Xifeng hazelnut

Hazelnut is a well-known dried fruit produced in Liaoning. Because Liaoning is located between the subtropical zone and the north temperate zone, the natural and local conditions are suitable for the growth of hazelnut forests, which are almost all over the province. Kaiyuan, Tieling, Xifeng, Xinbin, Huanren and other counties are the concentrated producing areas of hazelnuts. In general, the province can produce 2-3 million Jin of hazelnuts, and the harvest year is 4-5 million Jin. The history of collecting and utilizing hazelnuts in Liaoning is earlier. In the Song Dynasty's "Open Room Materia Medica", it has been recorded that "hazelnuts are sweet ... born in the Liaodong Valley, the trees are tall, and the children are like small chestnuts, which are used as food for the army". By the Qing Dynasty, hazelnuts in Kaiyuan County had been listed as tributes. Because it is the hazelnut garden "decided by the emperor", the local area was once called "National Garden". Hazelnuts are mostly wild, mostly growing in the middle and lower parts of hillsides and glades, and often form jungles. This deciduous shrub has gray-brown bark and round or oval leaves, and its height can reach about 2 meters. Corylus heterophylla and Corylus heterophylla are two kinds of hazel trees originated in Liaoning, and the common ones in the market are Corylus heterophylla, commonly known as Corylus heterophylla. It is not strict with climate, but it likes light and has strict requirements on soil conditions. It grows well on fertile, humid, humus-rich and thick soil slopes. Most hazelnut forests in Liaoning are formed by sprouting tillers, which is characterized by rapid fruiting. Two-year-old hazelnuts can get considerable harvest after flat recommendation. From April to May, the red hazelnut flowers bloom before the leaves. At the end of August and the beginning of September, the fruits began to ripen from the upper layer of the tree. There is a folk proverb, "When summer comes, hazelnuts fall", which can be harvested in stages and layers at the right time. When hazelnuts are harvested, they should be de-braced. Usually, the harvested hazelnuts are piled up and covered with grass curtains for fermentation. It lasted for 2-4 days, and by the action of tannin in the bract, the bract fell off and the shell became bright brown. In some places, the method of covering or insolating is used to remove the bracts. Hazelnut is rich in nutrition, which can be eaten raw or fried. It is delicious and has a cough relieving effect. Nuts can be made into exquisite cakes, or advanced nutritional supplements such as hazelnut milk and hazelnut fat; Hazelnut kernel can also be used to make starch or extract oil, and the oil yield is about 50%. The oil color is orange yellow, the flavor is clear, and it is a high-grade edible oil. The comprehensive utilization of hazelnut is vast: a large number of hazelnuts can be produced in hazel forest, which is a valuable food in Liaoning; Hazelnut wood is hard and fine-grained, and can be used as small joinery. Hazelnut is flammable and is the best fuel wood; Bark, leaves and involucre contain a lot of tannin, which is the raw material of baking glue industry. In addition, hazel forest can also play a role in soil and water conservation.
Reprinted with attribution： https://cnlocality.com/(Chinese Specialty Products)