process of promoting the culture of peace and harmony, the lotus culture can be understood and familiar by more people. Carrying forward Chinese "harmony" culture is of special significance for us to promote the reunification of the motherland, safeguard world peace and build a harmonious society.