Original Li Qingnian Qingdao story
At night, the south wind rises, and the locust tree flowers bloom.
In late spring, for several days, the warm southwest wind drove away the last chill in the depths of Laoshan like a warm current, soaking the branches of the locust trees that looked like dry ones. The branches of the locust tree reveal the thin leaves of small bird feathers, and the white jade flower buds bloom.
In this warm atmosphere, I changed into light clothes and climbed to the top of Laoshan Mountain. As far as the eye can see, the mountains are all over the wilderness, as if the snow is falling, on the hillside, in the deep stream, on the riverbank of the village, where the locust tree flowers bloom, the white expanse, as if entering a world of ice and jade flowers.
Wandering in the ocean created by the flowers of the locust tree, I took a deep breath of the rich fragrance of the locust tree flowers, and couldn't help but think of the many joys that the locust tree flowers brought to me and my friends in my childhood.
The hometown is in the Yimeng Mountains, and the locust trees on the mountains are like those in Laoshan Mountain, and there are many of them. In the early 60s, three consecutive years of natural disasters forced hungry people to climb trees, pick bark, pick leaves, and look for food to fill their stomachs.
Every year, when the locust tree flowers bloom, it becomes a festival for the common people. People pick the locust tree flowers back, or mix them with sweet potato noodles to make locust flower cakes, or blanch them with boiling water, take them out to make stuffing, and wrap locust flower buns...... The scent of locust trees wafts from every house.
When the children look forward to the blooming of the locust tree, they gather at the bottom of the locust tree in groups of three or five, and the older ones are bold enough to climb the branches, while the young and timid ones raise their heads and stare at the locust flowers on the tree.
The children on the tree pick a handful of freshly opened locust flowers, stuff them in their mouths and chew them, which are fragrant and sweet. Then, pluck down a few branches full of flowers and throw them to the friends under the tree. On and off the trees, there were cheers. What an unforgettable picture of childhood!
The locust tree is drought tolerant and cold-tolerant, and can also produce the whitest flowers in the thin and barren soil. One of the most memorable locust flowers I have ever seen is a unique view deep in the mountains. There is an inconspicuous stone crevice in the cliff face of this mountain, and a thumb-thick locust tree is squeezed out of the stone crevice, and it is actually full of white flowers.
The gust of wind blows, and the small locust tree trembles, showing strong vitality. It makes people easily think of the green pine on the top of Mount Tai and the "grass" on Kunlun Mountain, which can be called a superb view in the mountain. In the face of this situation, it is impossible not to generate many reveries, get a lot of inspiration from it, and be inspired.
It is precisely because of the characteristics of the locust tree that it does not care about the environment and has strong adaptability, so it is often easy for people to choose it when greening the barren hillside.
When a unit of the Jinan Military Region first entered Laoshan Mountain, it dug tree pits on the rocks in the operation area, backfilled it with cooked soil, and planted rows of locust tree seedlings. More than 20 years later, the seedlings have not only grown into mature forests, but also propagated many "offspring" on the spot. When the flowers bloom, the ditch is full of locust tree flowers.
One Sunday, the officers and men of the army carried baskets and buckets to pick gifts from nature, and came back to cook and improve their lives. A little soldier from the water town in the south of the Yangtze River tasted this natural green food for the first time.
While chewing on the locust flowers, I asked him, "How does it taste?" He learned the words of the TV commercials and said, "It tastes great!" A vivid improvisation made everyone laugh. Cheerful laughter flew out of the dining hall with a pleasant mood, echoing in the valley and floating among the mountains.
Nowadays, with the in-depth development of reform and opening up, the years of satisfying hunger with locust flowers are gone. However, if you rush to the time when the locust flowers are in full bloom, go to the tree to pick some, go home and scald them, take them out, dry them, and store them in the refrigerator. When it comes to the Spring Festival, take it out again, and it is as delicious as ever.
At this time, the big fish and meat of the festival are tired of eating, and the locust tree flowers are steamed, fried, cooked, or fried, or made into pies, or made into locust flower egg soup, all have a unique flavor.
The flowers of the locust tree are in full bloom, adding a new scenery to the Laoshan tourist area and arousing the strong interest of tourists to come to watch the flowers.
At this time, driving through Laoshan Mountain, open the car window, the fragrance of locust trees and flowers accompanied by the warm air poured into the carriage, immediately into the heart, intoxicating, lingering. After walking more than ten miles, the car is still wafting with the strong fragrance of acacia flowers. At this point, I casually murmured:
Go to the green and enjoy the flowers, and return to the fragrant clothes.