Songkran is an important traditional festival of the Dai people, and it is indispensable to make food during the festival.
Among the many Dai delicacies, one is only found during Songkran, during which the Dai people use a flower to concoct their traditional pastries.
▲Yunnan stone catalpa flowers
Using this flower as a food dye can not only increase the color and aroma of food, but also prolong the shelf life of food.
This magical flower spice is the Yunnan shizi flower, and the pastry made from it is called "milli glutinous cord".
Yunnan Shizi is full of treasure
Yunnan Shizi trees are very tall, belonging to semi-deciduous trees, can be as high as 30m, in addition, because Yunnan Shizi after being cut open, the bark will emit a strong sour taste, so it is also known as "acid tree".
Yunnan Shizihua is also named "cat ear flower" because it looks like a cat's ear.
Because Yunnan Shizi is only distributed in tropical areas, China's Yunnan Shizi is only distributed in the south and southwest of Yunnan, and they can be found in Xishuangbanna, Dehong, Simao, Lincang and other prefectures and cities.
Yunnan Stone Catalpa tree is also a rare and precious tree species in China, belonging to the national second-level protected plant, with high comprehensive utilization value, edible, medicinal, industrial and other uses.
Natural food stains
Dai language for Yunnan shizi flower is called "glutinous cord", Yunnan shi zi flower has a special fragrance, the Dai people will grind the flowers into powder, and then with glutinous rice, brown sugar, sesame seeds, peanuts and other ingredients together, made into a seductive color, sweet taste of the rice dumplings, they call this kind of rice dumplings "milli glutinous cord", usually during the Songkran festival to make a large number of gifts to relatives and friends, entertaining guests, equivalent to Han rice cakes.
▲ Millimeter-loud
And the magic is that the flowers of Yunnan Shizi have a natural antiseptic effect, and the rice dumplings of Yunnan Shizi flowers can also be left for several days during the hottest Songkran Festival.
Commonly used medicine for the Hani and Kino people
In terms of medicinal value, Yunnan Shizi is a common folk medicine among the Kino and Hani ethnic groups, and the Hani people will dry and grind its bark into powder for external use when the New Leaves grow in the spring of Shizi, Yunnan, which can treat knife and gun trauma and play a role in stopping bleeding and swelling; the Kino tribe will use its bark and leaves as a formula for decoction, which can treat prolapse and other diseases.
High quality furniture raw materials
In addition to flowers can be made into delicacies, the trunks of Yunnan Shizi are also high-quality furniture raw materials.
▲Yunnan stone catalpa tree
Wood is corrosion resistant, insect mothproof, moisture resistance is particularly strong, is the local people like to use the building, furniture materials.
For example, the idols and shrines in dai temples are also made of stone catalpa wood, which can still be maintained after decades or even hundreds of years; stone catalpa wood is also used to make musical instruments such as foot drums; and the koji used for steaming rice loved by the local ethnic minorities in Xishuangbanna are also made of stone catalpa wood.
▲Dai family koshi
Moreover, the wood nature is small deformation, no cracking, meticulous structure, straight texture, can be made into decorative wall panels, furniture veneers, plywood decorative veneers and other furniture decoration materials.
Yunnan Shizi has the characteristics of early rapid growth, under general natural conditions, 30 years old plants, tree height up to 30m, chest diameter up to 30 cm or more, its vigorous growth period durability can be continuous for more than 60 years, is one of the most promising tree species in southern China.
Although the treasure-filled Yunnan Shizi has a high comprehensive utilization value, due to years of unreasonable logging and deforestation, the growth environment of Yunnan Shizi has been seriously damaged, and the existing natural wild plants have been significantly reduced and are now in a rare state.
Strengthening their protection can not only reduce the damage to wild resources, but also maintain the sustainable use of high-value resources, protect the earth and benefit mankind.