Why do some people say not to pick cabbage-like plants when you see them on the Sichuan-Tibet line? What will happen if you pick them?

If you see something that looks like "cabbage" in Tibet, don't touch it, and try not to get close to it. I once personally experienced it and made a joke because I didn't understand the local customs.

The picture above is the "cabbage" mentioned by the questioner.

Let’s see what this “cabbage” is? This "cabbage" has a poetic name - Tahuang.

Tahuang grows to a height of 1 to 2 meters and has extremely strict requirements on the growing environment. It grows on high mountain rocky beaches and wet grasslands at an altitude of 4000-4800 meters. In my country, Tahuang can only be found in the southeastern part of Tibet and the northwest part of Yunnan. Things are rare and valuable, and this growing environment destined the fate of Tarhuang and Chinese cabbage to be very different.

Tahuang is a single-fruiting perennial herb that only blooms once in its life. The growth cycle is between 5-7 years. Tahuang will die after blooming. However, Tahuang has a strong reproductive capacity and is not uncommon in the local area. It is not a national key wild protected plant. However, due to its strong regional nature, it is relatively rare and its appearance is quite spectacular. It is often harvested by travelers, so it is strictly controlled in the local area. Due to the control, the local people use Tarantula as food. Tarantula itself also has medicinal value. Although it has strong fecundity, it has become a key protection target of the local people.

In the local area, Tibetans pay great attention to the local ecology. There is a saying passed down from their ancestors that caring for the grassland and the surrounding environment means caring for themselves and the God of the grassland.

Hundreds of years have passed, but Tibetans still adhere to their ancestral precepts and will not destroy the environment wantonly, so they hate foreign tourists who destroy the environment very much. This is why some people say that Tibetans are enthusiastic Hospitality. Some people say that Tibetans are discriminatory against foreigners. In fact, it is not that Tibetans are changeable. The problem is usually ourselves. Tibetans are like a mirror, and what is reflected is our true face.

Local people also take Tahuang regularly and quantitatively, and will not destroy the ecology by picking randomly. When they see tourists cutting and leaving, it is normal for them to be angry.

It is also the attitude of Tibetans towards Tahuang that prevents Tahuang from becoming an endangered plant. If not protected, Tahuang would have disappeared long ago. Some people say that in nature, whether it is a plant or an animal, it is very tragic to be beautiful.