Shōman (小満): Grain Buds
Plants grow thick and everything gradually fills out.
| Year | Date and time (Japan Standard Time) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | May 21, 2025 (Wed) 3:55 |
| 2026 | May 21, 2026 (Thu) 9:37 |
| 2027 | May 21, 2027 (Fri) 15:18 |
Times are found from the sun's apparent longitude (Japan Standard Time).
What Shōman means
Shōman is a chūki (中気, “middle”) term and falls in the middle of the Snake month. In the old lunisolar calendar, the month containing Shōman was the 4th month.
Customs and seasonal food around Shōman
Barley ripens, a season called “barley autumn”. In season: horse mackerel and snow peas.
The 72 kō of Shōman
Each solar term is divided again into three periods of about five days, the 72 kō (七十二候, “microseasons”). The names here follow the 1874 Ryakuhon-reki almanac. The first person to adapt the Chinese names to Japan's own climate was the astronomer Shibukawa Harumi, in the Jōkyō calendar of 1685.
| Kō | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | 蚕起食桑 | Silkworms feast on mulberry |
| 2nd | 紅花栄 | Safflowers bloom |
| 3rd | 麦秋至 | Barley ripens |
1st kō: Silkworms feast on mulberry (蚕起食桑)
Silkworms eat mulberry leaves voraciously and grow. This kō replaced the Senmyō calendar's “sow thistle flowers”. Silk was once one of Japan's most important industries, and farmers respectfully called their silkworms o-kaiko-sama.
2nd kō: Safflowers bloom (紅花栄)
Safflowers are in full bloom. This kō replaced the Senmyō calendar's “delicate grasses wither”. Safflower was prized for lipstick and dye, and in the Edo period the Mogami area of Dewa (now Yamagata) was famous for it, though the real peak of flowering comes a little later.
3rd kō: Barley ripens (麦秋至)
Barley ripens and is ready to harvest. “Autumn” here means harvest time, so early summer is called “barley autumn”. The phrase comes from the Book of Rites, and Japan adopted it as a kō name. Golden barley fields swaying in the wind are a sight of the season, harvested before the rainy season.