Juicy Plums

Juicy Plums

　　Juicy Plums are a delicacy among plums and a famous local specialty of Tongxiang. In ancient times, they were often presented as tribute to emperors, making them widely renowned. These plums originally grew near the ancient Juicy Plum City. According to Du Yu’s commentary in the “Spring and Autumn Annals”: “To the southwest of Jiaxing County in Wu Commandery lies Juicy Plum City, which was named after the fine plums grown there.” It is said that the ancient Juicy Plum City was located within Baotao Township in Tongxiang. Nowadays, the ancient city has vanished without a trace, but Juicy Plums are still produced. A fairly large Juicy Plum orchard can be found in Taoyuan Village, Baotao Township. Nearby farms also grow these plums. The Juicy Plums produced here are large in size and delicious in taste, and each fruit bears a small mark at the base, shaped like a fingernail print. Legend has it that this mark was left by the beauty Xi Shi. (Jiaxing)