椹shèn子zi黑hēi割gē大dà麥mài,，椹shèn子zi紅hóng割gē小xiǎo麥mài

What does 椹子黑割大麥，椹子紅割小麥 (shèn zi hēi gē dà mài, shèn zi hóng gē xiǎo mài) mean?

椹子黑割大麥，椹子紅割小麥 (shèn zi hēi gē dà mài, shèn zi hóng gē xiǎo mài) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "When mulberries turn black cut barley, when mulberries turn red cut wheat." In use it means: The ripening stages of mulberry fruit serve as a natural calendar for timing grain harvests. Barley matures earlier than wheat, and this progression is mirrored in the mulberry's color change from red to black. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Wood note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Rabbit.

Literally: "When mulberries turn black cut barley, when mulberries turn red cut wheat."

The reading

Before clocks and calendars reached every village, farmers read the land itself for instructions. A mulberry tree standing at the edge of a field told its owner more than any almanac could. The fruit darkening from red to near-black marked a progression that no printed date captured with the same local precision. Each landscape has its own indicators, and the wise grower learns to listen to what is already speaking.

What kind of proverb it is

• Typeyànyǔ 諺語
• FocusPresent-minded
• Element木 Wood
• Zodiac tie兔 Year of the Rabbit

Source Folk agricultural proverb from Jiangsu-Zhejiang silk and grain farming regions, attested in Qing-era nongyan collections

Sits beside

Keep reading

Return to the Proverb Pond to draw another of the eighty-seven, or hear one read aloud. Read the rest of its chapter in Nature, Seasons & Health, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Rabbit, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.