[Tagong Grassland] Tagong Grassland

Tagong, a corner on the grassland of Kangding, Sichuan, means "the place that Bodhisattvas like" in Tibetan. A street, two rows of houses, a temple, wrapped in vast grassland. Such a small village is often ignored on the map. However, every time the flowers bloom in summer, there are always tourists from all over the country who yearn for wild flowers and wild flowers. People who take photos or get close to nature flow into the narrow streets and then flow into the vast grasslands. What they brought back to the city from Tagong was not only the unique Tibetan-style street scene, but more about the green grassland, the flowers scattered among it, the various dazzling colors, and the stories they experienced on the flower-hunting trip. , and the legends I heard.

Pure white: Lambs are covered with flowers on the hillside

Tibetans in Tagong love flowers and plants. The old grandmother’s house where we stayed had a row of blooming flowers planted on the window sill. Looking through the window, we could see the carved window lattice, flowers, prayer flags and the gold-plated roof of Tagong Temple. This is what attracts outsiders here. The most well-known selling point. While drinking butter tea, we picked up our cameras and showed our old grandmother the photos of flowers and plants we had taken on the grassland. As she looked at them, she often spoke Tibetan words that we did not understand. Suddenly, a Chinese word appeared in the Tibetan vocabulary. Pronunciation, and the picture in the camera is fixed on a group of white stick-shaped plants. "Lamb flower." The old lady said in Chinese, "This is what is often called lamb flower."

The name "lamb flower" has been heard for a long time: legend has it that when a ewe gives birth to a baby, After the sheep died, the placenta left behind fell in the grass and turned into flowers as white as wool, which Tibetans call lamb flowers. It seems that this statement is more popular in Tibetan areas on the western plateau, but there are different opinions on exactly which plant the lamb flower refers to.

The white plant called the lamb flower by the old lady is called Polygonum japonicus. It is one of the common species on the grassland. I picked up a photo of the grassland in western Sichuan and looked around. I saw the swaying grass. The dots of white are the round spikes of polygonum scattered among the green grass. In the past, when taking photos, I only paid attention to the round texture of the flowers, but never thought about their meaning. When my old grandmother talked about it, I suddenly felt that the white sticks were like The little tails of the lambs are round and plump, sticking up from the green grass. They are really cute.

However, it didn’t take long for the conclusion that “the lamb’s flower is Polygonum paniculata” to be overturned. As we continued to look through the photos, the old lady pointed to another plant and told us that this Also lamb flower. Speaking of which, the deviation is actually not big. Another plant called lamb's flower is a close relative of Polygonum paniculata - Polygonum bulbifera. Even if they are close relatives, even if they are both common species in the grass, they still look different. The flowers of Polygonum bulbifera are not as dense as those of Polygonum paniculata, the short rod-shaped inflorescences are longer, and the color of the flowers is more pinkish white.

According to the perspective of plant classification, Polygonum paniculata and Polygonum bulbifera both belong to the Polygonaceae family. Regardless of whether the Polygonaceae plants are all called "lamb flowers", they are both good food for lambs - Polygonum. Most of the plants are excellent forage on the plateau, widely distributed, nutritious and delicious. It is said that in addition to being used as food for sheep, the seeds of Polygonum can also be eaten by humans. "It's edible, but it's not good. Tibetans don't like it." Tashi, a sturdy Tibetan boy from Tagong, said of Polygonum spp. Tibetans were forced to eat Polygonum seeds to survive. Therefore, over time, "eating Polygonum seeds" and "famine" were given a certain connection. Today's children no longer know that Polygonum, which blooms like a lamb's tail, can actually be eaten.

The conclusion that "the lamb flower is a plant of the Polygonaceae family" did not last long. When I was walking with Tashi, I saw a group of white plants by the water, which Tashi also called the lamb flower. The flowers of those plants look a bit like green onions, and the name is aptly called "onion-shaped rushes." It is a common species near the water in Tagong grassland, but it has nothing to do with the Polygonaceae family. "Isn't it called lamb's flower that belongs to the Polygonaceae family?" I asked Tashi. Tashi laughed and revealed the secret:

"Many flowers are called lamb's flower!"

Listening to Tashi's explanation, it seems that they call the white flowers on the grassland lamb flowers, just like the so-called "Gelsang flowers" refer to the bright flowers on the grassland. Wow, before I went to Tibetan areas, I always thought that lamb flowers should be something with flowers that look like lambs. Then I thought of the white magnolias that bloom all over the trees in spring. Could it be that when Tibetan friends saw the magnolias, they would also exclaim that lambs are on the trees? After hearing Magnolia's argument, Tashi suddenly became shy and said that he had never seen Magnolia before, but there were many white flowers on the grass. From a distance, they looked like lambs hiding in the grass. The white flowers are like lambs hiding in the grass. This explanation sounds very good. Perhaps for the Tibetans on the grassland, lamb is wealth, so it has been passed down from generation to generation, and the white flowers are called lamb flowers. There are good wishes in them.

Bright red: the legend of the long nose

On the green grass, the most conspicuous thing is always the bright red flower. Not only humans feel this way, but the animals that pollinate flowers also think the same way.

Among the plants waiting for pollination from others, of course orchids are the ones that have to be mentioned. Many types of wild orchids are not as fragrant as the spring orchids in the flower market, or as ostentatious as the large-flowered orchids. The orchids we encountered in Tagong are all small and exquisite types. The plant height is only a dozen centimeters and the flowers are only It's about the size of a fingernail, but if you look closely, it has a very delicate structure.

In order to attract pollinating insects, orchids must use deceptive methods. Just like the widespread orchids we saw on wet grass slopes, the petals look more or less like insects, with a belly, legs, and some Used to make the spots look like real ones, with the pink and tender color, so you don’t have to worry about pollinators coming to your doorstep. Many types of orchids do not contain nectar, so attracting insects depends solely on the imitation of petals. I wonder which insect will be deceived by orchids next and come back empty-handed.

The most common orchid on the wet grassland is the ribbon grass - the small pink flowers are arranged in a spiral shape, like a ribbon wrapped around it, hence the name. Ribbon grass is a widely distributed species and can be seen in many provinces and regions, but Tagong's ribbon grass is too common. On the wet grassland similar to a swamp, you can find one or two ribbon grass within five steps. We were lying on the wet grass taking photos. Two tourists on horseback passed by us. When they saw us, they exclaimed, "Look, look, look, how did they find such strange flowers? In fact, as long as you bend down, you can do it casually." You can find it, but the problem is that tourists on horseback can only appreciate the majestic scene, the endless grassland, and the towering snow-capped mountains, but ignore the small things beside the horse's hooves.

However, the weirdest red flower on Tagong Grassland is not an orchid, but a type of guy called BiuBiu. These guys are called Ma Xianhao, and they belong to the Scrophulariaceae family. There are hundreds of species in China, which is a big family. Some of the flowers have unique "long noses", which are called "beaks" in botany - unfortunately Unfortunately, we happened to be tricked by these long-nosed BiuBiu.

Once when I went out with Tashi, I came across a kind of Artemisia tuberosa on the grass, Artemisia tuberosum. It was purple-red and grew in clumps. In addition to the curved "long nose", there was also a long root at the lower part of the flower. Tube. "Do you know why this flower is called BiuBiu?" Tashi picked off a strange-shaped flower and showed us: he held the long tube of the flower in his mouth, inflated his cheeks, opened his big eyes, and used all his strength to When I blow hard, the pipe makes a "Biu~" sound, which is muffled and unpleasant to listen to.

"Did you hear that?" Tashi asked, seeing us nodding, so he continued to tell the story: "When I was a child, my grandmother told me, don't blow BiuBiu, otherwise it will rain. When I was a child, I was naughty. When grandma hangs clothes, I ask BiuBiu to blow them. After blowing, it rains, and the clothes won’t dry. "Could it be that these flowers that are shaped like elephant trunks can still pray for rain? Look around, there is no sound in the clear day. Yun, so we regarded BiuBiu's story as just one of the many legends told by Tibetans. He just told it and we just listened to it.

However, an hour later, the wind came, and the rain came. A large group of dark clouds crossed the ridge, covering the sun. Wind, rain, small hail, and a real thunderstorm forced us to have no choice. He did not give up his plan to continue taking photos and fled back in embarrassment. Faced with Tashi's gloating smile, we were speechless. Could it be that Artemisia japonica really can pray for rain?

We returned to the station, repaired some things, and watched the shower dissipate. It was already 4 p.m. when we went out again. Who would have thought that just after taking a dozen photos, another dark cloud came, and then it continued to rain without any suspense. "Your BiuBiu is so powerful, even if it rains, you will be chased after you!" In the evening, I discussed praying for rain with Tashi. Tashi continued to smile happily and told us that not all Tibetan areas have legends about BiuBiu. His hometown is in Qinghai. As for Tagong, not many people know that BiuBiu can pray for rain.

Later, I saw a lot of bright red Ma Xianhao. Some had long noses, some had short noses, some had hairy noses, some were close to the ground, some were tall and straight, some had long tubes, and some had long noses. There are steel helmets, and of course white and yellow BiuBiu, but just in case, we all stay away from them. The rain still often starts in the afternoon. According to Tashi, there are always naughty children playing BiuBiu, and we finally guessed the truth of the matter - the Western Sichuan Plateau is already rainy in the summer, especially the showers caused by convection. It often falls in the afternoon, which has nothing to do with whether it blows BiuBiu or not.

Telling Tashi the conclusion between BiuBiu and rain, Tashi still smiled and said: "BiuBiu only blooms in this month. If you want to try praying for rain, hurry up." This is a non-committal conclusion, with a touch of mythology in Tibetan legends. However, in any case, the long-nosed Artemisia spp. and the chasing showers are indeed unique experiences in our flower-hunting journey.

Bright yellow: water? grass? stone

Tagong, at an altitude of 4,000 meters, apart from the slight feeling of hypoxia when you first arrive, the strong sunshine is also very real. Between the sticky feeling of sunscreen and the sun-exploded skin, it seems that any choice is a bit helpless. However, for the Tibetans here, the sunshine is so warm and peaceful. The old lady who cooks butter tea for us every morning would open the iron door downstairs when the sun shines on the street, turn on the tape recorder to play Buddhist scriptures, and then sit at the door to enjoy the warmth of the sun. And when we asked my grandma during the chat what her favorite color of wild flowers was, she naturally chose bright yellow.

Except for grasslands, wetlands around streams, dry land near hills, and groves on hillsides, yellow flowers may be found wherever the sun shines.

For example, there are flowering buttercups and plateau buttercups on the waterside, saxifrage on rocky slopes, and bellflowers and primulas in the forest.

The Potentilla velvet on the wetland is a species widely distributed across the country. It has small yellow flowers, five petals, and pinnate compound leaves. Often after a wetland is destroyed and restored, the downy velvet is a pioneer species.

Wolfsbane on the grass is a symbol of pasture degradation, and the entire plant is poisonous. It is even called "heartbroken grass" in some places and is not eaten by livestock. Fortunately, Wolfsbane is rare on Tagong Grassland. The best place to photograph Wolfsbane is around an empty field where horse racing is popular.

For vast grasslands, as long as human activities are not uncontrolled, their impact will ultimately be limited. The main reason for the differences in plant distribution is the difference in environment - such as the low vegetation between grasslands. The hills are rocky and soily. They are far less densely covered with vegetation than grasslands, and the plants on them are also quite special. Pointing to a plant with small umbrella-shaped flowers, I asked Tashi what it was called in Tibetan. Tashi shrugged and didn't know. "In Chinese, this is called Bupleuri Bupleurum, which is a medicinal material used to reduce fever, Bupleurum." Explaining Bupleurum, I asked Tashi what they take to reduce fever when they have a fever. In other words, the antipyretic commonly used in Tibetan medicine is What, Tashi thought about it seriously and told me: "Aspirin."

However, whether it is wetland, grassland or morning ground, the most common yellow-flowered plant in Tagong is undoubtedly the small plant in western Sichuan. Yellow chrysanthemum and yellow flower grass, the former is golden and the latter is bright yellow. We often take photos around the goldenrod, because the bright yellow petals create a psychedelic light and shadow effect when illuminated by the sun.

Blue: A Family of Flowers

It is said that the higher the altitude, the closer to the sky; the closer to the sky, the more the flowers and plants prefer the blue of the sky. Of course, scientists usually like to discourage people's romantic ideas. They will tell us that ultraviolet radiation is strong in places at high altitudes, so the flowers there are mostly blue-violet, which can better reflect ultraviolet rays. But no matter what, looking for those small blue-purple flowers at the foot of the snow-capped mountains is a favorite thing for plateau flower hunters.

Although we also saw species with blue flowers such as delphinium and skullcap in Tagong, if we say that the group with the most blue-purple flowers on the plateau is of course the plants of the Campanulaceae and Gentianaceae families. genus. It would not be an exaggeration to say that these two families of plants are the family of blue-purple flowers on the plateau. After all, plants from the Campanulaceae and Gentianaceae families can account for more than 70% of the blue-purple flowers we saw during our trip.

Among the platycodon plants seen by Tagong, Codonopsis pilosula, Adenophora miliosa, and Adenophora ganzi are all unique to China. Holding the bell-like small blue flowers of Ganzi Adenophora, Tashi is always a little doubtful. Is it possible that the flower that can often be seen on the grass is the same as the giant panda and is not found in other countries except China? In fact, there are many unique Chinese plants distributed in western Sichuan. , like Ganzi Adenophora, plants named after relevant places, such as Kangding XX, Dong'eruo XX, and Dajianlu XX, are all unique plant resources in western Sichuan. "Work hard and discover a new grass called Tagong grass." The joke Tashi said is not an impossible task for botanical researchers. After all, the flowers and plants of Tagong grassland still need to be further studied.

As for the Gentianaceae plants, they are known as one of the three major flowers on the plateau, and they can be seen everywhere in Tagong Grassland. Almost as soon as you look down, you will see that there are always Gentianaceae in the blue. . The most common gentian here is the blue gentian. The flower lives up to its name. The inside of the corolla is white, the outer eaves are blue, and there are dark blue spots on it. If you look closely, it looks like an alluring skirt, magnificent but not ostentatious. When taking photos of gentian, because the light was too strong, we decided to use shadows to block the sunlight. So, we blocked the light, framed the scene, focused, and then...these trumpet-shaped flowers actually closed one after another after everything was ready! There was no sunlight. Maybe they think night is coming, so they close the flowers and prepare to sleep. Counting on your fingers, it only takes three to five minutes from blocking the light to the flowers closing. These guys are really sensitive! When we moved the shadow away, the sun appeared again, and within a few minutes, the flowers opened again. Open, blue horns point to the sky one by one, as if the closing event just now never happened...

There are various types of gentians, ranging from false scale-leaf gentians as small as only 3 mm in height to 30-meter-high gentians. Centimeter head flower gentian, in addition, many plants such as throat hair flowers, flat buds, flower anchors, etc. also belong to the Gentianaceae family. Once upon a time, when we saw blue flowers from a distance, we would exclaim "What are they from the Gentianaceae family?", making Tashi think that we only knew plants from the Gentianaceae family.

Climbing towards the snow line of Yamu Mountain, starting from 3700 meters above sea level and going all the way to 4500 meters. Tashi, who was wandering on the plateau, walked easily and swiftly, while I have been living in low altitude areas for a long time. , it is inevitable to have difficulty breathing and walking with difficulty. You can also find some new species at an altitude of about 4,000 meters. I often stop to take a few photos as a rest and refreshment. I don’t realize how long the road is. I gradually walk up, and my steps become heavier and heavier. The Yamu Mountain is in front of me. The flowers and plants were so exciting that climbing the mountain became a painful task. "Go on, it's not far. There is a lake ahead. There is a particularly beautiful flower on the edge of the lake, blue." I once suspected that Tashi was deceiving us, because the so-called "not far" was what he said an hour ago. I also heard the saying "you can reach it just by climbing up the hill ahead" no less than five times.

When I finally reached the lake that Tashi mentioned, I threw my whole body into the grass, looked at the white clouds reflected in the water, breathed hard, tilted my head, and discovered the so-called "particularly beautiful blue clouds". The colored stamen is a flat column. Look at that blue flower." Zhaxi came over and said, "It's from the Gentianaceae family." I gasped and glanced at him. This guy is not a quick learner. He saw the blue flower. Talk about gentian, but this thing is really a large flower called Styloflora in the family Gentianaceae.

I saw so many wild flowers in Tagong. Why do I have to choose white, red, yellow and blue to talk about? I don’t know. Maybe it’s because of the breakfast I had at my old grandma’s house. Those are the four colors. White is tsampa, red is dried meat, and yellow is butter tea.

What about blue? Blue is the robe worn by the old lady...

(Editor Dou Lihong)