Solar term 6 of 24 · Fire · summer
Grain in Ear 芒种
The busiest fifteen days of the farming year.
Mángzhòng · begins 5 June 2026 · approximately fifteen days
Harvest one crop and plant the next in the same week. This is the peak of the year for work that cannot be deferred, and the classical texts pair it with a warning: people who push through this period at full speed arrive at midsummer depleted.
The three micro-seasons
Every term divides into three pentads of about five days.
- Mantises hatch
- Shrikes call
- Mockingbirds fall silent
What to do in these fifteen days
- Name your single most time-critical task. Protect it and let the rest slip.
- Eat at regular hours even when the day is chaotic. Irregular meals are what break people here.
- Stop working by the time the light goes. The days are short; the depletion lasts.
On the table
Plums and cherries · Mung beans, cooked soft and eaten cool
One question
What are you harvesting right now, and what are you planting in the same week?
Seasonal and cultural information only. Not medical advice, and no claim is made about treating any condition. See method & limits.