Chinese cabbage originated in China, but unlike leek, ginger, garlic and other vegetables, it can be found in classical literature for a long time, and unlike some vegetables originating in China, there are still primitive wild species in mountains and rivers. Looking through ancient books, there were no ancient books about Chinese cabbage before Yuan Dynasty. According to textual research, Chinese cabbage has a short history, from Yuan Dynasty to Ming and Qing Dynasties. Up to now, it's about seven or eight hundred years. Agronomists have conducted in-depth research on Chinese cabbage and come to the conclusion that it evolved from natural hybridization between Chinese cabbage in the south and turnips in the north. Therefore, to explore the origin of Chinese cabbage, we must start with the origin of Chinese cabbage and radish.
Chinese cabbage, also known as green vegetables, rape and ordinary cabbage, was called "fermented grains" in ancient times. Originated in southern China. The earliest historical records began in the Western Jin Dynasty. Turnip, also known as turnip, is a kind of root mustard, commonly known as "spicy pimple", which is native to China and mainly produced in northwest and north China. Turnip has a long history of cultivation in China, which was recorded in the Book of Songs in the pre-Qin period and also recorded in Fan Shengzhi's vegetable monograph in the Western Han Dynasty. It was widely cultivated in the Eastern Han Dynasty. During the reign of Emperor Huan, there was a record that "floods caused disasters, and crops were not harvested, so that all the injured counties and countries planted vines to satisfy their hunger".
Regarding the regional characteristics and evolution of Chinese cabbage and radish, the Southern Vegetation written by Han Ji in the Western Jin Dynasty wrote in the section of "Radish Attached": "There is nothing in the south of Radish Ridge, and occasionally mustard is cultivated by officials and scholars, which is also called orange planting in Hebei. There is a cave in Qujiang, and that person is called Qin Dong. " According to Xiao Zixian's Book of Southern Qi, Chinese cabbage was cultivated in the south, which was called "fermented grains". Tang Sugong's "Tang Materia Medica" contains: "Broccoli and fermented grains have different origins." In the book Ya Ya written by Lu Dian in the Song Dynasty, it said: "Shepherd's purse was planted in the north, and radish was planted in the first half of the year, but it was extinct in two years. Radishes are also grown in the south. " In the Southern Song Dynasty, Chen Fu also recorded in "Chen Fu Agricultural Book": "Plant radish vegetables in July." Green vegetables refer to Chinese cabbage.
As can be seen from the above historical data, the origins of Chinese cabbage and radish are different, and there are some character variations during the introduction from north to south. However, due to the underdeveloped technology at that time, people can't know what caused the variation of Chinese cabbage and radish. Chinese cabbage didn't appear until the Yuan Dynasty. Hu Sihui called the so-called "fermented grains" Chinese cabbage directly for the first time in Eating, and drew a picture carefully. Judging from the shape of Chinese cabbage described by him, it is not the Chinese cabbage born on the ground, but the leaves outside are gathered, and its embrace state has evolved into a Chinese cabbage with balls. However, it cannot be separated and ignored that the long history from Jin to Yuan is an important stage in the evolution of Chinese cabbage, from internal cause to external cause, from quantitative change to qualitative change, and from accidental to inevitable mutation. At the same time, the war and turmoil in this period, people's migration, cultural exchanges between North and South, and interactive planting of crops all promoted the evolution of Chinese cabbage. After the Yuan Dynasty, there were more and more ancient books describing Chinese cabbage. In the Ming Dynasty, Wang Shimao introduced the definition and origin of Chinese cabbage in the section of Fruit and Vegetable Sparse, and recommended "Yan Dihuang Cliff Vegetable" as a famous variety. Qing Hongshu and others praised Chinese cabbage as "crisp and beautiful without me" and pointed out that soybean sprouts are another kind of Chinese cabbage and must not be confused with Chinese cabbage. Ding Yi once made a clear exposition of Chinese cabbage in Introduction to Farmland, which he called "Woxin Chinese Cabbage". He introduced the cultivation experience of planting light snow in early autumn in Shandong province, and also introduced the method of binding the outer leaves with straw rope to protect the bulbous leaves after the first frost. Modern agricultural science and technology have proved that Chinese cabbage and turnip belong to different subspecies of Brassica, and cruciferous vegetables are the easiest to cross naturally. In particular, Chinese cabbage and turnip have the same basic genome, and the fertilization rate of natural hybridization between them is 100%, and their parents and offspring can grow and reproduce normally. And the biological characteristics of Chinese cabbage are between Chinese cabbage and radish.
The results of artificial hybridization between these two vegetables by vegetable experts also prove that Chinese cabbage is the product of hybridization between Chinese cabbage and radish. Agronomists' further inferences are as follows: First, because Chinese cabbage and turnip were introduced into each other from north to south, the two vegetables bloomed at the same time, and their genetic relationship was very close. Under the condition of natural pollination, it is entirely possible to produce hybrid offspring by natural hybridization. Secondly, this hybrid offspring is a semi-cold-tolerant vegetable, which requires a cool and humid climate, an appropriate temperature difference between day and night, no freezing injury, and sunshine and rainfall meet the external environmental conditions of Pilin. The autumn climate, temperature and weak alkaline soil characteristics in North China meet these requirements. After nearly a thousand years of evolution and cultivation, Chinese cabbage finally appeared. What needs to be explained here is that the author thinks that it is wrong to call Chinese cabbage "shepherd's purse" or "shepherd's purse" today, and it should be clarified and corrected.
To sum up, the advanced variety of Chinese cabbage we are eating now-Chinese cabbage, is the result of countless times of evolution and hard cultivation in the long-term labor practice of people of all dynasties. Contemporary Chinese cabbage has formed a huge family, which is colorful. Its strain has developed to 4 varieties and 3 ecotype 1000 varieties. Chinese cabbage is more adaptable and has become a "national dish" planted all over the country. What is more exciting is that with the rapid development of agricultural science and technology, anti-season heat-resistant Chinese cabbage and colored Chinese cabbage have also come out one after another.
Chinese cabbage is generally strong, cheap and nutritious, which makes people eat it for a long time. Once it came out, it was loved by people. In Yuan Dynasty, Hu Sihui wrote: "Cabbage is sweet, warm and non-toxic. It can clear the intestines and benefit the stomach, remove troubles in the chest and relieve alcoholism. " Wang Shimao of the Ming Dynasty appreciated Chinese cabbage very much, and considered it as a miracle among vegetables. In Wu Shuo in the Qing Dynasty, Chinese cabbage from the north spread like wildfire when it was transported to the south. Wang Shixiong recorded the benefits of eating Chinese cabbage with great interest in Diet Spectrum, saying: "Gan Ping nourishes the stomach, and both vegetarian and vegetarian foods are suitable, and the taste is better than the delicacies." Ke Shao, a historian of Qing Dynasty