On October 8th, 2023 at 21:16, we will welcome the Cold Dew solar term. During this time, the temperature is lower than during the White Dew solar term, and the dew on the ground is colder, almost turning into frost. Most parts of the country have entered autumn during the Cold Dew solar term.

Three Phenological Periods of Cold Dew

In ancient China, people divided the Cold Dew solar term into three phenological periods: the arrival of wild geese, sparrows turning into clams, and chrysanthemums blooming.

During the Cold Dew solar term, wild geese form a line or a V-shape and migrate south in large numbers. As the weather gets colder in late autumn with sparrows disappearing, ancient people saw many clams suddenly appearing on the beach, and the stripes and colors on their shells were similar to those of sparrows. Therefore, they believed that the sparrows had turned into clams. "Chrysanthemums blooming" means that chrysanthemums have generally bloomed during this time.

Customs of Cold Dew

01 Eating Crabs

When the weather gets cold, the taste of crabs becomes better. " Female crabs are full of eggs and yellow paste, making it the best season to eat them.

02 Autumn Tea

"After Cold Dew, look for autumn tea." The tea picked during the first three days before and the last four days after Cold Dew is called "autumn tea". Cold Dew tea has a unique sweet and mellow fragrance, which is especially loved by tea connoisseurs.

03 Autumn Fishing

As the temperature drops rapidly during the Cold Dew solar term, the sun cannot penetrate deep water, and fish swim to shallow waters with higher temperatures. Therefore, there is a saying "autumn fishing by the shore."

04 Viewing Red Leaves

During the Cold Dew solar term, the autumn wind blows, and the mountains are covered with red leaves like clouds and brocade, like sceneries in poems and paintings. Walking on the mountain trails and looking into the distance, you could see clusters and patches of red leaves.

Health Preservation during Cold Dew

After entering the Cold Dew solar term, the nighttime temperature will drop even lower, so it is essential to keep warm. During this time, the temperature drops day by day, so it is necessary to eat more sweet, light, and moisturizing foods. You can eat more walnuts, tremella, radish, tomatoes, lotus roots, lilies, and sand ginseng, which are foods that nourish yin and moisturize dryness, benefit the stomach, and produce body fluids. 

Cold Dew Sightseeing

Although the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday have just passed, we can still make good use of our fragmented time to appreciate the beautiful autumn scenery around us.

01 Olympic Forest Park

From September 28th to October 28th, 2023, the "12th Olympic Forest Park Flower Viewing Season - Autumn Flower Exhibition" will be held in the Olympic Forest Park.

This year, the "Autumn Flower Exhibition" in the Olympic Forest Park has new features. In the "Flower Field Fun" area and nearby areas in the North Garden, you can enjoy flower sea of cosmos, muhlenbergia capillaris, bassia scoparia exhibition, flower sea of aster novi-belgii, flower sea of cosmos sulphureus and zinnia elegans.

Address: 33 Kehui Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing02 National Botanical Garden

The second chrysanthemum exhibition of the National Botanical Garden will be held from September 23rd to October 29th, 2023.

This flower exhibition is one of the exhibition areas of the 2023 Beijing Chrysanthemum Culture Festival, including three main visiting areas: the core exhibition area, the boutique chrysanthemum exhibition area, and the flower bed and flower landscape exhibition area. During the exhibition period, hundreds of thousands of autumn flowers and grasses, mainly chrysanthemums, will be gathered together, decorating the garden into a sea of flowers, offering visitors a feast of autumn.

Address: Intersection of Xiangshan Road and Wofosi Road, Haidian District, Beijing03 Taoranting Park

Recently, Taoranting Park combines traditional Chinese chrysanthemum charm with rich cultural activities to create a cultural immersive experience space, bringing visitors a beautiful "chrysanthemum viewing" feast.

This exhibition focuses on artistic creation with chrysanthemums as the main theme, creating different forms of flower landscapes such as themed flower beds, ground-planted flower landscapes, and indoor chrysanthemum bonsai exhibitions. The total exhibition area is more than 2,000 square meters, and the total number of flowers used is more than 50,000. Nearly a hundred kinds of chrysanthemums are distributed throughout the park, showing a colorful chrysanthemum scene.

Address: 19 Taiping Street, Xicheng District, Beijing