White Dew (Bailu, 白露) comes at solar longitude 165°, when cooler nights leave dew on the grass and customs include autumn tea, rice wine and longan.
Solar longitude
165°
Type
Sectional term (jie)
Season
Autumn
Order
No. 15 of 24
Usual dates
Sep 7–8
Meaning and Astronomy
Bailu (白露) begins when the sun reaches ecliptic longitude 165°, usually around 7 or 8 September. Night temperatures fall noticeably, and moisture in the air condenses on plants in the early morning as glistening dew. In the five-phase system autumn belongs to metal, whose colour is white, which is why the dew of this season is called 'white'.
It is the third term of autumn, a jie (節) or 'sectional' term, and marks the start of the eighth month (the you month) in the stem-branch calendar. Traditionally this is when real autumn coolness begins to set in.
The Three Pentads
First pentad: Wild geese arrive (鴻雁來) - geese and other migratory birds start flying south for the winter.
Second pentad: Swallows return south (玄鳥歸) - the 'dark bird', the swallow, leaves to escape the cold.
Third pentad: Birds store up food (群鳥養羞) - xiu here means provisions, and birds begin laying in food for winter.
Climate and Farming
After Bailu, cold air from the north arrives more often. Northern China enjoys crisp, clear weather, and the day-night temperature range can exceed ten degrees. A proverb puts it simply: 'from White Dew to the Autumn Equinox, each night is colder than the last'. Southern China, Taiwan and Hong Kong remain warm by day with drier air, though typhoons are still possible in September.
This is the prelude to the autumn harvest. Soybeans, maize and sorghum ripen across the north and northeast, cotton picking begins, and parts of northern China prepare to sow winter wheat. In the south, late rice is heading and flowering and must be protected from cold winds and pests. In central and southern Taiwan, pomelo and longan are being harvested.
Customs
'White Dew tea' is popular in the Jiangnan region. Summer leaves grow fast and taste astringent, while autumn tea picked around Bailu is traditionally regarded as smoother and sweeter. Parts of Hunan, Zhejiang and Jiangsu brew 'White Dew rice wine' from the season's glutinous rice, served to guests or kept for the family.
In Fuzhou there is a saying that one must eat longan at White Dew, when the fruit is in season and is traditionally considered nourishing. Fishermen around Lake Tai have long honoured Yu the Great, the legendary tamer of floods, with rites at this time, asking for safety on the water and good catches. In Wenzhou and nearby areas, some families stew chicken with ten kinds of white herbs gathered at Bailu, with recipes varying from place to place.
Seasonal Food and Wellness
A common saying warns 'at White Dew, do not bare your body' (白露身不露): it is time to stop dressing as lightly as in summer, add a layer morning and evening, and keep the stomach and feet warm at night. Traditional thinking holds that the air becomes drier from now on, so moistening foods such as pears, lotus root, lily bulb, Chinese yam and honey are favoured, with less grilled or very spicy food.
Autumn is full of fresh fruit, but cooling fruits are traditionally eaten in moderation. These are customary ideas, and individual diets should follow one's own health needs.