Dongshan Jingbai Pear

Dongshan Jingbai Pear

　　　　Dongshan Village in Junzhuang Town, Mentougou District, is the birthplace of the Jingbai pear. The Jingbai pears produced here are flat-round in shape, with yellowish-white skin and milky-white flesh. They have thin skins, thick flesh, juicy pulp, small cores, and a well-balanced sweet-and-sour flavor. A stack of seven pears can stand upright without toppling, making them one of the renowned local specialties in the suburbs of Beijing. Since the Ming Dynasty when Beijing became the capital, white pears have been a staple in the imperial court, especially favored by Empress Dowager Cixi during the Qing Dynasty, who had a particular liking for the pears from Dongshan Village. As a result, this special variety of white pear became inaccessible to the general public.

　　　　In 1954, the white pears from Dongshan Village won the title of Best Product at the Beijing Pear Variety Competition, and the word “Jing” (meaning “capital”) was added before “white pear,” thus naming it the “Jingbai pear.”

　　　　In 1959, during the 10th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the central government and the State Council held a state banquet at the Great Hall of the People, where the Dongshan Jingbai pear was served, thereby gaining nationwide fame.

　　　　In 1999, Li Zhendong, the director of the Beijing Huiming Fruit and Forestry Experimental Farm and a villager from Dongshan, registered the trademark “Junshan Brand” for the Jingbai pear. He participated in the Expo held in Beijing and won a silver award, successfully bringing the pear to the international market. Surprisingly, even at a price of 25 yuan per jin (500g), it remained a hot commodity.

　　　　The pear is a deciduous tree that bears white flowers. Hence, ancient people described trees covered in ice as, “As if overnight, spring breeze has come, and thousands of pear blossoms have bloomed.” Pear fruits are edible and also have medicinal properties, such as moistening the lungs, reducing phlegm, and clearing internal heat. Pears have a long cultivation history in China, with records dating back to ancient texts from the pre-Qin period such as the “Zhuangzi,” “Han Feizi,” and “Erya.” During the Han Dynasty, large-scale pear orchards emerged in China, and many superior varieties were cultivated. By the 2nd century, pears had spread to places like India and Persia, where they were referred to in Sanskrit as the “Prince of the Qin Lands,” with “Qin Lands” meaning China.

　　　　Pears can be eaten fresh or processed into pear juice and pear paste. Pear paste is a health remedy known for dispelling wind, clearing heat, soothing the lungs, and relieving coughs. It is said to have been invented by Wei Zheng, the prime minister of the Tang Dynasty. Wei Zheng was not only loyal and patriotic, serving as a mirror to Emperor Taizong of Tang, but he was also known for his filial piety. His mother suffered from a cold but refused to take bitter medicine. Once, while out, Wei Zheng saw a pear tree and remembered that his mother loved pears. He went home, mixed the medicine with pear juice, boiled it into a paste, and gave it to her. It worked effectively. Later generations imitated the method, and with careful formulation by doctors, it evolved into the “pear paste candy” that has been passed down through the ages.

　　　　There are many other things related to pears. In the past, theater troupes were called “pear gardens,” actors were referred to as “disciples of the pear garden,” the theater world was known as the “pear garden circle,” and theater competition banners would be labeled “Pear Garden Spring.” These terms are associated with Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, also known as Emperor Ming of Tang (Li Longji). He selected 300 musicians to perform the “Fayue” (Buddhist ritual music) exclusively in the pear garden of the imperial palace and personally provided guidance, calling these musicians the “emperor’s pear garden disciples.” It is no surprise, then, that the theater world regards Emperor Ming of Tang as their patron saint.

　　　　That said, the “Junshan Brand Jingbai Pear” from Dongshan Village has come a long way. Not only has a thousand-mu (approximately 66.7-hectare) Jingbai pear base been established, but a Jingbai pear picking festival has also been held, along with the construction of numerous rural guesthouses. The area is developing toward an industrialized path of leisure, sightseeing, and tourism. The China Children's Hand-in-Hand Earth Village and the Beijing Children's Activity Center Base of China Children's Daily have also been set up within the Dongshan Pear Garden. The Dongshan Jingbai Pear Base is on track to become a modern orchard integrating sightseeing tourism with ecological and environmental sustainability as its goals.