Farmers harvest wormwood for Dragon Boat Festival
2024-05-27 20:05:22
By Yan Wanqin, Yichang International Communication Studio
With the arrival of the wormwood harvest, farmers in Zigui County, Yichang are busy collecting the plant and crafting products for this year’s Dragon Boat Festival.
With the arrival of the wormwood harvest, farmers in Zigui County, Yichang are busy collecting the plant and crafting products for this year’s Dragon Boat Festival.
Farmers harvest wormwood in Yunpan village of Zigui County. Photo by Zheng Jiayu.
The festival is celebrated to commemorate Qu Yuan (c. 340 BC - 278 BC). Born in Zigui County, Qu is considered to be one of the greatest patriotic poets and politicians of ancient China. The poet drowned himself in the Miluo River on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month after the downfall of his motherland. In tribute to him, this day became a national holiday and was named after the effort made to retrieve his body with the use of dragon boats. This year’s Dragon Boat Festival falls on June 10 of the solar calendar.
May in the lunar calendar also marks the coming of summer. The hot, dry weather increases the risk of disease outbreak as well as snake and insects bites. Harvested during this period, wormwood holds medicinal value in traditional Chinese medicine while its unique scent can be used to disperse pests.
Hanging wormwood leaves on gates is one of the most important traditions of Dragon Boat Festival, together with eating zongzi and rowing dragon boats.
Mature wormwood plants.
Workers make wormwood products at a workshop in Zigui County. Photo by Zheng Jiayu.
Over the recent years, Zigui County has focused on the development of its wormwood industry. Local enterprises have introduced several innovative wormwood products, including scented capsules, moxibustion sticks, and pillows, boosting farmers’ incomes while preserving the heritage of the Dragon Boat Festival.
