Solar longitude
75°
Classification
Month-opening term · 节 jie
Month boundary
Horse 午 · solar month 5
Definition
What Grain in Ear marks
The season behind the name
Grain in Ear names the busy overlap of harvesting awned grains and planting summer crops.
These names grew from seasonal observation and farming practice. They describe a traditional seasonal sequence, not a weather forecast for every region.
Grain in Ear begins at the instant the Sun reaches 75 degrees of apparent ecliptic longitude. It is one of 24 equal 15-degree divisions of the solar year, so its Gregorian position changes only slightly from year to year.
As a jie term, Grain in Ear opens solar branch month 5, associated with the Horse (午) branch. This is an almanac solar-month boundary, not the first day of a lunar month.
The time is shown in China Standard Time (UTC+8). A reader west or east of that zone may see the same instant fall on a different local civil date.
Three pentads · 三候
Seasonal observations
Each traditional pentad spans about five days and names a seasonal sign associated with that part of the term.
- First pentad
Mantises hatch
螳螂生
- Second pentad
Shrikes begin to call
鵙始鸣
- Third pentad
Mimicking songbirds fall silent
反舌无声