Is this plant called "Wintersweet" or "Wintersweet"?

As the Cold Dew solar term passes, the weather becomes colder. The cool and comfortable autumn is coming to an end, and the biting cold winter is coming. In this snowy winter, the plum blossoms that bloom in the cold and the wintersweets that are "scented ten miles away" have become the must-see flowers in winter. However, when it comes to the plant wintersweets, many people have some cognitive misunderstandings, not knowing whether it should be called "wax plum" or "winter plum".

Wintersweet variety: Primrose, Image source: Reference [2]

Today we will analyze the correct name of this plant and standardize its name.

01

Is it "wax" or "wax"?

Many people are used to calling it "winter plum". There are two main reasons for this: First, the flowering period of this plant is from November to March of the following year, and the flowers are mainly in full bloom in the cold winter , so it is called "winter plum". Second, the outstanding Tang Dynasty poet Du Mu said in the poem "Zhengchu Fengrepaying Xing Qun, the governor of Shezhou": "The T-shaped water is far away from the mountains, and the winter plum blooms two years later". Some people use this as evidence to believe that this plant has been called winter plum since the Tang Dynasty, and it has a history of thousands of years, so it is also called "winter plum" according to the ancient method.

In fact, all the above interpretations are wrong.

First of all, in the cold winter, it is not only the wintersweet that blooms, there are also plum blossoms and camellias. In addition, wintersweet does not only bloom in winter, there is also a unique summer wintersweet that blooms in the hot summer . Its flowers are fragrant and beautiful, with high ornamental value. It is a rare wild flower under China's second-level protection. Therefore, it is inappropriate to name the wintersweet with the word "La" in the cold winter of the twelfth lunar month.

Secondly, the Tang Dynasty poet Du Mu mentioned in his poem "Zhengchu Fengrepayment to Xing Qun, the governor of Shezhou": "The T-shaped water is far away from the mountains, and the winter plum blossoms bloom two years late." However, the poem did not clearly point out the image characteristics of the winter plum, so it is impossible to distinguish whether it is the winter plum or the plum blossoms in the twelfth lunar month. In addition, some studies have found that winter plums have only just begun to be recognized since the Tang Dynasty, and have not been widely popularized and used. It was not until the Song Dynasty that it officially became an important ornamental flower and tree and entered the historical stage. Therefore, combined with the historical background, the "winter plum" written by the Tang Dynasty poet Du Mu is likely to refer to the plum blossoms in the twelfth lunar month.

Wintersweet variety: October plum, Image source: Reference [2]

The term "wintersweet" did not appear until the Song Dynasty, when the great Northern Song Dynasty writer Huang Tingjian publicly defined "wintersweet" for the first time. He wrote the following short paragraph in his own notes: "There is a kind of flower between Beijing and Luoyang, which smells like plum blossoms. It has five petals but is not crystal clear, and looks like the wax flowers made by women. People in Beijing and Luoyang call it wintersweet. The wood and leaves are similar to pods. Dou Gaozhou has a bush at home that can scent the entire garden."

It can be seen that the reason why it is called wax plum is because the wax plum flower is like wax and the fragrance of the flower is similar to that of plum blossom, so Huang Tingjian called it wax plum. This is the first time that the characteristics and name of wax plum were scientifically described. Most of the later documents also quoted Huang Tingjian's description, which led to the appearance of wax plum paintings. He single-handedly promoted the development of wax plum, making it a "flower on the seat" for literati and poets, and Huang Tingjian was therefore revered as the "God of Wax Plum" by later generations.

In fact, the name of wintersweet is just as its petals are light yellow or yellow, and there is a layer of wax on its surface, which feels waxy and hard to the touch, so the name "wax plum" is very appropriate. Later, Huang Tingjian's friend Su Shi also wrote a poem: "Bees collect flowers to make yellow wax, and take wax as flowers and things", the poem cleverly explains the origin of the name "wax plum", which further strengthened the impression of the name "wax plum" in the hearts of the people. At that time, many knowledgeable people also accepted the name and spread it.

The term "wax plum" was also used in the "Fancun Plum Book", a masterpiece on plum blossoms written by the Southern Song poet Fan Chengda, and the "Compendium of Materia Medica", a collection of herbal medicines written by Li Shizhen in the Ming Dynasty. In modern history, the two authoritative works "Flora of China" and "Modern Chinese Standard Dictionary" also rectified the name of wax plum, making "wax plum" the official name. Therefore, the standard name of wax plum is "wax plum" today.

Wintersweet variety: Suxin Baihe, Image source: Reference [2]

02

Is wintersweet a type of plum?

From the above, we know the correct name of wintersweet, but sometimes because there is a "plum" in the word "wintersweet", many people think that wintersweet is a kind of plum, and has a close "blood" relationship with plum blossoms. In fact, it is not. From the perspective of plant classification, wintersweet belongs to the genus Chimonanthus of the family Chimonaceae, while plum blossoms belong to the genus Apricot of the family Rosaceae. The relationship between the two is very different. The reason why wintersweet is called "plum" is because its flowering period is similar to that of plum blossoms, and its fragrance is also similar to that of plum blossoms, so some people mistakenly believe that wintersweet is a kind of plum.

Wintersweet is a deciduous shrub, while plums are mostly small trees and rare shrubs. Wintersweet leaves are opposite, entire and toothless, while plum leaves are alternate and have fine serrations on the edges. Wintersweet flowers are waxy yellow and have a strong fragrance, while plum flowers are generally red, white and pink, with a fresh and elegant fragrance. Plums are divided into fruit plums and flower plums. The fruit of fruit plums is edible, while the fruit of wintersweet is spindle-shaped and contains alkaloids such as sarcandra. If humans and animals eat it by mistake, they will suffer from diarrhea at the mildest and convulsions and shock at the worst.

As a traditional Chinese flower, Wintersweet has a cultivation history of thousands of years. It is an important ornamental garden flower and tree, and it also represents a spirit of pride and integrity. However, many people still confuse the name and type of Wintersweet. Clarifying the correct name and type of Wintersweet is very helpful for understanding, appreciating and spreading the culture of Wintersweet.

References:

[1] Wang Yang, Li Jingbo. From “Cold Plum” to “Cold Plum”: A Preliminary Study on the Cultivation History and Culture of Winter Plum[J]. Journal of Beijing Forestry University, 2013, 35(S1): 110-115.

[2] Xuan Jing, Li Min. Appreciation of Wintersweet Varieties[J]. Life World, 2020, (02): 94-95.

[3] Su Yongnong. Wintersweet Culture[J]. Farmers Get Rich, 2018, (24): 64.

[4] Zheng Zhongming. Research on Wintersweet Culture[D]. Nanjing Forestry University, 2010.

Author | Li Ting, writer member of China Science Popularization Association

Review | Wang Kang Director of Beijing Botanical Garden Science Center Professor-level Senior Engineer

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