It's Chinese New Year! Celebrating the Delicious Fruits Treasured In the Festivities.

The Chinese calendar is based primarily on the phases of the moon which is why this celebration is also called the Lunar New Year. The new year usually begins on the second new moon after the winter solstice. This year it begins on January 22nd and ends on February 5th. It is believed that the Chinese have celebrated the new year for about 3,500 years. But the first reference to it came from a Chinese agronomist during the Han Dynasty named Cui Shi. He wrote a book on agriculture called Simin Yeuling sometime during the second century A.D. So today we welcome back a very honored guest on the show, Robert Schueller of Melissas World Variety Produce and recognized “Produce Expert.” Robert is going to tell us all about his favorite Asian fruits and veggies today and we will talk about how some of them are used in the Chinese New Year celebrations.