Seeds of autumn

Gorgon seeds, stir-fried with peeled shrimps, also from Taihu Lake, make a fancy hot dish.  [Photo provided to China Daily]

Increasing demand from both within Suzhou and outside is pushing up the price of the seeds.

According to Bao Zhongzhou, a senior research agronomist in Suzhou, it was not until late in the 1980s that gorgon fruit cultivation spread to lowland ponds outside Suzhou. The plant has a table-size green leaf and light purple flowers that bloom late in summer. Now the total area in which China grows the gorgon fruit is estimated to be around 67,000 square kilometers.

But veteran foodies insist that the water of Taihu Lake breeds the best gorgon seeds.

Contact the writer at xujunqian@chinadaily.com.cn