Tag: Mediterranean Basin

Asplenium ceterach

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Botanical Name : Asplenium ceterach
Family: Aspleniaceae
Genus: Asplenium
Species: A. ceterach
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Pteridophyta
Class: Pteridopsida
Order: Blechnales

Synonyms : Ceterach officinarum,Scaly Fern. Finger Fern. Miltwaste. Ceterach (Arabian).Ceterach officinarum DC.

Common Names :Rustyback, Scale Fern

Habitat : This species is found in Western and Central Europe, including the Mediterranean region. It is associated with fissures in carbonate rocks and also grows on the mortar of stone and brick walls.

Description,

Asplenium ceterach is a FERN growing to 0.2 m (0ft 8in). The seeds ripen from Apr to October.
Rhizome: erect, branching, scales clathrate.

Frond: 15 cm high by 2 cm wide, evergreen, monomorphic, blade/stipe ratio: 8:1.

Stipe: green, from base all up the rachis, scaly, vascular bundles: 2 C-shaped, back to back, uniting to 1 upwards to an X-shape.

Blade: pinnatifid, lanceolate, leathery, deep green upper surface, scales dense, light brown, entirely covering the lower surface.

Pinnae: 6 to 12 pair, alternate; margins entire or sometimes irregularly crenate, slightly bending upwards, revealing the scales; veins netted, veins closing near the margins, not visible without removing the scales.

Sori: linear, along veins, indusium: vestigial, replaced by scales, sporangia: dark brown, maturity: late summer, then overwintering to maturity early .
Dimensionality: a rosette, fairly flat on the ground.
CLICL & SEE THE PICTURES

Cultivation:
A calcicole plant, it requires a freely draining but moist alkaline soil. It tolerates full sun but prefers a position with at least part-day shade and also grows in deep shade. Plants can be grown in old brick walls. A very ornamental plant. Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer.

Propagation:
Spores – best sown as soon as they are ripe on the surface of a humus-rich sterilized soil. Keep the compost moist, preferably by putting a plastic bag over the pot. Germinates in spring. Spring sown spores germinate in 1 – 3 months at 15°c. Pot on small clumps of plantlets as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow them on in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse. Keep them humid until they are well established. When they are at least 15cm tall, plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer

Medicinal Uses:
This Fern used also to be called ‘Miltwaste,’ because it was said to cure disorders of the milt or spleen, for which it was much recommended by the Ancients. Probably this virtue has been attributed to the plant because the lobular milt-like shape of its leaf resembles the form of the spleen. The name of the genus, Asplenium, is derived from the Greek word for the spleen, for which the various species originally assigned to the genus were thought to have curative powers. This particular species was used to cure an enlarged spleen. It was also used as a pectoral and as an aperient in obstructions of the viscera, and an infusion of the leaves was prescribed for gravel. Meyrick considered that a decoction of the whole plant was efficacious, if persevered in, for removing all obstructions of the liver and spleen. Pliny considered that it caused barrenness.

The whole plant is antitussive and diuretic. It is widely used in the Mediterranean to treat gravel in the urine and is also used with other mucilaginous plants to treat bronchial complaints. The taste is very bitter and needs to be sweetened with other herbs such as liquorice. The plant is harvested from late spring to summer and can be dried for later use. Some caution should be employed in its use since it has not been fully tested.

Known Hazards: Although no reports of toxicity is comonly found for this species, a number of ferns contain carcinogens so some caution is advisable. Many ferns also contain thiaminase, an enzyme that robs the body of its vitamin B complex. In small quantities this enzyme will do no harm to people eating an adequate diet that is rich in vitamin B, though large quantities can cause severe health problems. The enzyme is destroyed by heat or thorough drying, so cooking the plant will remove the thiaminase

Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.

Resources:
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/f/ferns-08.html#lad
http://hardyfernlibrary.com/ferns/listSpecies.cfm?Auto=149
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asplenium_ceterach

http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Asplenium+ceterach

Tags Asplenium, Asplenium ceterach, Augustin Pyramus de Candolle, Central Europe, Common Name, Fern, Leaf, Mediterranean Basin

Herbs & Plants

Citrullus colocynthis

Botanical Name :Citrullus colocynthis
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Genus: Citrullus
Species: C. colocynthis
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Cucurbitales

Common Names: colocynth, bitter apple, bitter cucumber, desert gourd, egusi, or vine of Sodom (Sanskrit: Gavakshi Indarvaruni ,

Habitat :Citrullus colocynthis : is native to the Mediterranean Basin and Asia, especially Turkey , Nubia and Trieste.

Description:
Citrullus colocynthis is a perennial plant.It resembles a common watermelon vine but bears small, hard fruits with a bitter pulp. It originally bore the scientific name Colocynthis citrullus, but is now classified as Citrullus colocynthis.
The Colocynth collected from the Maritime Plain between the mountains of Palestine and the Mediterranean, is mainly shipped from Jaffa and known as Turkish Colocynth. This is the best variety.

click to see

CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES

Roots and stems:
The roots are large, fleshy and perennial leading to a high survival rate thanks to the long tap root. The vine-like stems spread in all directions for a few meters looking for something to climb over. If present, shrubs and herbs are preferred and climbed by means of axiliary branching tendrils.

Leaves:
Very similar to watermelon leaves: they are palmed, angular with 3-7 divided lobes.

Flowers:...click to see
The flowers are yellow and solitary in the axes of leaves and are borne by yellow-greenish peduncles. Each has a subcampanulated five-lobed corolla and a five-parted calyx. They are monoecious therefore the male (stamens) and the female reproductive parts (pistils and ovary) are borne in different flowers on the same plant. The male flowers’ calyx is shorter than the corolla. They have 5 stamens, 4 of which are coupled and 1 is single with monadelphous anther. The female flowers have 3 staminoids and a 3-carpels ovary. The two sexes are distinguishable by observing the globular and hairy inferior ovary of the female flowers.

Fruits: click to see….>...(1)….(2)…..(3).
The fruit is smooth, spheric with a 5–10 cm diameter and extremely bitter at taste. The calyx englobe the yellow-green fruit which becomes marble (yellow stripes) at maturity. The mesocarp is filled with a soft, dry and spongy white pulp, in which the seeds are embedded. Each of the 3 carpels bears 6 seeds. Each plant produces 15 to 30 fruits.

Seeds:
The seeds are grey and 5 mm long and 3 mm wide. They are edible but similarly bitter, nutty-flavored and rich in fat and protein. They are eaten whole or used as an oilseed. The oil content of the seeds is 17–19% (w/w), consisting of 67–73% linoleic acid, 10–16% oleic acid, 5–8% stearic acid, and 9–12% palmitic acid. It is estimated that the oil yield is approximately 400 L/hectare. In addition, the seeds contain a higher amount of arginine, tryptophan and the sulfur-containing amino

Cultivation:
Citrullus colocynthis is a perennial plant that can propagate both by generative and vegetative means. However, seed germination is poor due to the extreme xeric conditions, therefore the vegetative propagation is more common and successful in nature. In the Indian arid zone the growth takes place between January and October but the most favorable period for the vegetative growth is during summer, which coincides with the rainy season. The growth declines as soon as the rains and the temperature decrease and almost stops during the cold and dry months of December and January. Colocynth prefers sandy soils and is a good example of good water management which may be useful also on research to better understand how desert plants react to water stress. To enhance production, an organic fertilizer can be applied. Colocynth is also commonly cultivated together with cassava (intercropping) in Nigeria.

Cultivated colocynth suffers of climatic stress and diseases such as cucumber mosaic virus, melon mosaic virus, Fusarium wilt, etc. as any other crop. To improve it, a relatively new protocol for regeneration[disambiguation needed] has been developed with the aim of incorporating disease and stress resistance to increase yield potential and security avoiding interspecific hybridization barriers.

Constituents: The pulp contains Colocynthin, extractive, a fixed oil, a resinous substance insoluble in ether, gum, pectic acid or pectin, calcium and magnesium phosphates, lignin and water.

Medicinal Action and Uses:

Dried pulp of unripe fruit is used medicinally for its drastic purgative and hydragogue cathartic action on the intestinal tract. When the fruit is ripe its pulp dries to form a powder used as a bitter medicine and drastic purgative. So strong that it is mostly used only in combination with other herbs. The pulp or leaves is a folk remedy for cancerous tumors. A decoction of the whole plant, made in juice of fennel, is said to help indurations of the liver. Roots may also be used as purgative against ascites, for jaundice, urinary diseases, rheumatism, and for snake-poison. The colocynth is also used for amenorrhea, ascites, bilious disorders, cancer, fever, jaundice, leukemia, rheumatism, snakebite, tumors (especially of the abdomen), and urogenital disorders. The plant figures into remedies for cancer, carcinoma, endothelioma, leukemia, corns, tumors of the liver and spleen, even the eye.

It is seldom prescribed alone. It is of such irritant nature that severe pain is caused if the powdered drug be applied to the nostrils; it has a nauseous, bitter taste and is usually given in mixture form with the tinctures of podophylum and belladonna. Colocynth fruits broken small are useful for keeping moth away from furs, woollens, etc

Known Hazards: It is a powerful drastic hydragogue cathartic producing, when given in large doses, violent griping with, sometimes, bloody discharges and dangerous inflammation of the bowels. Death has resulted from a dose of 1 1/2 teaspoonsful of the powder.

Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citrullus_colocynthis
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/a/apple046.html

http://www.herbnet.com/Herb%20Uses_AB.htm

Tags Agriculture, Fruit, Medicinal Action, Mediterranean, Mediterranean Basin, Ovary (plants), Plant, Seed

Herbs & Plants

Arbutus unedo

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Botanical Name :Arbutus unedo
Family: Ericaceae
Genus: Arbutus
Species: A. unedo
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Ericales

Common Nanmes: Strawberry tree, occasionally cane apple,Irish strawberry tree” or “Killarney strawberry tree”

Habitat :Arbutus unedo is native to the Mediterranean region and western Europe north to western France and Ireland. Due to its presence in South West Ireland.

Description:
Arbutus unedo grows to 5–10 m tall, rarely up to 15 m, with a trunk diameter of up to 80 cm.

The leaves are dark green and glossy, 5–10 cm (2–4 in) long and 2–3 cm (0.8–1.2 in) broad, with a serrated margin.

The hermaphrodite flowers are white (rarely pale pink), bell-shaped, 4–6 mm diameter, produced panicles of 10–30 together in autumn. They are pollinated by bees.

Bloom Color: Pink, White. Main Bloom Time: Early fall, Early winter, Late fall, Late winter, Mid fall, Mid winter. Form: Rounded.

click to see..>...…(01)......(1).…....(2).…..(3).…..(4)…...(5).….

The fruit is a red berry, 1–2 cm diameter, with a rough surface, maturing 12 months at the same time as the next flowering. The fruit is edible, though many people find it bland and meally; the name ‘unedo’ is explained by Pliny the Elder as being derived from unum edo “I eat one”, which may seem an apt response to the flavour.

When eaten in quantities this fruit is said to be narcotic, and the wine made from it in Spain has the same property.
The tree is common in the Mediterranean region, and the fruit was known to the ancients, but according to Pliny (who gave the tree the name of Arbutus) was not held in much esteem, as the name implies (un ede=one 1 eat), the fruits being considered so unpalatable, that no one tasting them for the first time would be tempted to repeat the experiment. Nevertheless, there is some evidence that at one time the fruit was an article of diet with the ancients. Horace praises the tree for its shade and Ovid for its loads of ‘blushing fruit.’ Virgil recommends the young shoots as winter food for goats and for basket-work.

Gerard speaks of it in his time as growing in ‘some few gardens,’ and says, ‘the fruit being ripe is of a gallant red colour, in taste somewhat harsh, and in a manner without any relish, of which thrushes and blackbirds do feed in winter .’

In Spain, a sugar and spirit have been extracted from the fruit and a wine made from it in Corsica.

In the neighbourhood of Algiers it forms hedges, and in Greece and Spain the bark has been used for tanning. The wood of the tree makes good charcoal.
Cultivation:
Landscape Uses:Container, Espalier, Pest tolerant, Hedge, Standard, Specimen. Requires a nutrient-rich well-drained moisture-retentive soil in sun or semi-shade and shelter from cold drying winds, especially when youn. Grows well in heavy clay soils and in dry soils. Most species in this genus require a lime-free soil but this species is fairly lime tolerant. Succeeds in fairly exposed maritime positions[166, 200]. A tree in a very exposed position at Rosewarne in N. Cornwall was looking rather tattered in April 1987 but it was 4.5 metres tall and carrying a very good crop of immature fruit[K]. Tolerates industrial pollution. Plants have withstood temperatures down to -16°c without injury at Kew. They grow very well in S.W. England, fruiting well in Cornwall. Plants resent root disturbance and are best placed in their final positions whilst young. Give them some protection in their first winter. The strawberry tree flowers in November and December, the fruit takes 12 months to ripen and so the tree carries both mature fruit and flowers at the same time and is incredibly beautiful at this time. The flowers have a soft honey scent. There are a number of named varieties developed for their ornamental value. ‘Elfin King’, ‘Croomei’ and ‘Rubra’ are all small forms that fruit well when smal. The variety ‘Rubra’ was 1.2 metres tall at Kew in late 1990 and was laden down with fruits and flowers. ‘Elfin King’ only reaches a height of 1 metre, comes into bearing when young and fruits well. It is ideal for container culture. ‘Croomei’ is said to be a more reliable fruiting form. Special Features:Attracts birds, Not North American native, Attractive flowers or blooms.

Propagation:
Seed – best surface sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe. Stored seed should be soaked for 5 – 6 days in warm water and then surface sown in a shady position in a greenhouse. Do not allow the compost to become dry. 6 weeks cold stratification helps. The seed usually germinates well in 2 – 3 months at 20°c. Seedlings are prone to damp off, they are best transplanted to individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and should be kept well ventilated. Grow them on in a greenhouse for their first winter and then plant out in late spring after the last expected frosts. Basal cuttings in late winter. Cuttings of mature wood of the current season’s growth, November/December in a frame. Poor percentage. Layering of young wood – can take 2 years.
Edible Uses:
Fruit – raw or cooked. Sweet but insipid. The Latin name ‘unedo’ means ‘I eat one (only)’ and suggests that the fruit is not very palatable, though another report says that the fruit is so delicious that a person only needs to eat one. It does have a somewhat gritty skin, but the fruit itself has the texture of a lush tropical fruit and has a delicate pleasant flavour. For those people with sensitive taste buds, this is a fruit that can be enjoyed when eaten in moderate quantities. The fruit contains about 20% sugars and can be used to make delicious and nourishing jams and preserves. It is ripe in November/December and is about 15mm in diameter. When fully ripe it falls from the tree and so it is advisable to grow the plant in short grass in order to cushion the fall of the fruit.

Medicinal Uses:
Antiseptic; Astringent; Diuretic.
The strawberry tree is little used in herbalism, though it does deserve modern investigation. All parts of the plant contain ethyl gallate, a substance that possesses strong antibiotic activity against the Mycobacterium bacteria. The leaves, bark and root are astringent and diuretic. They are also a renal antiseptic and so are of use in the treatment of affections of the urinary system such as cystitis and urethritis. Their astringent action makes them of use in the treatment of diarrhoea and dysentery and, like many other astringent plants, a gargle can be made for treating sore and irritated throats. The leaves are gathered in the summer and dried for later use. The flowers are weakly diaphoretic.

Other Uses:

Tannin is obtained from the leaves, bark and fruit. The bark contains 45% tannin. Wood – used for turning, Greek flutes etc. It makes a good charcoal.
Arbutus unedo serves as a bee plant for honey production, and the fruits are food for birds. The fruits are also used to make jams, beverages, and liqueurs (such as the Portuguese medronho, a type of strong brandy).

The Garden of Earthly Delights, a painting by Hieronymus Bosch, was originally listed by José de Sigüenza, in the inventory of the Spanish Crown as La Pintura del Madroño – “The Painting of the Strawberry Tree“.

The tree makes up part of the Coat of arms of Madrid (El oso y el madroño, The Bear and the Strawberry Tree) of the city of Madrid, Spain. In the center of the city (Puerta del Sol) there is a statue of a bear eating the fruit of the Madroño tree. The image appears on city crests, taxi cabs, man-hole covers, and other city infrastructure. The fruit of the Madroño tree ferments on the tree if left to ripen, so some of the bears become drunk from eating the fruits.

Disclaimer : The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplement, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.

Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbutus_unedo
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/a/arbut053.html
http://www.pfaf.org/user/plant.aspx?latinname=Arbutus+unedo

Tags 79, Acetic acid, Al-Qaeda, Alexander the Great, Ancient history, Ancient Rome, Arbutus, Arbutus unedo, Argenteuil, Fruit, Garden of Earthly Delights, José de Sigüenza, Madrid, Mediterranean Basin, Mount Vesuvius, Pliny the Elder, Rome, Spain

Herbs & Plants

Olive

Post author By Mukul
Post date August 17, 2013
1 Comment on Olive

Botanical Name :Olea europea
Family: Oleaceae
Genus: Olea
Species: O. europaea
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Lamiales

Common Name ::Olive
Habitat :Olive is native to the Mediterranean, Asia and Africa.

Description:
The olive tree, Olea europaea, is an evergreen tree or shrub. It is short and squat, and rarely exceeds 8–15 metres (26–49 ft) in height. However, the Pisciottana, a unique variety comprising 40,000 trees found only in the area around Pisciotta in the Campania region of southern Italy often exceeds 8–15 metres (26–49 ft) with correspondingly large trunk diameters. The silvery green leaves are oblong, measuring 4–10 centimetres (1.6–3.9 in) long and 1–3 centimetres (0.39–1.2 in) wide. The trunk is typically gnarled and twisted.

Click to see the pictures…>…….(01).....(1).…….(2).…....(3)..….(4).….

The small white, feathery flowers, with ten-cleft calyx and corolla, two stamens and bifid stigma, are borne generally on the previous year’s wood, in racemes springing from the axils of the leaves.

The fruit is a small drupe 1–2.5 centimetres (0.39–0.98 in) long, thinner-fleshed and smaller in wild plants than in orchard cultivars. Olives are harvested in the green to purple stage. Canned black olives may contain chemicals (usually ferrous sulfate) that turn them black artificially.

Olea europaea contains a seed commonly referred to in American English as a pit or a rock, and in British English as a stone.
There are dozens of ancient olive trees throughout Israel and Palestine whose age has earlier been estimated to be 1,600–2,000 years old; however, these estimates could not be supported by current scientific practices. Ancient trees include two giant olive trees in Arraba and five trees in Deir Hanna, both in the Galilee region, which have been determined to be over 3,000 years old,[35] although there is no available data to support the credibility of the study that produced these age estimates and as such the 3000 years age estimate can not be considered valid. All seven trees continue to produce olives. Several trees in the Garden of Gethsemane (from the Hebrew words “gat shemanim” or olive press) in Jerusalem are claimed to date back to the purported time of Jesus.

Some Italian olive trees are believed to date back to Roman times, although identifying progenitor trees in ancient sources is difficult. A tree located in Santu Baltolu di Carana (municipality of Luras) in Sardinia, Italy, named with respect as the Ozzastru by the inhabitants of the region, is claimed to be 3,000 to 4,000 years old according to different studies.[citation needed] There are several other trees of about 1,000 years old within the same garden. The 15th-century trees of Olivo della Linza located in Alliste province of Lecce in Puglia were noted by Bishop Ludovico de Pennis during his pastoral visit to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nardò-Gallipoli in 1452

Click to see :-
*Olive tree, Karystos, Euboia, Greece
*Olive tree older than 1,500 years
*An ancient olive tree in Pelion, Greece
*Olive tree in Bar, Montenegro which is over 2,000 years old

Subspecies:
There are six natural subspecies of Olea europaea distributed over a wide range:
*Olea europaea subsp. europaea (Mediterranean Basin)
*Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata (from South Africa throughout East Africa, Arabia to South West China)
*Olea europaea subsp. guanchica (Canaries)
*Olea europaea subsp. cerasiformis (Madeira)
*Olea europaea subsp. maroccana Morocco
*Olea europaea subsp. laperrinei (Algeria, Sudan, Niger)

The subspecies maroccana and cerasiformis are respectively hexaploid and tetraploid

Cultivation: The earliest evidence for the domestication of olives comes from the Chalcolithic Period archaeological site of Teleilat Ghassul in what is today modern Jordan.

Farmers in ancient times believed that olive trees would not grow well if planted more than a certain distance from the sea; Theophrastus gives 300 stadia (55.6 km or 34.5 mi) as the limit. Modern experience does not always confirm this, and, though showing a preference for the coast, they have long been grown further inland in some areas with suitable climates, particularly in the southwestern Mediterranean (Iberia, northwest Africa) where winters are mild.

Olives are now cultivated in many regions of the world with Mediterranean climates, such as South Africa, Chile, Peru, Australia, and California and in areas with temperate climates such as New Zealand, under irrigation in the Cuyo region in Argentina which has a desert climate. They are also grown in the Córdoba Province, Argentina, which has a temperate climate with rainy summers and dry winters (Cwa). The climate in Argentina changes the external characteristics of the plant but the fruit keeps its original features. The northernmost olive grove is placed in Anglesey, an island off the north west coast of Wales, in the United Kingdom: but it is too early to say if the growing will be successful, having been planted in 2006.

Edible Uses: click to see
Olive oil for heart healthy foods is a monounsaturated oil that is widely used in healthy cooking, and as a salad dressing. Even the extremely conservative FDA allows suppliers of virgin olive oil to carry heart health claims on there consumer packaging. Some care must be taken to not expose virgin olive oil to high heat when cooking, as this can cause heat damage that break down the oil. Some in the health food community caution overheating causes olive oil to have harmful side effects. click to see
Traditional fermentation and curing:-
Green olives and black olives are typically washed thoroughly in water to remove oleuropein, a bitter glycoside.

Green olives are allowed to ferment before being packed in a brine solution. American black (“California”) olives are not fermented, which is why they taste milder than green olives.
click to see an olive vat room used for curing.
In addition to oleuropein, freshly picked olives are not palatable because of phenolic compounds. (One exception is the throubes olive, which can be eaten fresh.) Traditional cures use the natural microflora on the fruit to aid in fermentation, which leads to three important outcomes: the leaching out and breakdown of oleuropein and phenolic compounds; the creation of lactic acid, which is a natural preservative; and a complex of flavoursome fermentation products. The result is a product which will store with or without refrigeration.

Curing can employ lye, salt, brine, or fresh water. Salt cured olives (also known as dry cured) are packed in plain salt for at least a month, which produces a salty and wrinkled olive. Brine cured olives are kept in a salt water solution for a few days or more. Fresh water cured olives are soaked in a succession of baths, changed daily. Green olives are usually firmer than black olives.

Olives can also be flavoured by soaking in a marinade or pitted and stuffed. Popular flavourings include herbs, spices, olive oil, chili, lemon zest, lemon juice, wine, vinegar, and juniper berries; popular stuffings include feta cheese, blue cheese, pimento, garlic cloves, jalapeños, almonds, and anchovies. Sometimes, the olives are lightly cracked with a hammer or a stone to trigger fermentation. This method of curing adds a slightly bitter taste

Medicinal Uses:
Beauty * Cancer Prevention * Cardiovascular * Culinary/Kitchen * Pain Relief * Skin Care
Properties: * AntiCancer * Antifungal * Antiscrofulous * Astringent * Cholagogue
Parts Used: oil of the fruit, leaves, bark
Constituents: oleuropein, flavonoids, and triterpenes

Olive oil is very stable in comparison with many other nut and vegetable oils and is often used to make medicinal herbal oils using herbs such as comfrey, arnica, garlic and many others. Olive is more than just a stable base oil for making these oil infusions, it adds its own analgesic and antibacterial properties to the mix as well. 19

With evidence mounting about the damage of diets high saturated fats, and conversely the heart healthy benefits of monounsaturated oils like olive, it becomes abundantly clear which oils to choose for healthy cooking and salad dressings. If you cannot afford olive oil use canola or safflower oils, both of which are much better than the lower grade corn oils. 20

Extracts from the leaf of the olive tree are also used to lower fevers, and olive leaf poultices are among the oldest therapies for infections of the skin. The slender, feather shaped leaves have antimicrobial and antioxidant medicinal properties that kill germs and disinfect wounds. 21 Olive leaf extracts have also been studied for use in diabetes, and cancer prevention.

Other Uses:
The olive tree, Olea europaea, has been cultivated for olive oil, fine wood, olive leaf, and the olive fruit.

Resources:
http://www.anniesremedy.com/herb_detail85.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olea_europea

Tags Africa, Asia, Cuyo, Deir Hanna, Greece, Mediterranean, Mediterranean Basin, Olea, Olive, Olive oil

Home remedies

Sisymbrium altissimum

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Botanical Name :Sisymbrium altissimum
Family: Brassicaceae
Genus: Sisymbrium
Species: S. altissimum
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Brassicales

Synonyms: S. pannonicum. S. sinapistrum.

Common Name :Jim Hill mustard, after James J. Hill, a Canadian-American railroad magnate, Tall mustard, Tumble mustard, tumbleweed mustard, tall sisymbrium, and tall hedge mustard.

Habitat :Sisymbrium altissimum is native to the western part of the Mediterranean Basin in Europe and Northern Africa and is widely naturalized throughout most of the world, including all of North America. It was probably introduced into North America by a contaminant crop seed. The plant grows in soils of all textures, even sand.

Description:
Sisymbrium altissimum is an annual herb L growing to 1 m (3ft 3in). Stems is erect, branched distally, (2-)4-12(-16) dm, sparsely to densely hirsute basally, glabrous or glabrate distally. Basal leaves rosulate; petiole 1-10(-15) cm; blade broadly oblanceolate, oblong, or lanceolate (in outline), (2-)5-20(-35) cm × (10-)20-80(-100) mm, margins pinnatisect, pinnatifid, or runcinate; lobes (3-)4-6(-8) on each side, oblong or lanceolate, smaller than terminal lobe, margins entire, dentate, or lobed. Cauline leaves similar to basal; distalmost blade with linear to filiform lobes. Fruiting pedicels usually divaricate, rarely ascending, stout, nearly as wide as fruit, (4-)6-10(-13) mm. Flowers: sepals ascending or spreading, oblong, (cucullate), 4-6 × 1-2 mm; petals spatulate, (5-)6-8(-10) × 2.5-4 mm, claw 3.5-6 mm; filaments 2-6 mm; anthers oblong, 1.5-2.2 mm.

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The plant germinates in winter or early spring. The blooming time is lengthy, and after maturity the plant forms a tumbleweed.

It is not frost tender. It is in flower from Jun to August, and the seeds ripen from Jul to September. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. Fruits narrowly linear, usually straight, smooth, stout.

Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers dry or moist soil.

Cultivation:
Succeeds in most soils.

Propagation:
Seed – sow spring or autumn in situ.

Edible Uses:
Edible Parts: Leaves; Seed.
Edible Uses: Condiment.

Young leaves and shoots – raw or cooked. A somewhat hot flavour, they can be used as a flavouring in salads or cooked as a potherb. Seed – ground into a powder and used as a gruel or as a mustard-like flavouring in soups etc.

Medicinal Uses:

Antiscorbutic; Astringent.

The leaves and flowers are antiscorbutic and astringent.The leaves and flowers have medicinal properties that has been used to cause tissue to contract. They also contain an agent that is effective against scurvy.

Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sisymbrium_altissimum
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Sisymbrium+altissimum
http://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/taxa/index.php?taxon=1151
http://www.herbnet.com/Herb%20Uses_LMN.htm