Because Yunnan spans several climates, its markets do not have a single season. In the temperate centre around Kunming, spring brings cherries, strawberries and loquats, summer brings peaches, plums and the wild mushrooms that the province is famous for, and autumn brings pears, grapes, pomegranates and walnuts. In the tropical south along the Mekong, the calendar is completely different, and the markets sell fruit that the rest of China buys imported.
The tropical south
Xishuangbanna and the valleys towards the Lao and Myanmar borders grow mangoes, lychees, longan, rambutan, mangosteen, pineapple, papaya, passion fruit, banana in many varieties, pomelo and increasingly avocado and durian, the last of which China has begun to produce commercially in a serious way. Market stalls sell fruit cut and bagged for immediate eating, with chilli-salt or a sour-sweet powder to dip it in - a habit that surprises visitors and makes sense once you have tried it. There is also a strong trade in dried and preserved fruit, and in the tropical herbs and vegetables used by Dai kitchens: lemongrass, bamboo shoots, banana flower, and a range of leaves and shoots with no English names.
The central markets
Kunming's wholesale and neighbourhood markets are the place to see the province's incredible range of fruit and vegetables assembled: dozens of varieties of mushroom in season, several kinds of citrus, fresh walnuts and chestnuts, Yunnan ham cut to order, and unfamiliar greens sold by the bundle. Prices are low and the quality is high, and because the markets serve local households rather than visitors, there is nothing staged about them. Buying fruit and eating it in your hotel room is one of the cheapest pleasures of travelling in Yunnan.
Practical notes
Markets are busiest in the early morning and, in the tropical towns, in the evening. Cash is still useful at the smallest stalls though most now take mobile payment. If you want to try the wild mushrooms, buy them in a market where a professional is selling to restaurants and have your hotel kitchen cook them, since some species must be cooked thoroughly and identifications made by amateurs are the usual cause of poisoning. Fruit, and especially fresh mushrooms, cannot be taken out of the country, so plan to eat rather than to import.
