Ancient customs rooted in marriage and fertility take place across China, sees men and women rummage about in vegetable patches
As the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, an ancient and quirky tradition has resurfaced in Taiwan, where unmarried women sneak into neighbours’ gardens to steal vegetables, believing this will help them find their ideal husband.
Known as “stealing vegetables for a groom,” or tou cai qiu lang in Chinese, it takes place on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
During the night, unmarried women, often beautifully adorned, step out under the moonlight and sneak into a neighbour’s vegetable patch.
But their goal is not a midnight snack; instead, they secretly pick spring onions or other vegetables as part of a symbolic ritual to wish for an ideal husband.
