What season does the azalea bloom?
Do you know this? Information about the blooming season of azaleas and an introduction to the flowering period of azaleas for flower appreciation. The following is an introduction for you in detail.
Children born in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s are fortunate, especially those who grew up in rural areas. Why do people today talk about nostalgia? It is because our memories of childhood are unforgettable. The author still remembers the days of herding cows with her friends when she was young. In those carefree years, she picked tea bags and raspberries with her friends on the mountain and caught crabs and shrimps in the river. Thinking about it makes her very happy.
The plant we are going to talk about today is a kind of snack we often ate as children, which is the azalea, also known as rhododendron. Azaleas are very common in rural areas and have a strong seasonal character. They wither after just a month or so, and if you want to eat them, you have to wait until the following year. When the author was young, she often picked azaleas on the mountain to eat. They taste sour and not very flavorful, but it made her feel very happy. I wonder if everyone has eaten the flowers of this plant.
The common name of Rhododendron is azalea, which was first recorded in "Shennong Bencao Jing." It is said that in ancient times, a cuckoo bird died on the mountain from sadness, and its blood dyed the mountains and fields red, hence the name azalea. Also, because this plant usually blooms during Qingming Festival, it is also known as Qingming Flower. Moreover, the shape of azalea flowers is a bit like that of Daphne odora and the color is bright red, so it is also called red Daphne. In addition, azalea is also known as mountain pomegranate, bright mountain red, bright mountain flower, full mountain red, and camellia. It is a evergreen or deciduous shrub of the genus Rhododendron.
In "Compendium of Materia Medica" written by Li Shizhen, it records this plant as follows: "Mountain Daphne can be found in every valley. The taller ones are about four or five feet, and the shorter ones are about one or two feet. In spring, the seedlings and leaves are light green. The branches are few and the flowers are abundant, with several corollas on one branch. It begins to bloom in February, like Daphne odora, with a calyx like that of pomegranate flowers, some red, some purple, some with five petals, and some with a thousand petals. Children eat the flowers, which taste sour and are non-toxic. It is also known as red Daphne, mountain pomegranate, azalea, and杜鹃花 (Azalea). Currently, this plant is mainly distributed in a few countries and regions in Asia, and it is relatively common in China, found in most provinces, mainly in the southern region.
What season does the azalea bloom?
Azalea has an interesting feature: it blooms before it produces leaves, so you can see flowers without leaves, which is quite magical. It is because of the bright color of the flowers of the rhododendron and its good ornamental value that azalea is also one of the most famous flowers in China and has been listed as the provincial flower by multiple provinces, such as Jiangxi, Anhui, and Guizhou.
The value of azalea is very high. It not only has high ornamental value but is also the memory of the post-70s, 80s, and 90s generations. In addition, azalea has high medicinal value, especially its bright red petals. It is an excellent Chinese medicinal material. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the petals of azalea are sweet, sour, and neutral in nature, and are good for women with irregular menstruation and cough.
In the "Compendium of Chinese Herbal Medicine," it is recorded that "Azalea can clear heat and detoxify, resolve phlegm and stop coughing, and stop itching." In addition, in the folk herbal book "Guizhou Folk Herbal Collection," it is recorded that rhododendron can treat irregular menstruation, uterine bleeding, traumatic injury, nasal bleeding, and rheumatic pain. Besides, in many other folk medical classics, such as " Classified Herbal Properties," "Sichuan Materia Medica," "Zhejiang Folk Common Herbal Medicine," "Guizhou Herbal Medicine," and "Anhui Herbal Medicine," there are records of this plant.
The New Year is approaching, and it's almost time for the Qingming Festival. When the azaleas are in full bloom, you might as well pick some on your way home to pay homage to your ancestors and relive the memories of childhood to see if it still tastes the same.
The above (Green Plant Enthusiast Network) introduces the related content of the blooming season of azaleas and the introduction to the flowering period of azaleas for appreciation, hoping it will be helpful to you!