[ChinaMaxxing] The Solar Term We Are Having Now is Called Xiaoshu

Xiaoshu (小暑, xiǎoshǔ), or Minor Heat, is the 11th of the 24 solar terms and marks the point when summer heat begins building toward its annual peak, though the worst is still a few weeks off.

The name translates literally to "small heat" – a warning shot before Major Heat (大暑, dàshǔ) arrives later this month.

What It Feels Like Right Now

This year, Minor Heat falls on Tuesday, July 7. The city's typically still wrapping up its plum rains (梅雨, méiyǔ) period around now, so expect the last of the sticky, unpredictable thunderstorms before the rain tapers off and the heat settles in properly.

You'll notice it most in the mornings: the kind of heat that has you sweating before you've left the apartment, with the air feeling like it's already been used once.

Cicadas, if they haven't already, will be in full chorus by now – that constant background hum that becomes so familiar that you stop registering it until it's gone in autumn.

Things People Do (Or Used to Do) During This Term

Admiring lotus flowers: Lotus ponds are reaching their peak bloom around now. Guyi Garden and Daning Park are both good bets, ideally before 8am, before the petals begin folding closed and before both the crowds and temperatures build.

Eating eel: Eel is considered especially tender and nutrient-dense right now, and braised eel remains a popular summer dish across the Yangtze River Delta, including nearby Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. It's rooted in old seasonal nutrition logic: eat something fortifying before the heaviest heat kills everyone's appetite.

Airing out the house: If a dry, sunny day appears during this stretch, many Shanghai residents will throw open their windows and air out bedding, clothes, and books before the humidity returns. It's one of the few chances to get rid of lingering damp before mildew season really sets in.

What's In Season Right Now

In some parts of China, there's a saying: "小暑吃芒果" (xiǎoshǔ chī mángguǒ) – roughly "eat mangoes during Minor Heat." It's tied to the belief that the fruit's cooling properties help offset the season's heat. Lychees, already in season, get the same treatment. You'll see both piled high at fruit stands right around now.

Watermelon and peaches, especially the Nanhui variety (南汇水蜜桃, Nánhuì shuǐmìtáo), are still going strong, getting softer and sweeter by the week. Early grapes start showing up in markets too, with more local varieties arriving over the coming weeks.

On the vegetable side, winter melon and bitter melon are still both in season. Loofah (丝瓜, sīguā) becomes a kitchen staple, usually stir-fried with egg or simmered into a light soup. Eggplant, cucumber, tomato, okra (秋葵, qiūkuí), and corn – both the sweet white variety and standard yellow – are still at their best.

Fresh lotus seed pods (莲蓬, liánpéng) also start appearing at wet markets around now. The seeds inside are most often eaten fresh, offering a mild, nutty sweetness and a texture somewhere between a pea and a chestnut. They're only around for a brief window each summer.