Pomelo
Citrus maxima
People bathe in fragrant water made by boiling pomelo leaves in hot water on Chinese New Year’s Eve. The practice can ward off negative energy and improve one’s luck. The leaf has an invigorating aroma.
The correlation between pomelo leaf and luck might be related to how the plant’s name sounds like the word for being blessed [luk6 yau6] in local language.
It’s ability to ward off evil and strengthen vital qi was documented in the Index of the Divine Farmer’s Materia Medica, a medical manual written in the first year of Emperor Qianlong’s reign.
Every part of the pomelo tree is functional. The festive pomelo fruit is used as an offering for the moon during mid-autumn festival. The aromatic oil of the pomelo skin has antiseptic, anti-odor and mosquito repelling properties. The flowers, roots and seeds of the pomelo plant all have medicinal properties.
Where to find them: On slopes
Grass-leaved sweet flag
Acorus calamus
The representational plant of the “five emblems of mid-day”. Its sword-like leaves emit an aroma of ginger when scratched. Villagers use the leaves for showers to ward off evil spirits during Chinese New Year. They will also hang the leaf on top of the door portal. It was said that the “sword of Pu (Chinese name of the plant) kills thousands of evil spirits”. The plant is common in Southern China. It grows wild in the gaps between rocks in mountain streams. The roots of the plant can be used as spices and medicine. Ancient literati loved its elegant look and liked to place it on their study desks.
Where to find them: near streams