Jujube, scientific name is Ziziphus jujuba Mill. ("Flora of China"), English name: Chinese-date, Chinese alias: jujube tree.
It is a deciduous shrub or small tree plant of the Rhamnaceae jujube tree, and is also the mature fruit of the jujube tree. It is cultivated throughout China. The flower is small and honey-producing, and it is a nectar plant. The fruit is jujube, oblong, green when immature and brownish red when mature. It can be eaten fresh or made into dried fruits or candied fruits. Rich in nutrients, there are many varieties of jujube in different sizes. The peel and kernels are used medicinally. The peel can strengthen the spleen, and the kernels can calm and soothe the mind. The pulp can be used to extract vitamin C and make wine; the core shell can be used to make activated carbon.
The dehydrated red date meat is also the raw material for processing brown sugar. Ripe red dates contain natural fructose, as well as protein, calcium, iron, magnesium, carotene, vitamins C, B1, B2 and other trace elements needed by the human body.
Speaking of Jishan, one will think of Jishan Banzao, which is famous at home and abroad. "Jishan Banzao has big jujubes and small cores. It is sweet, crisp and easy to bite." Jishan Banzao. Why is it so delicious? There is also a legend in it.
I don’t know when in the past, there was a village in Jishan County called Lucun, located at the foot of Luliang Mountain. There is an honest and honest young man named Ban'er in the village. His parents died young and his family is very poor. He relies on collecting firewood from the mountains to make a living.
One day, Baner went up the mountain to chop firewood with a rope, pole, and ax. When he climbed to the top of the mountain, he saw two people sitting on a large bluestone playing chess. These two people are the mountain gods of Luliang Mountain, one is Lu Daxian and the other is Liang Daxian. They live in the stone mountain under the main peak on the right side of Huanghuayukou at the southernmost tip of Luliang Mountain. Of course these Ban'er will not know this. He collects firewood alone in the mountains all year round and feels lonely. Today, it was rare for two people to play chess on the top of the mountain, so he threw the rope and ax aside and sat on the big rock. It looks like a game of chess is coming.
During this game of chess, the two mountain gods ate three jujubes and spit the date cores on the ground behind them. Ban'er picked them up from the ground, put them in his mouth and swallowed them. These three date cores. When the two mountain gods packed up their chess pieces and were about to leave, Ban'er remembered that he hadn't laid down the wood yet. When he turned around to get the rope pole and axe, he found that his rope and pole had already rotted, the ax handle had also rotted, and the ax head had turned into a pile of rust. Ban'er panicked and didn't know what to do. The two mountain gods looked at Ban'er's puzzled look and felt funny in their hearts. They told him that they had played a game of chess for three years. They ate three Banzao in three years, and Ban'er swallowed three Banzao. The core will be infinitely powerful. If all the trees on Luliang Mountain are tied into a bundle and it's not enough for one person to carry, you don't have to worry about life anymore. Ban'er suddenly realized this. The two mountain gods also gave Ban'er a book before leaving, and told him that it would be useful to read it in the most difficult times, but he should not just read it casually in normal times. Ban'er got the fairy book and returned home overjoyed.
"The home has been uninhabited for three years and is already in dilapidated condition." Ban'er didn't care about cleaning the house, and sat under the lamp with curiosity, reading a book. He just whispered the words "Heavenly Soldiers and Heavenly Generals...", and suddenly, Heavenly Soldiers and Heavenly Generals with red faces, fangs, armor, guns and swords stood everywhere in the house, courtyard, and on the house. He shouted loudly: "What do you want me to do?" It turned out that this was a heavenly book for dispatching heavenly soldiers and heavenly generals. Ban'er was surprised and puzzled. He quickly took a breath and said: "Pluck jujube trees on Luliang Mountain." The heavenly soldiers and heavenly generals roared again; "Pluck it out and plant it where?" Ban'er replied: "Taoliang Yao Village Ganquan Village." In an instant, the heavenly soldiers and generals disappeared.
The next day, people found that all the big and small jujube trees in Luliang Mountain were gone. The fields in Taocun, Yao, Ganquan, and Hujiazhuang villages were covered with jujube trees, and they produced plump fruits. Big red dates.
From then on, people were very grateful to Ban'er and called Jishan Zao "Ban Zao".
In 1989, the Qingyun County Party Committee and County Government erected a monument for Tang Zao. The two characters "Tang Zao" on the monument were written by the famous calligrapher Mr. Jiang Weisong. The seal script is graceful, elegant, and powerful. The inscription is engraved on the underside of the stele, written by Mr. Zong Weicheng, a 76-year-old professor at the Shandong Art Institute at the time. The regular script of more than 300 words is written with thoughtfulness and uprightness.
Although this general tree has gone through wind and rain for more than 1,600 years, it is still luxuriant and leafy. It is the oldest existing jujube tree in China and has been included in the "Dictionary of Chinese Scenic Spots". Although the Tang jujube tree has gone through many vicissitudes and suffered many wars, it still has strong roots and luxuriant leaves. Its trunk is like a carved dragon or a phoenix. It is vigorous and elegant. The trunk is hollow and can accommodate people. More than 100 kilograms of jujubes can be harvested every autumn harvest. There are many ancient jujube trees around 500 years old in the general tree. Therefore, the Tang Zao Ecological Sightseeing Park was built. In 2008, the tourist park was rated as a provincial ecological sightseeing and agricultural tourism demonstration. Nowadays, it is protected by the government. Tourists who come to Qingyun linger under the general tree and many take photos with it.
The legend of Hami jujube in Xinjiang
Hami jujube is famous. There is a record in the Qing Dynasty that "jujube is a mysterious species". Now it is famous throughout the country as a "famous and excellent jujube". , special” flagship product. It is known as one of the "Four Famous Jujubes" together with the golden jujube from Leling, Shandong, the seedless jujube from Cangxian, Hebei, and the ringing jujube from Yiwu, Zhejiang. Hami jujube has the highest yield and the best quality in Wubao Township. Even King Mu of Zhou was full of praise after tasting it. Legend has it that King Mu of Zhou Dynasty was touring the Western Regions and passed by the Five Forts of Hami. Among the onlookers, he saw a tall girl with deep eye sockets, a high nose bridge, and brown hair who stood out. King Zhou Mu looked at the girl, then looked at the crowd around him, and found that the people here looked very different from the people in the Central Plains. He couldn't help but ask the girl: "Are you the indigenous people here?" The girl smiled and said, "We are already here. We have lived together for many years." King Zhou Mu nodded and asked again: "As I go along, I always feel that you are very similar to the people in Congling and Loulan. Are you the same ancestor?" The girl said in surprise: "Your Majesty is right. Yes, the people there are indeed our ancestors. Our group came to the Hami Basin and settled here." The girl said, raising a stone plate in her hand to King Zhou Mu and said, "Please give it a try, your majesty. Our jujube." King Zhou Mu looked down and exclaimed, "Oh, I have never seen such a big jujube in all my travels in China." Then he carefully picked up one, put it in his mouth and chewed it slowly. When the girl and everyone saw it, King Mu was so intoxicated that he closed his eyes. After a long time, King Zhou Mu slowly opened his eyes and praised repeatedly: "Wonderful, wonderful! What kind of jujube is this?" The girl quickly replied: "This is a specialty of our place. It was originally a wild jujube, but now we have grown it ourselves." . King Mu of Zhou sighed: "I never expected that there are such good jujubes in the Western Desert. It seems that the climate here is dry and the sun is shining brightly. It is a special destiny because of this. It is also God's will."
The legend of the origin of dates
According to legend, in ancient times, the Dragon King accumulated many gems and piled them into a sparkling mountain of jewels. This aroused the jealousy of Baiyu Fengxing, the concubine of the Sun God, and she ordered the Earth God to fill the Jewel Mountain with yellow sand.
When the Yellow River flooded, Shun sent Yu to control the flood. Yu's daughter was named Hong. She was very smart. She said goodbye to her mother at the age of 13 and helped her father manage the river water. One dark night, she slipped and fell on the river embankment. She pushed her hands hard into the soil of the river embankment to keep from falling. But when she pulled her hand out, a bright light shot out of the small hole. When she saw that there were many gems, she grabbed a red gem.
At this time, Hong was tired and hungry, and thought, it would be great if the gems could be eaten. As she thought about it, she couldn't help but put the gem in her mouth. Unexpectedly, as soon as the gem reached his mouth, sweet juice immediately flowed out. After Hong swallowed a few mouthfuls, she felt no longer hungry.
When the Earth God saw that Hong had obtained the gem, he told her that the gem must be buried in the sand. If White Jade Fengxing knew about it, he would definitely cause trouble. Hong followed the land god's instructions and buried the gem on the river embankment.
Later Hong told his father about the gem, and Yu happily said to his daughter, "Let's find the gem quickly to help the victims survive the famine."
The father and daughter came to the river embankment where the gems were buried, and saw a big tree there. The tree was covered with fruits. The fruits were red and exactly like gems. Hong picked one and tasted it. It was sweet and crisp. It turned out that the gem was moistened by nature, and its spiritual energy became stronger. It grew into a big tree, and the fruit on the tree was exactly the same as mine.
The father and daughter hurriedly picked the fruits from the tree and distributed them to the hungry people. But there are so many hungry people, how can one tree get enough fruit? Hong then asked her father to go home first, and she stayed to plant trees every night. Day after day, month after month, within a few years, the place was covered with fruit trees bearing gem-like fruits. Because the tree was grown from a tree, people named it a tree. In order to distinguish it from the name of the tree, people created the word "jujube". The word "wood" indicates that the jujube tree is a woody plant, and there is also the word "jujube". The word "scarf" indicates that the person is of a woman's race. People felt that writing it once could not express their respect for Hong, so they wrote it twice. This is the origin of the traditional Chinese character "zao".