The summer solstice falls on June 21st or 22nd every year. It is the tenth solar term of the 24 Chinese solar terms, marking the day of the longest daytime and shortest nighttime. Starting on the summer solstice, the days begin to draw out. In another ancient book, we find that people called Summer Solstice “Chaojie.” Women gave colored fans and sachets to each other. Fans could help them feel not so hot and the sachets could drive away mosquitoes and make them smell sweet.

There’s a saying which goes, “After eating noodles on the summer solstice day (a seasonal tradition), daylight gets shorter day by day”. After the summer solstice, temperatures rise in north China and there’s plenty of sunshine and rainfall, which is good for the growth of crops. Meanwhile, areas in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River wallow in their rainy season, during which persistent and heavy rains are common. The hottest days of summer begin after the summer solstice. They come in three stages – the first, the second and the third period of the hot season, with each period lasting for ten days. Crops thrive in these hottest days, and at the same time weeds and pests also grow actively. It’s a busy farming season.

Crops grow most quickly in summer. But insect pests and floods are also common disasters in summer which affect crops’ growth. Many people offered sacrifices to deities to pray for better weather and harvests. So in ancient times, people considered the Summer Solstice a celebration of femininity, the earth and the Yin forces, while the Winter Solstice was a celebration of the opposite: masculinity, the heavens and the Yang forces.

People of different regions and ethnic groups had their own forms of celebrations. For example, the Han ethic group in Northern China had a celebration called “offering sacrifices to the land,” which is still an important folk activity even today.