Do you know the story of summer solstice?

In the 7th century BC, when we didn't know what the solar system, planets and stars were, our ancestors used earth gauge (an ancient tool to measure the shadow length of the sun, and observed and recorded the change of its shadow length at noon with a rod standing perpendicular to the ground to determine the seasonal change) to observe the shadow and established the summer solstice.

Tugui Palace Museum Map

"The day is north, the day is long and the shadow is short, so it is called the summer solstice. At best, it is excellent. " Zunxian Manuscript records the origin of the name of the summer solstice, and it is also the earliest solar term among the 24 solar terms.

Summer solstice was also called "Summer solstice festival" in ancient times. At this time, it was the harvest season of wheat. The ancestors sang and danced to celebrate the harvest and offered sacrifices to their ancestors. Britain, Australia, Denmark and other European countries also have the tradition of celebrating the summer solstice, which is called "Midsummer Festival". In Britain, every summer to Sunday, thousands of people spontaneously gather around Stonehenge to watch the sunrise, revel and pray. People will celebrate midsummer night the next night. According to legend, people may see elves and enter the magical world on this night. Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream was written on this basis.

Stills of A Midsummer Night's Dream at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. Guangming net data map

This season, the air convection is strong, and thunderstorms are easy to form in the afternoon to evening. "Sunrise in the East and Rain in the West" refers to the typical climate characteristics of summer solstice, which adds a touch of unpredictable dreamy color to this solar term.

In the middle and high latitudes, due to the deflection of the earth's axis and the revolution of the earth's rotation, there will be a "white night" spectacle near the summer solstice, which is a wonderful scene of day and night coexistence-due to the scattering of the atmosphere, the night is not completely dark, and the dawn has arrived before dusk.

This spectacle can be seen in Arctic Village, Mohe City, the northernmost part of China, where local villagers still retain their unique summer solstice custom. Every summer solstice, villagers spontaneously come to the Heilongjiang River, light bonfires and dance for the appearance of the Northern Lights.

Summer solstice on 20 19, 29th Mohe Northern Lights Festival. Northeast Net reporter Huo photo

On the day of summer solstice, the sun shines almost directly on the tropic of cancer. At noon, there will be a short-term "no vertical pole" phenomenon in the Tropic of Cancer. The Tropic of Cancer crosses China and passes through Taiwan Province, Guangdong, Guangxi and Yunnan. People living in these places can set up telephone poles in the sun from summer to noon, and observe the special phenomenon of "standing without a shadow".

After the summer solstice, the direct point of the sun will move southward continuously, and the day will become shorter and the shadow will become longer.

The summer solstice solar term of 202 1 lasts from June 2 1 to July 6, covering three phenological periods: staghorn dissolution period, early Song Dynasty and Pinellia ternata birth period.

Summer solstice: antlers solution

In the first five days of the summer solstice, antlers fall off.

Antlers, usually the horns of Cervidae red deer or sika deer.

Antlers are the second personality characteristic of stags. There are nearly 40 species of deer in the world, only males have horns, except for a few species-reindeer around the North Pole have horns for both sexes, while the most primitive deer have no horns for both sexes.

Antlers change every year. In spring, the newly sprouted antlers are not ossified, and they are rich in blood vessels, nerves and cartilage, and their surfaces are covered with fine villi. This is the precious medicinal material velvet antler, which is said to have the function of nourishing and strengthening the body

After the antlers grow to the maximum of three or four months, the bones begin to harden, and the outer soft epidermis gradually dries up and falls off. The shedding process looks bloody, but the deer itself will not feel any discomfort. Once the surface velvet falls off, the exposed bone horn is not living tissue and will not feel pain, which becomes a powerful weapon for bucks to resist natural enemies and compete for spouses.

On 2021May 17, Elk was active in Shishou Elk National Nature Reserve. Xinhua News Agency reporter Xiao Yijiu photo

Generally speaking, the older a deer is, the more its horns diverge. For example, male sika deer and red deer, when they are 65,438+0 years old, their horns are not forked; Eyebrow branches grow at the age of 2; At the age of 3, a second branch grows; When they are 4 years old, they will grow a third branch, and so on ... so we can roughly infer the age of the stag just by looking at the fork of the horn.

The shape of the horn is closely related to the habitat and living habits of different deer. Antlers can be roughly divided into three types: dendritic horns-horns that look like branches, such as elk, red deer and sika deer; Palm horn-it looks like the horn of the palm, taking moose and deer as examples; Small horn without fork-a very short horn without fork, which usually grows on deer, such as crested deer and Pudu deer.

Male moose feed in open sparse forests and wetlands, and the huge palm angles spread evenly on both sides will not affect their activities. Reindeer with horns of both sexes need to use their horns to dig for food in the snow ... After continuous evolution, each horn and its owner have reached a unique adaptation.

There are many animals with horns on their heads, the most common ones are cows and sheep. So, what's special about antlers?

Horn is the product of epidermis and dermis of mammalian head. Mammalian horns are divided into five types: cave horns, solid horns, pronghorn horns, giraffe horns and epidermal horns. Antlers are bone horns formed by dermis, which are solid and belong to solid horns.

Cattle and sheep horns belong to hollow hole horns and will not be replaced for life; The pronghorn horn is between the hole angle and the true angle, the horn sheath is replaced every year, and the bone core does not fall off; Giraffe's horn is composed of skin and cartilage, which never falls off; The rhinoceros horn, which has always been remembered by poachers, belongs to epidermal horn and is a derivative of epithelial tissue. Its main component is keratin like nails, which can be regenerated like hair.

Deer are the only mammals that can regenerate whole body parts. The regeneration of rhinoceros horn is different from that of antlers. After all, hair and nails can't be counted as body organs, and their growth and replacement are not surprising.

The regeneration ability of antlers is also one of the biological secrets, which has not been fully revealed so far. Scientists from the Royal Veterinary College studied the extraordinary regeneration ability of antlers. They believe that stem cells play an important role in it, which may be regulated by the signal transmission pathway of hormones such as estrogen or testosterone. These studies may contribute to the final repair of damaged human tissues.

Imagine if a person's arms and broken palms could regenerate like antlers. ...

However, most known antlers do not fall off during the summer solstice, but regenerate in winter or early spring. The rare exception is young reindeer, whose horns usually don't fall off until spring or even early summer.

For red deer or sika deer, summer is the beginning of the ossification of antlers. If the deer is farmed, the summer solstice is the time to cut the antlers.

Therefore, in the eyes of the ancients, the "staghorn solution" of the summer solstice may either refer to reindeer or antler cutting, or ... the ancients made a mistake.

In places like zoos, velvet antler sawing is mainly for safety reasons, including the safety of deer itself and the safety of staff and spectators. Because every year to the breeding season, the stag's temper will become grumpy. In the event of "firefight", there is no vilen that can run freely, and there is no room for deer to avoid each other, which will surely cause heavy casualties.

When collecting velvet antler, the staff will generally consider animal welfare, and anesthesia and application of drugs to stop bleeding are routine operations. Those poachers who collect velvet antler purely for economic benefits will not use anesthetic, but cut velvet antler directly, even with chainsaws, which will do great harm to deer. These bloodstained velvet antler shed blood and tears of deer.

The second stage of the summer solstice: the beginning of the song

On the fifth day of summer solstice, cicadas began to sing.

In ancient books, it usually refers to cicada, which is also commonly known as cicada.

Cicadas live in temperate to tropical regions, and about 3000 species have been recorded, such as grasshoppers, dragonflies and cicadas.

Cicada sings for courtship. Usually only male cicadas can sing. They make three kinds of calls: responding to other male cicadas, courtship before mating, and rough calls when caught or frightened. The cicada song, which sounds quite noisy to human beings, is wonderful music to female cicadas. They follow the sound to find a mate, mate and lay eggs, and then slowly come to the end of their lives.

Although the cicada summer chorus has a limited time, it can't just live that long. Adults can sing, and larvae hide underground for a long time before singing.

Different kinds of cicadas dig holes in the ground for different time, some lurk for 3 years, some lurk for 5 years, and the longest can lurk for 17 years. Although these numbers vary greatly, they are all prime numbers. Scientists believe that this can reduce the probability that they will be unearthed with other cicadas, prevent them from competing for resources and help them avoid natural enemies. In this way, cicada is still a talented mathematician!

202 1 year happened to be the year when "17 cicada" broke ground in North America, and "cicada disaster" broke out in many places in the United States. They are the longest-lived insects in the world and have the same fate. The huge chorus is like the sound of an alien spaceship landing.

Recently, hundreds of millions of cicadas began to break ground at 17, appearing in parts of the eastern and midwest of the United States. This is 17 cicada and cicada slough, which was shot in Arlington, Virginia, USA in May, 2008. Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Jie photo

During the incubation period, cicada larvae will continue to suck the juice from the roots of plants to maintain their lives. When the time is right, they often choose dusk or night when the soil is soft after the rain, dig it out, instinctively climb up the trunk or leaves, and molt in about an hour, from larvae to adults. This is the origin of "golden cicada shelling".

Ancient literati loved cicadas very much. "Ode to the Cold Cicada" endows Cicada with five gentleman qualities, namely, "Wen, Qing, Lian, frugality and faithfulness". As symbols of luxury and nobility, cicada feathers and mink tails became ornaments on the official hats of ancient princes and nobles, collectively known as "the story of Diusim". Later, the female official who managed the headdress and crown in the palace was called the "Story of Diusim" official-that's how the story of Diusim, one of the legendary four beauties, got its name.

In recent years, with the expansion of urbanization, cicadas seem to be less and less in summer. The widespread use of pesticides, soil and groundwater pollution, artificial capture and other reasons make this high-profile insect in a worrying situation. In particular, the common phenomenon of land hardening cuts off the life journey of cicadas-the urban ground is paved with cement, floor tiles and asphalt roads, and cicada larvae can neither hide in the soil and grow well, nor fly out of the ground. Since 20 10, the market price of cicada slough as a Chinese herbal medicine has been rising to four or five times.

It's time for cicadas to sing again. Cicada has been dormant for so long, only for the last song of life, how can it not vent hoarsely? Perhaps, they are crying for help and looking forward to returning to the green mountains and green mountains in their lifetime.

Three stages of summer solstice: Pinellia ternata

On the fifth day of the summer solstice, Pinellia ternata grows vigorously.

Pinellia ternata, a plant of Araceae, is one of the most commonly used Chinese herbal medicines, which has the effects of eliminating dampness, resolving phlegm, reducing adverse reactions and stopping vomiting. Pinellia ternata is widely distributed in China, but no wild plants have been found in Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Qinghai and Tibet.

The name of Pinellia ternata began to appear in the Book of Rites: "In midsummer, the antlers were untied, cicadas began to sing, Pinellia ternata was born, and Murong ... Pinellia ternata was born in May, just as Pinellia ternata, hence the name."

But how to explain the origin of the name of Pinellia ternata and how to understand the meaning of "Pinellia ternata" is still controversial.

Pinellia tuber

Yan Shigu once commented on the classic: "Pinellia ternata was born in May and in midsummer, hence the name." But the actual growth rhythm of Pinellia ternata is obviously not "born in May". In the classic of materia medica, it is common for the ancients to describe the seedlings or leaves of Pinellia ternata in February, such as the introduction of "February leaves" in Wupu Materia Medica in Compendium of Materia Medica.

Summer solstice is the vigorous growth period of Pinellia ternata, and it is also its flowering period. At this time, people can easily see the yellow-green flowers of Pinellia ternata, that is, the unique spathe of Araceae. Buddha bud is named after it looks like a candlestick dedicated to Buddha in a temple. The whole Buddha flame inflorescence is like a candlestick with candles.

Some people think that "Pinellia ternata is born" means that it is most suitable to collect underground tubers of Pinellia ternata in midsummer. In this regard, the ancients also had a lot of discussions. Illustrative Materia Medica holds that "the harvest in May is small, but the harvest in August is big." Su Song said, "Whips will be collected in May and August, covered with dust in February, and the soup will be washed and dried." "Detailed Explanation of Materia Medica" said: "Pinellia ternata has one stem and three leaves, two or three inches high, and its roots are collected in August." It can be seen that Pinellia ternata can be harvested in May and June, but August is the best.

Some scholars believe that "Pinellia ternata was born in May" is an ancient description of the phenomenon of "pearl bud reproduction" of Pinellia ternata. Ding Zhaoping of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine pointed out in an article published in China Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine in May, 2020, The Positive Solution of Pinellia ternata Born in May-Textual Research on Pinellia ternata Born in Yan Shigu, that a small bulb will be born in the middle of Pinellia ternata in May of the lunar calendar, which is a pearl bud of Pinellia ternata. When the mature pearl buds are buried in the soil, the next generation of Pinellia ternata will be produced.

Therefore, the real meaning of "Pinellia ternata" may refer to the "reproduction" of Pinellia ternata, that is, the regeneration of bulbs-by the summer solstice, a new generation of spores "whole body" was formed, and the whole process of "baby" of Pinellia ternata was completed. The author thinks that this explanation is most in line with the actual phenological phenomenon.

Bulb propagation is an asexual propagation of plants, which belongs to asexual propagation. It is a kind of separation and propagation method that separates the buds with plant cluster characteristics from the female parent. Besides Pinellia, there are yam, lily and water lily.

There are many ways of plant propagation, such as asexual propagation, including rooting, layering, leaf cutting, bud leaf cutting, cutting, grafting and pearl propagation. These forms are widely used in the cultivation of flowers and fruit trees because of their rapid propagation and good sexual characteristics.

In addition to Pinellia ternata, there are also Chinese herbal medicines named after "Xia", such as Prunella vulgaris, summer solstice grass, and summer sky, which isomorphically form a long summer landscape.