How to care for autumn flowers? These 7 kinds of potted plants need to be moved indoors on autumn nights
As autumn arrives and temperatures drop, flower lovers are also worried about how to care for their flowers. Here's the tip: the following 7 kinds of potted plants are cold-sensitive and need to be moved indoors on autumn nights.
Autumn is here, and winter is not far behind. Day-night temperature differences are now large, and cold air masses grow stronger each time. Some cold-sensitive potted plants need timely insulation. Those who love potted plants need to understand their plants' habits. There are now so many kinds of plants and flowers, and some varieties are quite cold-sensitive; without timely insulation, once autumn and winter arrive they will yellow and die. As autumn deepens, take a look at which potted plants at home need to be moved indoors for insulation. We have compiled the following 7 kinds of potted plants that are cold-sensitive and need to be moved indoors on autumn nights.
Snake plant (Sansevieria trifasciata)
Snake plant likes warmth and tolerates both light and shade. Although it adapts well to its environment, temperatures below 10°C are unsuitable for growth, and in autumn's high humidity, improper insulation can cause root rot and death. Each gust of autumn wind brings a chill; with large day-night temperature differences in autumn, it should be moved indoors for insulation at night.
Spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum)
Spider plant likes a warm, humid environment and is not cold-tolerant. In autumn the humidity is high and nighttime temperatures are low, making poor drainage likely. In autumn the spider plant can be moved to an indoor balcony; the balcony's light and humidity suit its growth.
Succulents
Succulents are not cold-tolerant; cold can be called the "blade of death" for succulents. Although there are many varieties, including some cold-tolerant ones, most succulents dislike the chill. Starting indoor cultivation in autumn: half-dead succulents look extremely unattractive and have no ornamental value at all.
Alocasia (Alocasia macrorrhizos, giant taro)
A large foliage plant, the ornamental value of Alocasia lies mainly in its huge leaves. If the leaves turn yellow, there is no point in growing it. In autumn, nighttime temperatures turn cool, humidity is high and drainage is poor, making yellow leaves likely. Starting in autumn, Alocasia can be moved indoors.
Jasmine (Jasminum sambac)
Autumn is jasmine's last flowering period. Jasmine is cold-sensitive, so on autumn nights it should be moved indoors for insulation, which helps extend the flowering period.
Bougainvillea (Bougainvillea spectabilis)
Bougainvillea is a tropical plant and is sensitive to cold. Because of its beautiful flower shape, it is now grown in both northern and southern China. Bougainvillea's flowering period is at the turn of winter and spring. In autumn it grows well, but we need to pay special attention to the repeated chills of autumn, especially on late-autumn nights; insulation work must be done well. Temperatures above 15°C favor flower bud formation, and chilled bougainvillea is greatly affected in its flowering.
Poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima)
Poinsettia's flowering period begins in December. To ensure vivid flower color during the flowering period and prevent withering, preparations for winter should begin in autumn; don't let growth problems appear by late autumn, or you can forget about blooming. When temperatures fall below 15°C, it needs to be moved indoors. Poinsettia is sensitive to cold; at too-low temperatures the leaves curl and then drop. In autumn, watch the temperature, and on cold nights it must be moved indoors to keep the leaves in good condition.
There are many varieties of succulents. The varieties we commonly grow include: Christmas cactus, cactus, aloe, snake plant, and Pachyphytum 'Star Beauty', etc. These all belong to the succulents.
Osmanthus (Osmanthus fragrans) Osmanthus guide: how to grow osmanthus / how to propagate osmanthus
Osmanthus profileOsmanthus (Osmanthus fragrans)
Osmanthus cultivation methods and precautions, and an introduction to osmanthus
Osmanthus (English: Sweet Olive), of the family Oleaceae and genus Osmanthus, also known as "rock osmanthus" and "muxi", commonly called the osmanthus tree. An evergreen shrub or small tree, it is a temperate tree species. Leaves are opposite, mostly elliptical or long-elliptical; the leaf surface is smooth, leathery, with serrated edges. Flowers are clustered; the corolla splits down to the base, with colors including milky white, yellow, and orange-red. In China, more than 20 cities, including Xinyang, Quzhou, and Hanzhong, use osmanthus as their city flower or city tree. Osmanthus is esteemed for its calm, steadfast character. From "Zaijingtang Collection - Jiangnan Jingshi Poems - Osmanthus": "The jade tree stands quietly as the harsh season comes; after a thousand flowers have fallen, its flowers still bloom. Its purity and chastity create a realm of fresh fragrance; the desolate earth depends on it for revival." Related plays and songs include "Osmanthus Blooming Everywhere in August," etc.
Morphological characteristics of osmanthus
Osmanthus is an evergreen shrub or small tree, a temperate tree species. Leaves are opposite, mostly elliptical or long-elliptical; the leaf surface is smooth, leathery, with serrated edges.
Osmanthus flowers are clustered; the corolla splits down to the base, with colors including milky white, yellow, and orange-red.
Ecological habits of osmanthus
Osmanthus adapts to subtropical climate regions and likes warmth and humidity. In cultivation areas the average temperature is 14-28°C, the average July temperature is 24-28°C, the average January temperature is above 0°C, it can withstand a minimum temperature of -13°C, and the optimum growth temperature is 15-28°C. Humidity is extremely important for osmanthus growth and development; it requires an annual average humidity of 75%-85% and annual precipitation of about 1000 mm. Especially in the young stage and when mature trees bloom, more water is needed; drought will affect flowering. Strong sunlight and shade are both unfavorable to its growth; generally 6-8 hours of light per day are required.
Osmanthus likes a warm environment and is suitable for growing in deep, well-drained, fertile, humus-rich, slightly acidic sandy soil. It is not tolerant of drought or barrenness; in shallow, compacted, poor soil it grows especially slowly, with sparse branches and leaves, small thin leaves, yellowed leaf color, no flowering or very little flowering, and even periodic dieback of the top, and in severe cases the whole osmanthus plant dies; it likes sunlight but has a certain tolerance for shade. Young trees need some shade; after maturity they require relatively sufficient light to ensure normal growth. According to observation, when one side of a single osmanthus tree's canopy is close to a wall, or when the canopies of two osmanthus trees overlap, the side close to the wall or the overlapping part of the canopy quickly becomes sparse, affecting the overall shape and beauty of the canopy.
It can be seen that osmanthus is suitable for planting in ventilated, light-transmitting places; osmanthus likes a clean, ventilated environment and is not tolerant of smoke and dust damage; after being damaged it often fails to bloom; it fears waterlogging and standing water. If harmed by waterlogging, the root system turns black and rots, the leaves first scorch at the tips, then the whole leaf yellows and drops, further leading to the death of the whole plant; it is not very cold-tolerant, but compared with other evergreen broadleaf tree species it is still a relatively cold-tolerant species, which offers more possibilities for potted osmanthus in the north.
Cultivation techniques for osmanthus: key cultivation points
1. Planting: should be chosen in spring or autumn, especially best on cloudy or rainy days. Choose a ventilated, well-drained, warm place; sufficient light or a semi-shaded environment is acceptable. When transplanting, make a good root ball to ensure survival rate. The planting soil should be slightly acidic; alkaline soil is taboo. For potted osmanthus the potting soil ratio is 2 parts leaf mold, 3 parts garden soil, 3 parts sandy soil, and 2 parts decomposed cake fertilizer; mix them evenly, then pot or repot, which can be done before spring bud break.
2. Light and temperature: south of the Yellow River basin it can be overwintered outdoors. Potted plants should be moved indoors in winter and placed in a sunny spot so they fully receive direct sunlight; room temperature should be kept above 5°C, but must not exceed 10°C. After sprouting in April of the following year, move them outdoors, first placing them in a sheltered, sunny spot for care, and after stable growth gradually move them to a ventilated, sunny or semi-shaded environment, then carry out normal management. Insufficient light during the growing period affects flower bud differentiation.
3. Watering and fertilizing: before field planting, mix plant ash and organic fertilizer into the planting hole first, and water thoroughly once after planting. Keep the soil moist before new shoots emerge; do not water with fertilizer solution. Generally apply nitrogen fertilizer once in spring and phosphorus and potassium fertilizer once in summer to make flowers abundant and leaves lush; before winter apply overwintering organic fertilizer once, mainly decomposed cake fertilizer and barnyard manure. Avoid concentrated fertilizer, especially human waste. Potted osmanthus in the north should be placed in a low-temperature greenhouse in winter, and indoors should be kept ventilated and light-transmitting with less watering. After being brought out in April, water can be appropriately increased; during the peak growing season, an appropriate amount of dilute fertilizer solution can be watered, and during the flowering season the fertilizer solution can be slightly more concentrated.
4. Shaping and pruning: decide according to the tree; set the main framework according to the tree's form, remove other root suckers, overly dense branches, leggy branches, crossing branches, and diseased or weak branches, so as to improve ventilation and light transmission. For trees that are strong on top and weak below, the upper branches can be cut back by 1/3 to make the overall tree vigor strong; at the same time apply healing and antiseptic film to the pruning cuts to protect the wounds.
5. Growing osmanthus in the north: generally speaking, osmanthus is widely planted in the Huai River basin and areas to the south, with its suitable range reaching the lower reaches of the Yellow River in the north and Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan in the south. However, Beijing and Qingdao can also grow osmanthus. In "300 Questions on Home Flower Growing" by "Feng Tianzhe," it is said that in winter, after young osmanthus trees enter winter, water once with antifreeze water and mound soil around the base to protect the roots, then wrap the trunk and branches with 7 layers of thick newspaper, and they can overwinter outdoors in Beijing. After three years, there is no need to wrap them for winter anymore.
Key cultivation points for osmanthus container seedlings
1. Cold protection measures: osmanthus is slightly cold-tolerant; osmanthus container seedlings potted from cuttings in the same year are prone to freezing injury, and generally should be moved into a greenhouse before temperatures fall below 0°C.
2. Pest and disease control: osmanthus is prone to anthracnose, brown spot disease, dead leaf disease, leaf and branch disease, leaf roller moth, whitefly, scale insects, bagworm moths, slug moths, osmanthus leafhopper, and other pests and diseases; observe promptly and spray promptly for control.
Cultivation management
In the Yangtze River basin and warm areas to the south, field planting is mostly practiced. Field planting should choose a site with sufficient sunlight, good drainage, deep topsoil, and light pollution. Osmanthus planting holes should be dug deep and wide, with more barnyard manure, plant ash, etc. applied as base fertilizer. When planting, large seedlings must have a root ball to ensure transplant survival. Planting should not be too deep. After the seedlings survive and recover, apply fertilizer once together with watering. After flowers fade in winter, apply base fertilizer once. When buds swell in spring and new leaves emerge, apply a quick-acting fertilizer mainly of nitrogen once; in July before flowering, apply a quick-acting fertilizer mainly of phosphorus and potassium once. In October apply a slow-release fertilizer mainly of organic matter once, which can make growth and flowering good. Before flowering, attention should be paid to irrigation; during flowering, water should be controlled, otherwise too much water easily causes flower drop. Pruning should be done after flowering in autumn; strong pruning is not suitable; only prune diseased and pest-damaged branches, thin and weak branches, damaged branches, inward-growing branches, and leggy branches. Usually also pay attention to pest and disease control.
In North China, because winters are cold, osmanthus is not suitable for field cultivation and is mostly grown in pots. Potted soil requirements are not strict; mountain soil or a mix of leaf mold, garden soil, river sand, etc. can be used, with a slightly acidic pH being best. If the pH value is too low, growth is slow and leaves easily turn yellow; lime powder or plant ash can be added to adjust. If the pH value is too high, leaves easily wither and even die; ferrous sulfate or aluminum sulfate can be added to improve it.
Potted osmanthus is transplanted into pots before spring bud break or after flowering in autumn. After transplanting, water thoroughly once and move to a shaded place for 7-10 days; only after growth resumes and new leaves emerge can normal watering and fertilizing begin. Potting soil moisture is best at 50% water content; before new shoots appear and on cloudy and rainy days, water less; in summer and autumn when the weather is dry, more watering is needed; when flowering in autumn, do not water too much to prevent flower drop. On cloudy and rainy days avoid standing water, otherwise prolonged waterlogging will cause root rot. For fertilizing potted osmanthus, refer to field cultivation fertilizing.
Osmanthus has a well-developed root system and strong sprouting ability. Adult osmanthus trees flush shoots twice each year in spring and autumn, so timely and appropriate pruning is needed. Pruning is best done after flowering in autumn or before spring bud break. The purpose of pruning is to maintain the physiological balance between reproductive growth and vegetative growth, so that osmanthus has abundant flowers and lush leaves. Pruning should remove overly dense branches, leggy branches, damaged branches, and diseased or pest-damaged branches. During the growing period, cut off root suckers to concentrate nutrients and promote abundant flowering. [12] The optimum growth temperature for osmanthus is 25-28°C; above 30°C is unfavorable for growth and development, and below -6°C it is prone to freezing injury. The room temperature for safe overwintering of potted plants is more suitable between 0-10°C. In the north, move osmanthus indoors in late autumn, keep the potting soil slightly moist, and let it fully rest to favor flowering the next year; after Qingming the following year, move it to a ventilated, sunny place for care. Potted osmanthus should be repotted and soil-changed once every 1-2 years, with sufficient base fertilizer applied.
Propagation methods of osmanthus
Propagation methods: osmanthus has many propagation methods, including sowing, grafting, layering, and cuttings.
1. Seed propagation
Growing seedlings from seed takes a long time to reach flowering, so home flower growers mostly do not use this method.
Osmanthus fruit matures from April to May; it can be harvested when the fruit skin changes from green to purple-black. Osmanthus seeds have after-ripening; they need at least half a year of sand storage. After harvesting, sprinkle water and pile them to ferment, remove the fruit pulp, place in a cool place to let the seeds dry naturally, and store mixed with sand; after sand storage they can be sown in autumn or spring. During sand storage, check frequently to prevent the seeds from molding or being damaged by rats. Seed propagation generally uses the drill sowing method. Before sowing, prepare the land well and apply sufficient base fertilizer; they can also be sown in indoor seedbeds. When sowing, place the seed hilum sideways to avoid bending the radicle and young stem, which would later affect seedling growth. After sowing, cover with a layer of fine soil, then cover with grass to shade and retain moisture, and keep the soil moist frequently; seedlings can emerge the same year. The seeding rate is about 20 kg per mu, producing about 30,000 seedlings. After growing in the seedbed for 2 years, the small seedlings can be transplanted for cultivation in the 3rd year. Seedling-grown plants flower relatively late, only showing flowers 8-10 years after planting.
2. Grafting propagation
Grafting rootstocks are mostly glossy privet, small-leaf privet, Chinese privet, water privet, white wax, and fringetree (also known as Yougongzi, Niujinzi), etc. When propagating seedlings in large quantities, the north mostly uses small-leaf privet; before spring sprouting, cut the rootstock off 5 cm above the ground; cut 1-2-year-old robust osmanthus branches 10-12 cm long, cut one side of the base into a 2-3 cm cut surface, and cut the opposite side into a 45-degree small slant; make a vertical cut about 2-3 cm deep at about 1/3 of one side of the rootstock; insert the scion into the cut so the cambium layers align, tie tightly with plastic bags, then bury in soil for cultivation. Using small-leaf privet as rootstock gives a high survival rate; grafted seedlings grow fast but have a short lifespan and easily form the "small foot" phenomenon of being "thick on top and thin below." Using water privet as rootstock gives slow growth but a longer lifespan. Potted osmanthus is mostly propagated by approach grafting. Using fringetree as rootstock, approach grafting should be carried out in the growing season, not in the rainy season or dog days. When approach grafting, choose a scion and rootstock of similar branch thickness, cut a spindle-shaped cut on a suitable part of the scion, deep to the xylem, about 3-4 cm long, cut a matching cut of the same size on the rootstock at the same height, then bring the two cuts together so their cambium layers bind closely, tie tightly with plastic strips, and after healing, cut off the rootstock above the graft union and the scion below it. The root system of grafted seedlings varies with the rootstock; inserted cuttings easily produce adventitious roots in various places in the soil, but without an obvious main root. Osmanthus has strong branching ability and a low branching point, especially obvious when young, so it often appears shrub-like over time. After dense planting or pruning, it can form an obvious trunk. The bark is rough, gray-brown or gray-white, sometimes showing lenticels. The leaf surface is smooth, leathery, dark bright green on the adaxial side and lighter on the abaxial side; elliptical, long-elliptical, ovate, obovate, lanceolate, oblanceolate, long-lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate.
3. Cutting propagation
Before spring sprouting, use one-year-old fully developed branches, cut them into 5-10 cm lengths, remove the lower leaves, keep 2-3 green leaves at the top, and insert them into river sand or loess seedbeds at a spacing of 3 cm x 20 cm; water or spray promptly after inserting, and shade, maintaining a temperature of 20-25°C and relative humidity of 85%-90%; after 2 months they can root and be transplanted. [12] 4. Layering propagation can be divided into ground layering and air layering. Ground layering of osmanthus must use low-branching or clump-forming mother plants. The time is from spring to early summer; choose a relatively robust low-trunk mother tree, select its lower 1-2-year-old branches, choose an easily bendable part and cut or girdle it with a sharp knife deep to the xylem, then press it into a 3-5 cm deep trench, and fix the pressed branch with a wooden stick, leaving only the shoot tip and leaves outside. The air layering method is to select 1-2-year-old robust branches from the mother tree in spring, cut a ring or girdle as in the ground layering method, or make a cut from the lower side 6-9 cm long, then apply culture medium to the wound, tie plastic bags tightly above and below, and during the cultivation process always keep the medium moist; after rooting in autumn, cut it off from the mother plant for care.
Selecting osmanthus seeds
Propagating osmanthus from seed is the fastest, but the common methods are cuttings or layering; however, sowing is the best way to propagate osmanthus in large quantities. Not all osmanthus seeds are suitable for growing osmanthus seedlings; the mother tree selected for seed must be over 18 years old, as such osmanthus seeds will have a higher emergence rate, and the seedlings grown will be more resistant.
A large proportion of osmanthus seeds are picked before they mature, and it is even less possible to guarantee that the osmanthus tree age is over 18 years; because the mother trees are contracted year-round, quality is guaranteed to a certain extent. When selecting seeds, choose clean seeds with a golden-yellow color; the seeds are pointed at one end and shield-shaped at the other. Once the seeds are selected, you must learn to store them: store the seeds well in moist sand, and the field chemical management the next year will also be reduced.
Osmanthus cultivation methods: 1. Why is Four Seasons Osmanthus not fragrant?
Answer: The reason Four Seasons Osmanthus blooms year-round but is not fragrant is that the variety itself has a relatively light fragrance. Among common osmanthus varieties, the strongest fragrance is Dan Gui, followed by Jin Gui, then Yin Gui, while Four Seasons Osmanthus has the lightest fragrance. As an economic crop it is rarely cultivated, precisely because it blooms sparsely and its fragrance is not strong; as an ornamental potted plant, it is valued because of its beautiful tree shape and year-round flowering, suitable for potted viewing. Four Seasons Osmanthus mostly grows in clumps, with yellow-white flowers, relatively sparse, light fragrance, and a long flowering period. Generally, except in severe winter and midsummer, it can bloom about once every two months, with a slightly stronger fragrance in autumn and lighter at other times. Its varieties include large-leaf Four Seasons Osmanthus and small-leaf Four Seasons Osmanthus. If Yueyue Gui lacks light and phosphorus fertilizer during cultivation, its floral fragrance becomes faint. If the plant is placed in a sunny, ventilated environment, topdressed once every 10 days, and appropriately given more phosphorus fertilizer, the fragrance of the flowers can be increased to a certain extent, but it still cannot match other varieties.
2. Why does potted osmanthus not bloom?
Answer: First, insufficient light. Osmanthus likes light; when light intensity during the vegetative growth period is below 60°C, its growth and development decline, vegetative growth worsens, and flowering quantity decreases. When light is severely insufficient, because photosynthesis weakens and nutrient accumulation is low, it cannot bloom. Therefore, sufficient light must be given. Second, lack of fertilizer. Osmanthus has a relatively large growth and flowering volume and needs to consume large amounts of nutrients. Poor potting soil or insufficient fertility will also affect plant growth and flowering. Therefore, during shoot flushing, apply 1-2 fertilizers mainly of nitrogen; from flower bud differentiation (starting at the end of May) to before flowering, apply 2-3 fertilizers mainly of phosphorus. Third, potting soil too wet. Osmanthus dislikes excessive moisture and standing water; wet waterlogging causes root rot leading to poor growth and failure to bloom, and in severe cases can cause the potted plant to die. Watering should follow the principle of "do not water if not dry, water thoroughly when watering"; after heavy rain and rainstorms, promptly pour out standing water in the pot, paying special attention to weather that clears after rain, and even more avoid damaging the root system. Fourth, soil on the alkaline side. Osmanthus likes slightly acidic soil, with pH 5.5-6.5 being suitable. Osmanthus growing in alkaline soil often has poor growth and is affected in flowering. Fifth, smoke and dust pollution. Osmanthus is not tolerant of smoke, dust, and pollution. When there is too much smoke and dust or after pollution, the leaves become smaller, easily fall off, and the phenomenon of only growing leaves and not blooming appears. Sixth, it has not reached flowering age.
3. What edible health benefits does osmanthus have?
Answer: Osmanthus tea has the effect of clearing fragrance and refreshing the mind. After briefly blanching osmanthus in boiling water, take it out and dry it, pickle it with white sugar, and seal it in a bottle to maintain color and aroma; it can be used as a food spice. Add osmanthus and pure lotus root starch to white sugar and mix with hot water to make osmanthus lotus root starch, which is delicious and appetizing. Take superior small jujubes, cook with sugar, and when the liquid is nearly gone, add osmanthus to make spleen-strengthening and appetite-opening osmanthus candied jujubes. Gui Zhi (cinnamon twig), Gui Zi (osmanthus seeds), and Gui Gen (osmanthus root) can all be used as medicine. Gui Zhi Tang, prepared from Gui Zhi, peony, ginger, jujube, and licorice, is specially used to treat externally contracted wind pathogens, fever, headache, and other symptoms. Gui Gen tastes sweet and slightly astringent.
4. How to thaw frozen osmanthus?
Answer: In early winter, when osmanthus is attacked by cold waves, freezing injury is very likely. In affected plants the concentration of the solution in the intercellular spaces increases, and protoplasm dehydration is severe, causing young leaves to shrink. In this situation, if you rush to place the affected potted plant in a high-temperature place or direct sunlight, it will instead accelerate the death of the osmanthus. The correct method is to take slow thawing measures so the cells gradually absorb water and return to normal. In this situation, you can also quickly wrap the potted flower with highly absorbent waste newspaper for three layers including the pot; when wrapping, be careful not to damage the branches and leaves of the potted flower, and avoid direct sunlight. Leave it like this for one day so the potted flower's temperature gradually rises. After this treatment, the frozen potted flower can revive.
5. How can osmanthus be made to grow with a well-proportioned shape?
Answer: First, when planting osmanthus, place the plant in the exact center of the pot; after watering thoroughly, straighten any tilted plant to lay a good foundation for future cultivation. Second, prune reasonably. When pruning, pay attention to the overall appearance of the plant, pay attention to retaining buds, and try to let terminal buds grow toward gaps. Prune vigorous branches strongly; cut off useless weak branches; for those needed to fill gaps, retain them and prune lightly. Third, moderately tie the potted flower. If a certain direction has a relatively large gap, you can use tying to guide dense branches toward the gap. Fourth, often turn the pot. For osmanthus that does not need pruning, turn the pot often so gaps facing the sun can induce new branches. Turning the pot: throughout the year, the sun always moves along its orbit, so the angle and intensity of light are always changing. If the flower pot is fixed in one position for a long time, one side of the plant always fails to get appropriate light, and over time a round potted plant will grow unevenly due to uneven sunlight. Therefore, during the growing season, rotate the flower pot 45° every 10 days. By often turning the pot, all angles and directions of the plant will grow evenly, the side branches around the trunk will also be neat and consistent, and the leaves can evenly receive sunlight. Thus, the plant's shape and posture can be full and beautiful, achieving an ornamental effect from every angle, and the branches and leaves can grow more spread out and attractive.
6. Why does osmanthus easily die at the turn of winter and spring?
Answer: The reason must be sought in management methods. In addition to providing appropriate moisture and sufficient light, it is especially important not to fertilize osmanthus in winter and to keep it in a cool, cold environment. The reason osmanthus easily dies in winter is not that the environment is not warm enough, but that the environment is not cool enough. In the osmanthus's place of origin, winter is not warm. Osmanthus, having adapted to this growing environment for millions of years, when overwintering in a warm place, shows no obvious abnormality in the plant for a period at first. On the contrary, it seems to forget that winter has come, grows buds and shoots, and appears thriving. However, this situation cannot be maintained for long; factors such as changes in indoor lighting and temperature cannot satisfy growth like in summer, and old leaves begin to fall, new shoots wilt, and the plant dies. To make the osmanthus you grow overwinter safely, in winter place it in an environment of 0-5°C, give sufficient sunlight, do not apply topdressing, and avoid overly wet potting soil. After winter passes you will find that the osmanthus you grow not only survived safely, but its growth vigor appears stronger than those that barely survived overwintering in a high-temperature environment.
7. How to fertilize more reasonably?
Answer: (1) Reasonable fertilization should follow the principle of frequent application of thin fertilizer, mainly quick-acting nitrogen; large seedlings are fertilized 3 to 4 times per year. In early spring, when buds begin to swell and roots begin activity, the osmanthus tree will absorb fertilizer. Therefore, early-spring orchards should be fertilized to promote spring shoot growth. For flowers that open first on spring buds, strong spring shoot growth in the current year will lead to more flowering in the future. Osmanthus trees bloom in autumn; to restore tree vigor and supplement nutrients, inorganic fertilizer or garbage mixed fertilizer is needed before winter. At the same time, according to osmanthus growth, fertilize once or twice. For newly transplanted osmanthus trees, the roots are damaged, so absorption capacity is weak, and fertilizer must not be added too early. Base fertilizer should be mixed evenly with the planting hole soil before adding soil; roots should not directly contact fertilizer, so as not to injure the roots and affect the survival rate of the osmanthus tree.
(2) Fertilizer must be applied at the roots to be well absorbed. In this way transplanting easily survives; when fertilizing seedlings, the plant root concentration must not be too far from the seedlings, otherwise the roots will expand outward. It should not be applied at the main trunk of the tree, because this is not conducive to fertilizer absorption.
Pest and disease control of osmanthus
Osmanthus brown spot disease, osmanthus dead spot disease, and osmanthus anthracnose are common leaf diseases of osmanthus. These diseases can cause early leaf fall in osmanthus, weaken plant growth vigor, and reduce osmanthus flower yield and ornamental value. The main pest in home osmanthus cultivation is mites, commonly known as red spiders. Once disease is found, it should be dealt with immediately; mite clear, aphid-mite kill, and azocyclotin can be used for foliar spraying. Both the front and back of the leaves must be evenly sprayed. Once a week for 2-3 consecutive times, and it can be cured.
Osmanthus brown spot disease
At the early stage of disease, small chlorotic yellow spots appear on the leaves, gradually expanding into nearly round lesions 2-10 mm in diameter, or becoming irregular lesions because lesion expansion is restricted by leaf veins. The lesions are yellow-brown to gray-brown, with a yellow halo around the outside. Brown spot disease generally occurs from April to October, and old leaves are more susceptible than young leaves. The pathogen overwinters as mycelium on diseased fallen leaves, and in the spring of the following year produces conidia for primary infection; conidia are spread by airflow and raindrops.
Osmanthus dead spot disease
The pathogen of this disease mostly invades from the leaf margin and leaf tip, occurring at the leaf margin and leaf tip. At the early stage of disease, light brown small spots appear on the leaves, gradually expanding into round or irregular lesions, then expanding into nearly round or irregular gray-brown large spots with dark brown edges. Dead spot disease occurs from July to November, and can occur year-round in poorly conditioned greenhouses. The pathogen spreads and infects by conidia through wind and water. High temperature, high humidity, and poor ventilation favor disease development. When plants are weak, and on old leaves after overwintering and leaves in the lower part of the plant, the disease is more severe.
Osmanthus anthracnose
This disease infects osmanthus leaves. At the early stage of disease, small chlorotic spots appear on the leaves, and after gradually expanding they form round, semicircular, or elliptical lesions. The lesions are light brown to gray-white, with a red-brown ring at the edge. Under humid conditions, light pink acervuli appear on the lesions. Anthracnose occurs from April to June. The pathogen overwinters as acervuli in diseased fallen leaves and is spread by wind and rain.
Control measures
First, reduce sources of infection. Thoroughly clear diseased fallen leaves in autumn. For potted osmanthus, promptly remove diseased leaves. Second, strengthen cultivation management. Choose fertile, well-drained soil or substrate for planting osmanthus; apply more organic fertilizer and potassium fertilizer; planting density should be appropriate to facilitate ventilation and light transmission, reduce leaf surface humidity, and reduce disease occurrence. Use chemical control scientifically. At the early stage of disease, spray Bordeaux mixture at 1:2:200; afterward spray 50% carbendazim wettable powder at 1000 times, or 50% benomyl wettable powder at 1000-1500 times. In severely affected areas, when seedlings leave the nursery, soak them in 1000 times potassium permanganate solution for disinfection.
Introduction to osmanthus varieties
Through long-term planting, natural hybridization, and artificial selection, osmanthus has produced many cultivated varieties. Through further investigation and sorting, 32 osmanthus varieties have been preliminarily determined.
By flower color, there are Jin Gui, Yin Gui, and Dan Gui; by leaf type, there are willow-leaf osmanthus, golden-fan osmanthus, Didi Huang, sunflower-leaf, and Chaibing Huang; by flowering period, there are August osmanthus, Four Seasons Osmanthus, and Yueyue Jia, etc. [7] China still has no unified variety classification, and by custom osmanthus is divided into the following four variety types: Jin Gui, Yin Gui, Dan Gui, and Four Seasons Osmanthus.
Four Seasons Osmanthus variety group: plants are relatively short with more root suckers; the floral fragrance is not as rich as Yin Gui, Jin Gui, or Dan Gui; it blooms multiple times or continuously each year, with lemon-yellow or light-yellow flowers. Varieties include large-leaf Four Seasons Osmanthus and small-leaf Four Seasons Osmanthus. It blooms in all seasons, with varieties such as "Yueyue Gui," "Rixiang Gui," "Large-leaf Fodingzhu," and "Serrated-leaf Four Seasons Osmanthus."
Yin Gui variety group: blooms in autumn, with pure white, milky white, yellow-white, or light yellow flowers. Varieties include broad-leaf seed Yin Gui, willow-leaf Yin Gui, hard-leaf Yin Gui, "Seed Yin Gui," "Jiulong Gui," "Early Yin Gui," "Late Yin Gui," "Baijie," "Pure White Yin Gui," and "Qingshan Yin Gui," etc.
Jin Gui variety group: blooms in autumn, with flowers from lemon yellow to light golden yellow. Varieties include "Large-flower Jin Gui," "Large-leaf Huang," "Huangchuan Jin Gui," "Late Jin Gui," "Round-leaf Jin Gui," Xianning Late Gui, Ball Gui, Round-petal Jin Gui, Willow-leaf Su Gui, Jinshi Gui, and Wave-leaf Jin Gui, etc.
Dan Gui variety group: blooms in autumn, with relatively deep flower color, flowers orange, orange-yellow, orange-red to vermilion. Varieties include "Cinnabar Dan Gui," "Large-leaf Dan Gui," "Small-leaf Dan Gui," and "Serrated Dan Gui," etc.
Distribution range of osmanthus
Garden osmanthus originated in the eastern section of the Himalayas in southwest China; it is also distributed in India, Nepal, and Cambodia. In southwest China, Sichuan, southern Shaanxi, Yunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong, Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Anhui, Henan, and other places, wild osmanthus grows, and it is now widely planted in the Huai River basin and areas to the south; its suitable range reaches the lower reaches of the Yellow River in the north and Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan in the south.
This region has good water and heat conditions and suitable precipitation; the soil is mostly yellow-brown earth or yellow-cinnamon soil, and the vegetation is mainly of the subtropical broadleaf forest type. Nurtured and influenced by the above conditions, osmanthus grows well, and several nationally famous osmanthus commercial production bases have formed: Lu'an in Anhui, Xianning in Hubei, Taoyuan in Hunan, Suzhou in Jiangsu, Guilin in Guangxi, Wuhan in Hubei, Hangzhou in Zhejiang, and Chengdu in Sichuan. Hangzhou's city flower is precisely osmanthus.
Medicinal or dietary therapy value of osmanthus
The medical information and health dietary therapy information on Hugarden Network is for reference only and cannot be used as a basis for diagnosis or medical treatment. Consult professional medical personnel for any health problems, and follow doctor's advice for the treatment of any disease.
Ultimate flower-protecting mission: love yourself, start from reality, and strictly follow doctor's advice. For disease, do not be careless, do not delay, do not give up hope; face it bravely, warm the silent world with love, and care for the flower field in your heart with your heart.
Medicinal value: brief introduction to the medicinal material: Oleaceae, evergreen tree. Flowers light yellow-white, aromatic; aromatic oil is extracted and osmanthus concrete is made, which can be used in food and cosmetics, can make cakes and candy, and can brew wine. Osmanthus tastes pungent and can be used as medicine.
Source: The plant osmanthus of the Oleaceae family and Osmanthus genus; the flowers, fruit, and roots are used as medicine. Flowers are collected in autumn; fruit in spring; roots in all seasons, and dried separately.
Related medicinal materials: Green-backed osmanthus, Ma Gui Hua, mountain osmanthus, osmanthus dew, osmanthus seeds.
Nature, flavor, and meridian entry: Flowers: pungent, warm. Fruit: pungent, sweet, warm. Root: sweet, slightly astringent, neutral.
Functions and indications：
Flowers: dispel cold and break stagnation, resolve phlegm and stop cough. Used for toothache, cough and asthma with excessive phlegm, amenorrhea and abdominal pain.
Fruit: warm the stomach, calm the liver, dispel cold. Used for deficiency-cold stomach pain.
Root: dispel wind-dampness, dispel cold. Used for wind-dampness muscle and bone pain, low back pain, and kidney-deficiency toothache.
Practical supplementary formulas：
Formula 1
[Ingredients]: 1 g dried osmanthus, 2 g tea leaves.
[Preparation]: Put dried osmanthus and tea leaves into a cup, brew with boiling water for 6 minutes, and it is ready to drink.
[Usage]: Drink 1 cup in the morning and evening.
[Effects]: Strengthen muscles and nourish skin, invigorate blood and moisten the throat.
[Applications]: Suitable for dry skin, hoarse voice, toothache, and other symptoms.
Formula 2
[Materials]: Several osmanthus flowers
[Seasonings]: 1 small teaspoon refined salt, 1 small teaspoon rock sugar
[Method]:
1. Wash osmanthus repeatedly with salt water and drain;
2. Put the osmanthus into a cup, pour in boiling water, add rock sugar, cover the cup lid, and let steep for about three minutes; when the lid is lifted, the fragrance comes out.
[Effects]: Can resolve phlegm and dissipate stagnation, and treat cough.
The benefits of osmanthus wine：
The ancients believed that osmanthus was the chief of the hundred medicines, so wine brewed with osmanthus could achieve the effect of "drinking it brings a lifespan of a thousand years." For instance, during the Han Dynasty, osmanthus wine was a fine offering used by people to worship gods and ancestors. After the sacrifice was completed, the younger generation would offer osmanthus wine to their elders, and after the elders drank it, it symbolized that they would enjoy prolonged life.
This wine is sweet and mellow, with the benefits of stimulating the appetite, refreshing the spirits, strengthening the spleen, and tonifying deficiency. Osmanthus wine is especially suitable for women to drink and has been praised as the "wine of women's happiness." Traditional Chinese medicine includes theoretical practice of flower therapy, and osmanthus wine is a typical example.[16] Benefits of osmanthus tea: Osmanthus tea can nourish the face and beautify the appearance, soothe the throat, improve symptoms of excessive phlegm and cough, treat duodenal ulcers, urticaria, cold stomach and stomach pain, bad breath, and blurred vision.
Edible value: Glutinous rice osmanthus lotus root: Honey-glazed glutinous rice osmanthus lotus root Ingredients: 800 grams lotus root, 200 grams glutinous rice, 20 grams lotus leaf, 100 grams white granulated sugar, 40 grams sweet osmanthus sauce
1. Rinse the glutinous rice clean and soak it in warm water for about 1 hour
2. Wash the lotus root clean and cut it apart at the nodes
3. Cut off one end of the lotus root to expose the holes, fill in the soaked glutinous rice, then cover it with the cut lotus root node, and secure it firmly with bamboo skewers
4. Pour clean water into a pot, add the lotus root (with the rice-filled opening facing up), and bring to a boil over high heat
5. Cover with clean lotus leaves, put on the lid, turn to low heat and simmer for about 2 hours, then remove from the heat
6. Take out the lotus root and let it cool, peel it, cut it into slices 0.8 cm thick, and arrange them overlapping on a plate
7. Place the pot over high heat, add clean water and bring to a boil, add white sugar and cook until dissolved, skim off the foam, and turn to low heat
8. When the sugar syrup becomes thick and sticky, add osmanthus syrup and stir evenly, then remove from the heat and let cool
9. Pour the sugar syrup over the glutinous rice lotus root and it is ready.
Osmanthus yellow forest pastry：
Ingredients: 300 grams wheat flour, 100 grams osmanthus, 150 grams egg white, 150 grams black sesame, 20 grams cornstarch, making osmanthus yellow forest pastry (3 pieces), 150 grams rendered lard, 100 grams white granulated sugar
1. After sifting the flour, use 200 grams of flour and add 90 grams of lard, knead into a shortcrust dough
2. Add 60 grams of lard to 300 grams of flour, and knead with an appropriate amount of clean water into a water-oil dough
3. Divide the shortcrust dough and the water-oil dough one by one into strips and then into small pieces, and roll them with a rolling pin into ox-tongue shapes
4. Roll down from the top and then fold into three folds, roll into a pastry base, wrap in osmanthus filling, and shape into cakes
5. Place them in a baking tray, brush the surface with egg liquid, and bake in the oven until cooked.
Key points for making osmanthus yellow forest pastry:
1. When baking this pastry, you must control the temperature well, otherwise problems such as cracks and poor smoothness of the pastry surface are likely to appear
2. Method for making osmanthus filling: Put sesame, white sugar, and lard in a container, mix and stir well, add an appropriate amount of dry starch while stirring, and finally add osmanthus and mix well to make osmanthus filling.
Method for making osmanthus cake:
Raw material formula: 16 kg first-grade Sichuan white sugar, 4 kg refined sugar, 4 kg glutinous rice flour, 4 kg cooked oil, 2.5 kg honey osmanthus, 20 kg cooked flour. Production method
1. Make cooked flour: Put the flour into a steamer and steam until cooked (time 20 minutes), take it out and let it cool, then grind it fine with a pulverizer. This is cooked flour.
2. Make cake flour: Rinse glutinous rice with warm water at 50-60°C for 4-5 minutes, scoop it out and spread it in a winnowing basket to drain the water. The next day, stir-fry it with river sand (river sand treated with rapeseed oil) until puffed (it must not be stir-fried until yellow), then grind it into powder with an electric mill, which is cake flour (also called male powder), then spread the coffee osmanthus cake on a winnowing basket and expose it for 2-3 days, until the powder can be pinched into a ball by hand without falling apart.
3. Make refined sugar: Based on the ratio of 50 kg white sugar, add 2-2.5 kg maltose and 7.5 kg water, bring to a boil, then add 1 kg melted oil and boil to about 120°C. When a drop of the sugar liquid put into water can form a lump, scoop it out and put it into an ice pot and stir until it grains, becoming refined sugar.
4. Make the filling: According to the ingredients, mix white sugar, cooked flour, cooked oil cake flour, and honey osmanthus evenly, sift to remove impurities, and the filling is ready.
5. Fill the tray and shape: Use a wooden frame. First put 1/5 of the mixed base and surface material into the frame and spread it into a thin layer as the base, place the filling in the middle, then cover with 4/5 of the base and surface material as the cake top layer, roll flat, press tightly, cut into long rectangular strips with a thin knife, and then package.
Food characteristics: Long rectangular strips, complete shape, uniform thickness.
Color: Yellow and white clearly distinct, no spots, no impurities.
Texture: Moist and fluffy, fine and melting, not coarse, no sugar grains.
Taste: Sweet and delicious, with a rich fresh fragrance of osmanthus.
Roasted osmanthus sausage:
Ingredients: 300 grams fatty pork, 400 grams lean pork, 100 grams pork small intestine, 5 grams soy sauce, 5 grams white granulated sugar, 5 grams salt, 4 grams five-spice powder, 3 grams baijiu
1. Wash the fatty pork and lean pork clean, wipe dry with cloth and cut into granules, sprinkle in a small amount of salt and mix well, marinate for about 10 minutes.
2. Wash the pork intestine with warm water and soak until soft.
3. Put light soy sauce, granulated sugar, and five-spice powder (omit if you do not like five-spice powder) into the fully marinated chopped pork and mix well. Mix an appropriate amount of peach-red powder with one teaspoon of water, marinate with the seasonings for about 10 minutes, then add and mix.
4. After the marinated chopped pork has been mixed with peach-red powder, begin the work of stuffing it into the sausage casing. Take out the soaked intestine, pour off the water used to soak it, put the drained intestine back into a container, tie one end of the intestine firmly with fine string, and put the other end over the funnel for making cured sausage, also tying it tightly with fine string. Prepare a sewing needle about 7 cm long. When the intestine expands, use the sewing needle to pierce holes around the lowest position where air is trapped, so that the air can escape. As the pork is pressed in, it will not burst. When the work of stuffing the pork into the intestine is completed, remove the funnel and tie the opening firmly with fine string.
5. Use a roasting clip made of wire mesh, clamp the stuffed meat sausage in a wrapping manner and place it about 24 cm above glowing red charcoal to roast, turning and moving it, until a fragrant aroma is released and it is done.
6. If the stuffed meat sausage is too long, it can be cut off and roasted in 2 or 3 batches. The cut openings should be tied firmly with fine string immediately to prevent the meat granules from coming out. If not roasting it in long strips, it can be changed to the form of cured sausage in sections about 17 cm long.
Carving material
The wood of the osmanthus tree is dense, has beautiful grain, is not easy to split, and has a smooth planed surface, making it a good carving material.
Landscape uses of osmanthus. Landscape uses
Osmanthus has a wide range of landscape uses. With the continuous progress of science today, seedlings originally produced in the south have been introduced to the north and are widely distributed in Jiangsu, Henan, Shandong, Beijing, Tianjin, Dalian, Shanxi, and other places. Osmanthus has a good greening effect and shows results quickly; in the year it is planted, it can already play a relatively good role. However, when planted in the north, its cold resistance is generally only moderate, and special protection is needed in winter for it to overwinter safely.
Osmanthus is evergreen all year round, with luxuriant branches and leaves, blooms in autumn, and is full of fragrance, so it can be called "dominating the three autumns and overpowering all flowers." It is commonly used in gardens, often as a landscape tree, planted alone, in pairs, or in clumps and groves. In China's classical gardens, osmanthus is often paired with buildings, mountains, and rocks, with shrub-type plants placed near pavilions, terraces, towers, and chambers. Old-style courtyards often used paired planting, anciently called "two osmanthus in the courtyard" or "two osmanthus leaving fragrance." Planting osmanthus trees on the four sides of a residence or in front of a window can achieve the effect of "golden wind sending fragrance." On school campuses, for the meaning of "plucking osmanthus in the moon palace," osmanthus is also planted in large quantities. Osmanthus has a certain resistance to harmful gases such as sulfur dioxide and hydrogen fluoride, and is also a good flowering tree for greening industrial and mining areas.
Osmanthus has a striking fragrance and contains various aromatic substances, and can be used for food or for extracting fragrance. China has already formed concentrated osmanthus-growing regions such as Xianning in Hubei, Taoyuan in Hunan, Lu'an in Anhui, Guilin in Guangxi, Zunyi in Guizhou, and Wuhan in Hubei.
Appreciating osmanthus in Jiangcheng
Some osmanthus spots in Wuhan: 3458 plants at Hankou Jiangtan, 153 plants at Baibuting Youyuan, 24 plants on Huangpu Road, 63 plants in Hanjiang Green Space. Greening in Jiangcheng has upgraded from adding greenery and adding flowers in the past to adding fragrance. In newly built and rebuilt public green spaces, the number of aromatic plants has been increased to enhance the city's quality. A few years ago, the Baibuting residential community planted 473 osmanthus trees in the central square of the community, which are very popular with residents. In recent years, more have been replanted continuously, and now there are more than a thousand plants. Around the Mid-Autumn Festival each year, the fragrance of osmanthus drifts far and wide, just like the famous osmanthus garden at Wuhan University, known among ivory towers. Wuhan has also specially launched a Wuhan flower-viewing map to make it convenient for tourists to appreciate osmanthus, cherry blossoms, plum blossoms, and various other flowers and trees.
Xinzhou District in Wuhan currently has an osmanthus base of 13,000 mu, mainly distributed in Cangbu, with 34 bases, including 11 of more than 500 mu. The largest osmanthus garden has an area of nearly 4,000 mu, and this is also the largest osmanthus garden in the country. There is also the largest Dan GUI garden in Central China, with an area of 1,000 mu. First, it has the most osmanthus varieties, with 157 varieties, the most in the country. Second, it has many rare osmanthus varieties, among which the early red Dan GUI covers 1,000 mu and is the largest Dan GUI garden in Central China. Third, it has the largest osmanthus breeding base area, with 4 million osmanthus seedlings currently being bred, ranking first in Central China.
According to incomplete statistics, in the public green spaces of Wuhan's central urban area managed by the gardening department alone, 33,200 osmanthus trees have been planted, of which 12,300 are distributed in 63 city parks. This means that osmanthus trees outside parks account for more than half. On Moshan in East Lake alone, there are more than 100 mu of osmanthus forest and more than 10,000 trees. Wuhan has more than 120 species of greening trees totaling 754,000 plants, and osmanthus trees account for less than 5%. But the head of Wuhan's gardening department said that the built-up area of Wuhan's three towns is several times larger than the urban area of Xianning, with an average of more than 70 osmanthus trees per square kilometer. The number of osmanthus trees has already surpassed that of the long-established "hometown of osmanthus" and has transformed into a "capital of osmanthus." Careful residents have also found that the osmanthus trees on the streets of the three towns include not only multiple varieties such as Dan GUI, Jin GUI, and Yin GUI, but are also divided by tree shape into single-trunk osmanthus, clumping osmanthus, and others. Different osmanthus varieties have different flowering periods, making the golden autumn fragrance of osmanthus in Jiangcheng last for more than a month.
Osmanthus Park
Suzhou Osmanthus Park. Suzhou Osmanthus Park was completed in October 1998, covers 16.5 hectares, and is located in the southeast corner of the ancient city of Suzhou, adjacent to the thriving industrial park. To the east it embraces the ancient canal, and to the south it stretches for several li, surrounded by the lush city walls of Gusu and beside the green waters of the Grand Canal. It is one of the key landscapes in the construction of Suzhou's ancient city ring scenery belt. Along the southern part of the canal, there is the ancient city "Snake Gate" and a 218-meter-long Gusu land-and-water city tower. A winding two-kilometer path threads along the canal through dense willow-shaded green island woods, with broad lawns, natural and comfortable, fully showing the characteristics of the water towns of Jiangnan cities. It is the best place for citizens to relax, stroll, and enjoy the scenery.
Osmanthus Park is named after Suzhou's city flower, "osmanthus." In the park, the flowering shrubs are mainly evergreen plants, with more than 260 varieties, including many rare and precious tree species. It is especially characterized by osmanthus species. The richness of osmanthus varieties and the quantity in the park rank first in China. It is the specialized garden with the largest collection and planting quantity of osmanthus varieties in China. In order to build a specialized garden for osmanthus varieties and support the work of "international registration authority for osmanthus cultivars," the park organized a team to go south to Shanghai, Hangzhou, eastern Zhejiang, and western Zhejiang, and travel far to more than a dozen counties in southeastern Sichuan, crossing mountains and wading through waters, to search for some famous varieties long heard of but never seen, such as Jiulong GUI, Yichuanhong, and Xue GUI. Apart from a certain amount preserved in Osmanthus Park, these varieties are rarely seen elsewhere. According to records by osmanthus classification experts Xiang Qibai and Liu Yulian, there are 62 osmanthus varieties in China, of which Osmanthus Park has collected 50, belonging to the two major categories of four-season osmanthus and autumn osmanthus, and the four cultivar groups of Sijigui, Yingui, Jingui, and Dangui.
Home placement
1. Osmanthus can fill your home with poetry[23]. "Accompanying the beauty, fragrance across the world, fame across the world, noble and beautiful, auspicious" is the flower language of osmanthus. Liu Yuxi wrote, "Do not envy the peach and plum of the three springs; osmanthus bears fruit and flourishes toward autumn." Su Shi wrote, "River clouds vast and dim, osmanthus wet; plum rain rustling, lychees so." There is also Li Qingzhao's "Zhegu Tian: Osmanthus": "Why need pale green or deep red? It is naturally the first-rate among flowers." The Qing dynasty poet Zhang Yun'ao's quatrain "Tasting Osmanthus": "West Lake in August is full of clear outings; where does fragrance reach the nose in quiet seclusion? Beside Manjuelong golden grains are everywhere; heaven's wind blows them down over ten thousand mountains in autumn." Although there are many verses praising osmanthus, there are also many that touch the scene and stir sorrow, such as Wang Jian of the Tang Dynasty in "Watching the Moon on the Night of the Fifteenth": "In the courtyard the ground is white, crows roost in the trees; cold dew silently wets the osmanthus. Tonight the bright moon is gazed at by all; I wonder where autumn longing falls?" It can be seen that osmanthus is a plant full of emotion.
2. Osmanthus can green your home and make you feel it is impeccable. We know that osmanthus can release a light but not vulgar fresh fragrance. That kind of scent is strong yet does not irritate everyone's sense of smell. Many people choose it when visiting the sick because it can purify the air in a hospital room. The same applies at home. If osmanthus is kept at home for a long time, it can continuously absorb odors in the home and release clean oxygen and waves of subtle fragrance through photosynthesis.
Cultural background of osmanthus. Cultivation history
China has a long history of osmanthus cultivation. The earliest mention of osmanthus in literature is in the "Classic of Mountains and Seas: Classic of the Southern Mountains" from the old Warring States period (475-221 BCE), which says, "Mount Zhaoyao has many osmanthus." Qu Yuan (340-278 BCE) in "Chu Ci: Nine Songs" also wrote: "I raise the Big Dipper to pour osmanthus wine; with magnolia chariots and osmanthus banners." From the Han Dynasty to the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties period, osmanthus had already become a rare and precious flowering tree and a top-grade tribute. In the early Han Dynasty it was introduced and planted in imperial palaces and gardens with success. Since the Tang and Song dynasties, osmanthus cultivation began to flourish. Tang Dynasty literati planted osmanthus very commonly, and chanting about osmanthus became a trend. In Song Zhiwen's poem "Lingyin Temple" there is the famous line "Osmanthus seeds fall in the moon; heavenly fragrance drifts beyond the clouds," so later generations also called osmanthus "heavenly fragrance." After the Tang and Song dynasties, osmanthus was widely used in courtyard cultivation for ornamental appreciation. In the Yuan Dynasty poet Ni Zan's poem "Osmanthus" there is the line "Osmanthus keeps the evening colors; curtain shadows pale in autumn light," showing the situation of planting osmanthus in front of windows. Folk cultivation of osmanthus began in the Song Dynasty and flourished in the early Ming Dynasty. China's five major osmanthus-producing areas in history were all formed during this period.
China's osmanthus was introduced to Britain via Guangzhou and India in 1771, and thereafter developed rapidly in Britain. Today it is cultivated in many countries in Europe and America as well as in various Southeast Asian countries, with the best growth in countries along the Mediterranean coast.
Many alternative names
Osmanthus has many alternative names: because its leaves resemble a gui tablet, it is called "gui"; because its grain resembles rhinoceros hide, it is also called muxi; because it is elegant and noble, with fragrance drifting everywhere, it is called "immortal friend"; osmanthus is also called "immortal tree" and "moon elder among flowers." Osmanthus usually grows on rocky ridges, so it is also called "rock osmanthus"; when osmanthus blooms, its rich fragrance travels far, and its scent has the characteristic of being both clear and strong. The clear can cleanse, and the strong can travel far, hence the fine name "nine-li fragrance"; its yellow flowers are as fine as millet, so it also has the name "golden millet"; osmanthus is "immortal guest"; it blooms in autumn, and in old belief the god of autumn governed the west, so it was also called "western fragrance" or "autumn fragrance"; the osmanthus tree is a symbol of nobility, chastity, honor, friendship, and auspiciousness. Anyone successful in official career and rising rapidly is said to have "plucked osmanthus."
Legends of osmanthus
(1) A plague broke out in Xianning, and nearly one third of the people died. People tried various folk remedies but none worked. At the foot of Guabang Mountain there was a brave, honest, and filial young man named Wu Gang. His mother was also bedridden, and the young man went up the mountain every day to gather medicine to save her. One day, Guanyin was returning from an eastern journey and was hurrying back to the Western Heaven to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. Passing by that day, she saw the young man gathering medicine on a cliff and was deeply moved. That night she appeared to him in a dream and said that in the moon palace there was a tree called muxi, also called osmanthus, bearing a kind of small golden-yellow flower. Steeping it in water and drinking it could cure this plague. On Guabang Mountain, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, there would be a heavenly ladder by which he could go to the moon palace to pick and bring it back. That night was exactly the twelfth day of the eighth month, and there were still three days until the Mid-Autumn Festival on the fifteenth. But to reach the top of Guabang Mountain he had to cross seven deep ravines and climb seven sheer cliffs and overhanging rocks. It would take at least seven days and seven nights, but time waited for no one. If he missed the osmanthus's once-a-year flowering period, he would have to wait another year. To make a long story short, this Wu Gang went through countless hardships and finally reached the top of Guabang Mountain on the night of the fifteenth day of the eighth month, just in time for the heavenly ladder leading to the moon palace. The eighth month was exactly the season when osmanthus fragrance drifted, heavenly fragrance floating beyond the clouds. Wu Gang followed the fragrance to the osmanthus tree, but he could not carry much if he picked too much. So he thought of a method: he shook the osmanthus tree, causing the osmanthus flowers to fall one after another into the river below Guabang Mountain. At once the river surface was filled with a striking fresh fragrance, and the river water was dyed golden yellow. People drank this river water, and the plague was completely cured. So people named this river Jinshui. Later, they added three drops of water beside the character jin, naming it "Gan River." That night was exactly the grand gathering of the immortals of the heavenly palace on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, where they would also admire the moon and eat mooncakes. At this time the fragrance of osmanthus rushed up to the sky and alarmed the immortals, so they sent an official to investigate. When the official reached the moon palace, he saw that the divine tree of the moon palace, the osmanthus tree that was the treasure stabilizing the palace, had lost all its osmanthus flowers, which had all fallen into the human world's "Gan River." He reported this to the Jade Emperor. When the Jade Emperor heard it, he flew into a rage. You should know that the Jade Emperor loved mooncakes made from moon osmanthus most of all. With all the osmanthus flowers on the tree gone, he could not eat mooncakes. So he sent heavenly soldiers and generals to arrest Wu Gang. After Wu Gang was captured, he told the Jade Emperor everything that had happened that night in full detail. After hearing it, the Jade Emperor could not really say anything more and inwardly admired this young man; but Wu Gang had after all violated heavenly rules, and if he were not punished, the Jade Emperor's prestige could not be upheld. He asked Wu Gang what request he had. Wu Gang said he wanted to bring the osmanthus tree to the human world to save the suffering. So the Jade Emperor thought of an idea that could both punish Wu Gang and grant his request. He said, as long as you chop down the osmanthus tree, you may take it. So Wu Gang found a great axe and began chopping, wanting to quickly cut down the great tree. The Jade Emperor cast a spell, so Wu Gang chopped year after year, for thousands of years. Seeing that he could not cut down the tree, and longing for home and his mother, Wu Gang each year on Mid-Autumn night dropped a branch of osmanthus onto Guabang Mountain to entrust his homesickness. Year after year, Guabang Mountain became covered with osmanthus, and the villagers used this osmanthus to make tea. Xianning never again suffered disaster. Chang'e, from the same village as Wu Gang, and Wu Gang had been childhood sweethearts and innocent playmates. Ever since Wu Gang went to the moon palace, she had always cared for Wu Gang's old mother, until the old woman passed away. Wu Gang and Chang'e were separated between heaven and the human world, and their longing for each other grew day by day. Wu Gang could not return because he could not cut down the osmanthus tree, and Chang'e, separated by heaven and earth, could not go to meet Wu Lang. Finally one day, the Queen Mother of the West took her seven daughters to bathe at Mingming Spring below Guabang Mountain. Chang'e saw this, secretly took the seventh fairy's immortal elixir for returning to heaven, brought it home and ate it, and with her jade rabbit flew up to heaven to meet Wu Gang. The seventh fairy, having no immortal elixir, could not return to the heavenly court and could only wait for her sisters to bring her one when they came to bathe again three days later, so that she could ascend to heaven. You should know that one day in heaven is one year in the human world. During these three years, the seventh fairy met Dong Yong.
(2) Legend says that in ancient times, at the foot of Liangying Mountain, there lived a widow who sold mountain grape wine. She was straightforward and kind, and the wine she brewed was mellow and sweet. People respected her and called her Lady Immortal Wine. One winter, the weather was freezing cold. Early in the morning, as soon as Lady Immortal Wine opened the gate, she suddenly saw a man lying outside the door, thin as a stick and scarcely clothed. He looked like a beggar. Lady Immortal Wine felt that he still had breath, so she carried him back home, first gave him hot soup, then fed him half a cup of wine. The man slowly revived and said excitedly, "Thank you, madam, for saving my life. I am a paralyzed man. If I go out, I will either freeze to death or starve to death. Please be kind and let me stay a few more days." Lady Immortal Wine was troubled. As the saying goes, "A widow's door has many gossips." If a man like this stayed in her home, others would talk. But then she thought again, she could not just watch him freeze to death or starve to death. Finally she nodded and agreed to let him stay temporarily. As expected, gossip about Lady Immortal Wine quickly spread, everyone became distant from her, and fewer and fewer people came to the wine shop to buy wine day by day. But Lady Immortal Wine endured the pain and cared for the man with all her heart. Later, when people no longer came to buy wine and she truly could not keep going, the man also left without saying goodbye, no one knew where. Lady Immortal Wine was worried and looked for him everywhere. On a hillside she met a white-haired old man carrying a load of dry firewood and walking with difficulty. Just as Lady Immortal Wine was about to help, the old man suddenly fell, and the dry firewood scattered all over the ground. The old man closed his eyes, his lips trembled, and he weakly called, "Water, water..." Where could water come from on a barren hillside? Lady Immortal Wine bit through her middle finger, and at once blood flowed out. She put her finger to the old man's mouth, and the old man suddenly disappeared. In a clear breeze, a yellow cloth bag flew down from the sky. The bag was filled with many small yellow paper packets, and there was also a yellow note on which was written: The moon palace grants osmanthus seeds, rewarding kind households. With high fortune, the osmanthus tree is green; with long life, the tree is full of flowers. Pick flowers to brew osmanthus wine, first offer it to father and mother. Wu Gang helps the good and sends disaster to the treacherous and slippery. Only then did Lady Immortal Wine understand that the paralyzed man and the old firewood carrier had both been transformed by Wu Gang. When this matter spread, people from near and far came to ask for osmanthus seeds. Kind people planted the osmanthus seeds, and they quickly grew into osmanthus trees, bloomed osmanthus flowers, and filled the courtyard with sweetness and boundless glory. For people with improper intentions, the osmanthus seeds they planted simply would not take root and sprout, making them feel ashamed, and from then on they cleansed their hearts and turned toward goodness. Everyone was very grateful to Lady Immortal Wine. It was her good deeds that moved the great immortal Wu Gang, who managed the osmanthus trees in the moon palace, to pass osmanthus seed wine to the human world. From then on, the human world had osmanthus and osmanthus wine.
Cultural heritage
The eighth month of the lunar calendar was anciently called the osmanthus month. This month is the best period for appreciating osmanthus and also the best month for admiring the moon. China's osmanthus and the bright moon of the Mid-Autumn Festival have been linked with the cultural life of our people since ancient times. Many poets wrote poems and lyrics to depict and praise it, and even deified it. Moon palace myth series such as Chang'e flying to the moon and Wu Gang cutting the osmanthus, the palace in the moon, and the fairyland in the palace have become widely praised tales through the ages, and it is precisely osmanthus that links them together. The osmanthus tree even became an "immortal tree." Han Zicang of the Song Dynasty wrote in a poem: "In the moon there was a guest who once shared the planting; in the world no flower dares compete in fragrance." Li Qingzhao called the osmanthus tree "naturally the first-rate among flowers." In modern times, through mass selection, the osmanthus tree leaped onto the seat of the top ten famous flowers.
Osmanthus has many names. Because its leaf veins are shaped like a gui tablet, it is called "gui"; because its wood is dense and its grain resembles rhinoceros hide, it is called "muxi"; because it naturally grows in clumps among rocky ridges, it is called "rock osmanthus"; because when it blooms its fragrance is striking and travels several li, it is also called "seven-li fragrance" and "nine-li fragrance."
Osmanthus belongs to the genus Osmanthus in the family Oleaceae. It originated in southwestern, southern, and eastern China. At present, wild resources exist in Sichuan, Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan, Hubei, Zhejiang, and other places, with the most concentrated cultivation in cities such as Chengdu, Wuhan, Nanjing, Guilin, Hangzhou, and Suzhou. It is commonly planted from the Huai River basin to areas south of the lower reaches of the Yellow River. North of the Huai River, osmanthus has difficulty overwintering in the open ground, so pot cultivation is generally used, and in winter it is moved into a greenhouse or cold cellar to overwinter, so as to ensure its normal growth.
Osmanthus is cultivated in Japan and India. Since 1771, China's osmanthus was introduced to Britain via Guangzhou and India, after which it expanded rapidly. Today it is commonly cultivated in many countries in Europe and America as well as in various Southeast Asian countries, becoming an important fragrant flowering plant.
Some osmanthus plants bear fruit, and some do not. Generally the drupe matures in April-May of the following year. When sown, it generally takes 5-6 years to bloom. For asexual propagation by branch cuttings, grafting, and layering, it can bloom in the same year.
A Song Dynasty record says: "When the moon is about to be full, the flowers are just right; after the flowers are about to fade, the moon wanes again. One should know that things in heaven and the human world alike receive the clear autumn at the same time." This points out the basic pattern of its flowering: that is, every year when the moon is full on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, osmanthus blooms in full, and half a month later the flowers have withered and the moon has also waned.
Osmanthus likes warmth and has strong stress resistance. It tolerates both high temperatures and relatively low temperatures, and can overwinter in the open ground in areas south of the Qinling Mountains and the Huai River in China.
Osmanthus relatively likes sunlight and can also tolerate shade. Under full sunlight its branches and leaves grow luxuriantly and it blooms densely; in shaded places it grows sparse branches and leaves and bears few flowers. If potted indoors in the north, special attention must be paid to having sufficient light, to benefit growth and the formation of flower buds.
The ancients recorded a great deal about the weather conditions for osmanthus flowering. Wang Jian of the Tang Dynasty in "Watching the Moon on the Night of the Fifteenth" wrote, "Cold dew silently wets the osmanthus"; Liu Zongyuan wrote, "Dense dew on the osmanthus of the front mountain"; Bai Juyi wrote, "Heaven is about to steam autumn air into cold fragrance; the moon borrows golden waves to pick the yellow seeds"; Lu You of the Song Dynasty wrote, "Heavy dew wets the fragrance on the quiet path at dawn; the slanting sun warms the flower buds, beautiful by the small window." In the poems, "cold dew" and "dense dew" explain that the flowering weather should be cold and cool in the morning and evening; "warming and steaming" explain that the weather would also once again reach relatively high temperatures. This kind of weather, cool in the morning and evening and hot during the day, is not only beneficial to the accumulation of nutrients in the osmanthus tree, but also promotes the formation of rain and dew, and the osmanthus tree then accelerates flowering. Suzhou people call this "muxi steaming." Around the Mid-Autumn Festival the weather suddenly becomes hot, even like summer. Once the osmanthus is steamed and warmed, it blooms profusely and abundantly. Osmanthus flowering requires a certain humidity and also a certain temperature difference.
Because osmanthus can be enjoyed for its flowers and also for its fragrance, it is often chosen in modern urban landscaping. Osmanthus also has rich cultural significance. "Among the beautiful things, the osmanthus of Zhaoyao," osmanthus has always been a symbol of beautiful and elegant things in the world. "In August osmanthus blooms everywhere; when osmanthus blooms, happiness comes." Through the ages, people also regarded osmanthus as an auspicious sign. And generally, passing the imperial examination and succeeding in official career were also called "plucking osmanthus," while those who obtained special honor were praised as having a "laurel wreath."
City flower and city tree. Xianning. Xianning City
Osmanthus cultivation has a long history. According to historical records, more than 2,300 years ago during the Warring States period, the poet Qu Yuan passed through Xianning and wrote the beautiful lines "I make libation of osmanthus wine and pepper broth" and "Swiftly I ride in an osmanthus boat." Five hundred years ago, there was already a folk tradition of brewing fine osmanthus wine.
A small number of thousand-year-old osmanthus trees still exist in Xian'an. Xianning osmanthus ranks first in the country in six aspects: planting area, number of varieties, number of ancient osmanthus trees, osmanthus output, osmanthus quality, and osmanthus seedlings. The city's five main resource indicators, including the number of osmanthus varieties, number of ancient trees, base area, fresh osmanthus output, and osmanthus quality, have always maintained a leading position nationwide. Osmanthus is distributed across 45 townships in 6 counties and urban districts of the city, with the four major cultivar groups of Jingui, Yingui, Dangui, and Sijigui, and nearly thirty osmanthus varieties. There are 1.5 million osmanthus trees with a ground diameter of more than 5 cm, equivalent to an area of more than 50,000 mu. In particular, the city has 2,000 ancient osmanthus trees more than a hundred years old, accounting for 91% of the country's 2,200.
In 1963 and 1983, the state named Xianning "hometown of osmanthus" twice; in 2000, the state again named Xian'an District of Xianning City the only "hometown of Chinese osmanthus." With indisputable resource advantages, Xianning City has successively won numerous national honors. According to a special survey on osmanthus, compared with 1999, the osmanthus area, output, output value, tax revenue, and net income provided to farmers all increased substantially, and the osmanthus industry achieved considerable development. Xian'an District was listed by the State Forestry Administration as a national-level seedling and flower base. Xianning osmanthus products have been exported to more than 10 countries and regions including Japan, the United States, Europe, and Southeast Asia. "Rose is fragrant, jasmine is fragrant, but neither compares with the osmanthus fragrance of Jiangnan." The rich osmanthus customs have nurtured a Gui township culture with southern Hubei characteristics. A "Legend of Heavenly Fragrance Osmanthus" tells the legendary story of osmanthus, and a song "Osmanthus Fragrance of Jiangnan" has made Xianning's osmanthus fragrance spread across the north and south of the great rivers.
Lu'an
The background place of the TV drama "August Osmanthus Blooms Everywhere," Lu'an Zhou, is present-day Lu'an, and the instructors of the New Fourth Army southern Henan cadre training class entered Lu'an Zhou to serve as political commissars in the guerrilla detachment at Huoying Mountain. Huoying Mountain here is Lu'an's Huoshan County. Lu'an is also called Lu'an, and because the pronunciation is the same, it is often written as Lu'an. It is one of China's largest osmanthus-producing areas and concentrated producing areas. "August Osmanthus Blooms Everywhere" was adapted from the tune of the Dabie Mountains folk song "Eight Sections of Brocade" and has been sung to this day without decline. There are multiple versions of its birthplace. Since the 1980s, the birthplace of "August Osmanthus Blooms Everywhere" has sparked disputes among different places, including claims from Jiangxi, Sichuan, Hubei, Anhui, and Henan.
Xinyang
"August Osmanthus Blooms Everywhere" was spread nationwide by the "Red Sun Troupe" founded by Wang Jichu and became a classic work of Chinese revolutionary historical folk songs. Shangcheng and Xinxian regard "Osmanthus" as their pride, and the two counties made irreplaceable contributions to the flourishing of "Osmanthus." Xinyang City adopted osmanthus as its city flower. Xinyang City is located in southern Henan Province, bordering Anhui to the east and Hubei to the south. Xinyang has beautiful mountains and waters and a pleasant climate.
Suzhou
Suzhou's city flower is osmanthus. Osmanthus is an evergreen tree of the family Oleaceae. China has a cultivation history of more than two thousand years, and it has been rated as one of the top ten traditional famous flowers. A myth was once widely circulated among the people: it was said that in the moon there was an osmanthus tree, 500 zhang tall. Wu Gang, a man from Hexi in the Han Dynasty, because he studied immortality but did not obey the rules of the way, was punished by being sent to the moon to cut the osmanthus. But the tree closed up as soon as it was cut, and could never be cut down. He labored all year round and was only allowed to rest at Mid-Autumn when the osmanthus bloomed. Mao Zedong's line, "I ask Wu Gang what he has; Wu Gang brings out osmanthus wine," is a vivid embellishment of this story. Through the ages, people regarded osmanthus as an auspicious sign. Generally, passing the imperial examination and succeeding in official career was called "plucking osmanthus." Those who obtained special honor were praised as having a "laurel wreath." Some young men and women of ethnic minorities in Guangxi also like to give osmanthus to the one they love to express admiration, hence the proverb, "One branch of osmanthus, one heart; in the osmanthus grove, a lifetime is joined."
Hangzhou
Hangzhou uses osmanthus as its city flower not because the osmanthus flower shape is so beautiful or so large, but because of a deeper meaning: osmanthus is a flower with inner quality. First, its fragrance is rich and elegantly pleasant. Whenever osmanthus blooms in the golden autumn season, the whole city of Hangzhou is filled with osmanthus fragrance, making people feel relaxed and joyful. Second, literati of past dynasties wrote countless poems and recitations about Hangzhou osmanthus, showing that osmanthus planting in Hangzhou also has a long history and has been loved by people for thousands of years. All tourists who come to Hangzhou during osmanthus season are captivated by it. Osmanthus fragrance has already become a symbol of Hangzhou.
Guilin
Guilin's city flower is also osmanthus. In Guilin, this scenic, world-famous tourist city, the "best under heaven" Guilin landscape attracts many people from home and abroad. In Guilin there is the saying, "Guilin, Guilin, osmanthus trees form forests."
Related poetry
"Zhegu Tian" by Li Qingzhao
Dim and pale light yellow, its nature gentle; its feeling distant, its traces far, only fragrance remains.
Why need pale green or deep red? It is naturally the first-rate among flowers.
Plum must be jealous; chrysanthemum should be ashamed. Where it blooms by the painted railing, it crowns the Mid-Autumn.
The poet may be too unfeeling; why was it not included back then?
"Tasting Osmanthus" by Zhang Yun'ao, Qing Dynasty
West Lake in August is full of clear outings; where does fragrance reach the nose in quiet seclusion?
Beside Manjuelong golden grains are everywhere; heaven's wind blows them down over ten thousand mountains in autumn.
"Watching the Moon on the Night of the Fifteenth" by Wang Jian, Tang Dynasty
In the courtyard the ground is white, crows roost in the trees; cold dew silently wets the osmanthus.
Tonight the bright moon is gazed at by all; I wonder where autumn longing falls?
"Autumn Night Feelings" by Zhu Shuzhen, Song Dynasty
Suppressing the west wind, it dominates all fragrances; for whom is the full autumn color busily displayed?
One branch lightly placed beneath the study window; the person and the flower heart each have their own fragrance.
When the moon is about to be full, the flowers are just right; after the flowers are about to fade, the moon wanes again.
One should know that things in heaven and the human world alike receive the clear autumn at the same time.
"Osmanthus" by Lu Shengzhi, Song Dynasty
Alone it dominates the three autumns and overpowers all fragrances; why boast of orange green and orange yellow?
Since it was divided and sent down from the moon at Mid-Autumn, its fruit seems to drift down as fragrance from the edge of heaven.
"Three Poems on Osmanthus in the East City, with Preface" by Bai Juyi, Tang Dynasty
The East City of Suzhou was the ancient capital of Wu. Now it is a place for woodcutters and herders.
There is one osmanthus tree growing below the city wall. Pitying that it has not obtained a fitting place, I therefore composed three quatrains to console it.
Its seeds originally fell from Tianzhu Temple; its roots now coil in Helü City.
At that time it should have fallen with the south wind, falling into the human world and growing at random.
Though pressed by much frost and snow it does not die; long brambles grow fast and wish to bury it.
I long worry it will fall into the hands of a woodcutter and be sold as a bundle of firewood in Suzhou.
From afar I know the osmanthus in heaven is lonely; I ask Chang'e whether she still wants it.
In the moon palace there is fortunately idle land, why not plant two osmanthus trees in the center.
Zhu Xi of the Song Dynasty
Gracefully standing beneath the rocks, the osmanthus blooms alone with fragrance in the late year.
Dense leaves a thousand layers of green, blossoms opening ten thousand dots of yellow.
"Gathering Mulberries" by Li Gang
Its hidden fragrance does not bloom for spring light, but waits straight for the autumn wind, waits straight for the autumn wind; its scent is far richer than other flowers.
With golden and jade hairpins swaying, the person is like jade; the breeze stirs the tinkling ornaments, stirs the tinkling ornaments, just like meeting beneath the moon on a jade terrace.
On the branch tips, ten thousand dots adorn golden stamens; ten miles of clear fragrance, ten miles of clear fragrance, drawing out the long, elegant thoughts of a recluse.
In a jade vase storing water, the flowers are hard to wither; on a clean table by a bright window, on a clean table by a bright window, the faded petals fall rustling yellow.
"Bird Cries in the Ravine" by Wang Wei
When people are at leisure, osmanthus flowers fall; the night is quiet and the spring mountain is empty.
The moon emerges and startles the mountain birds, which cry from time to time in the spring ravine.
"Osmanthus Blooms Again at Changsha Temple" by Chen Yuyi
Heaven sent the hidden flower to bloom twice; at dusk the Sanskrit chanting lingers here.
Not letting the lay devotee lie on the meditation couch, it calls him out to the west chamber to view it together.
"Lingyin Temple" by the Tang Dynasty poet Song Zhiwen
Osmanthus seeds fall in the moon; heavenly fragrance drifts beyond the clouds.
"Chang'e" by Bian Gong of the Ming Dynasty
In the moon palace autumn is cold, osmanthus clusters round; year after year the flowers bloom only to be plucked. Together in the mortal world we speak of heaven, not knowing that in heaven they remember the mortal world.
"Remembering Jiangnan" by Bai Juyi of the Tang Dynasty
In the mountain temple I seek osmanthus seeds beneath the moon; on the commandery pavilion pillow I watch the tidal head.
"Sent to Zen Master Taoguang" by Bai Juyi of the Tang Dynasty
Thinking from afar of where my master walks his path, heavenly fragrance and osmanthus seeds fall in profusion.
"Thinking of My Younger Brother Han" by Yu Chou
Hibiscus weeping dew is seen on the slope; osmanthus seeds drifting fragrance are smelled beneath the moon.
The flower language of osmanthus
Flower language: Breathe in your fragrance. Autumn osmanthus is like gold, representing "harvest."
The flower language of osmanthus is "breathe in your breath."
Forever accompanying the beauty, the osmanthus tree is indeed a house tree whose fragrance fills the world and whose fame fills the world; it is a symbol of the lofty and beautiful, of "auspiciousness and wealth."
Osmanthus pictures