Literature ｜ Toona sinensis in spring

Toona sinensis is a kind of tree with strong vitality.

In early spring, when the wind is still hard and the sky is still cold, and other trees are still ignorant, Toona sinensis sprouts. Little red buds took the lead in sticking their heads out of the branches and timidly looked out. Hey, isn’t there a little green? Everyone is still immersed in the atmosphere of winter. I want to sprout quickly, and I can’t let other trees get ahead of me.

The next day, the buds of Toona sinensis were much bigger than the day before. On the third day, the small bud bud became several stretched leaves. The spring breeze blew, and the buds seemed to be blown away. In a blink of an eye, the whole tree was covered with fragrant and tender buds. Against the gray sky in early spring, the small buds are particularly eye-catching on the bare branches.

Nodding from the bud of Toona sinensis, the owner will look at it every day and think about the right day to break up every day. When the buds of Toona sinensis grow to a length, that is, the thumb and forefinger are stretched out so long, it is necessary to twist off the branches with long rods with hooks. There are new buds on the branches. Break off the buds of Toona sinensis from the branches and put them in the basket. The first stubble of Toona sinensis did not break much, because there were few buds.

Toona sinensis, the first crop, is also the most expensive, and its taste and fragrance are top grade, so the price is naturally extremely high. Toona sinensis buds cost one price a day, and the second crop of Toona sinensis is much cheaper. I remember that in the past, we didn’t eat the first crop of Toona sinensis, so we couldn’t afford it. It was very good to buy the second crop of Toona sinensis. It’s not like now. You can buy any stubble of Toona sinensis if you want.

Therefore, it is necessary to break the buds of Toona sinensis from the tree before it is too late, just like Zhang Ailing said, "Be famous before it is too early." Toona sinensis bud is a kind of leaf that takes the youth route. The younger it is, the more valuable it is, and so is leek. Toona sinensis became less and less valuable in the future. In the end, it was mixed in the green of poplar, French phoenix tree and locust tree, and became an ordinary neglected leaf.

Every spring, the Chinese Toona trees at the head of my building will be torn apart by long poles with hooks, almost bald, and their branches will be unscrewed to break off buds and abandoned on the ground, with different lengths and scattered all over the floor. I even thought that these trees were finished and life was coming to an end. However, after a few days, new buds began to sprout from other places, and they disappeared for a few days, and the trees were full of green. Toona sinensis is tossed once or twice every year, and then it comes back to life. It has tenacious vitality.

Yan Shu’s "Toon" said: "The trees in southern Chu are full of charm. Why use it for eight thousand years, Teng Ling is stunned by the bacteria. " The charm of Toona sinensis can be seen.

There are many ways to eat Toona sinensis, such as braising Toona sinensis in oil, scrambled eggs, and pickling into Toona sinensis sprouts, so enjoy your cooking. Most people eat the first crop of Toona sinensis, but few people care about the second crop, and it is no longer the poverty it used to be.

Although Toona sinensis has been eaten every year and eaten so many flavors, it was only at that time that the taste was amazing and then it was forgotten. Many years later, when I think of Toona sinensis, I was still in my grandmother’s yard when I was a child. In front of me was a big pot brought by my grandmother. I opened the steaming pot cover, and there was a pot of cooked Toona sinensis leaves in the pot. At this time, they can no longer be called Toona sinensis buds. They are mature leaves with thick joints and thick leaves, which are the last leaves that have been picked many times. These old leaves are cooked and salted to make pickles. Childhood is so poor that children don’t have any snacks to eat, so poor that they have to eat mature Toona sinensis leaves to make up for the lack of food.

Grandma took out a leaf from the pot, blew it on her mouth, and handed it to me if it was not too hot. I took it and put it in my mouth, and the skin on the pole was delicious, so I chewed it off bit by bit. The cooked leaves of Toona sinensis have a unique taste, without the delicacy of Toona sinensis buds, but with chewing heads. I have a handful of leaves in my left hand, my right hand is at my mouth, and my grandmother looks at me with a smile. She must feel that she has finally found something to eat for her nephew. Grandma is very happy.

Time has passed, the past has gone, and grandma’s smiling face is just fixed in the yard of that spring.

(The author is a member of the Writers Association of Zibo City, Shandong Province)