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Herbs & Plants

Lysimachia nemorum

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Botanical Name : Lysimachia nemorum
Family: Primulaceae
Genus: Lysimachia
Species: L. nemorum
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Ericales

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Synonyms:

*Anagallis nemorum (L.) Büscher & G.H.Loos
*Ephemerum nemorum (L.) Rchb.
*Lerouxia nemorum (L.) Mérat
*Lysimachia azorica Hook.
*Lysimachusa nemorum (L.) Pohl

Common Name: Yellow Pimpernel

Habitat : Lysimachia nemorum is native to Western and central Europe, including Britain, from Norway to Spain, east to the Carpathians. It grows in damp shady places, woodland.
Description:
Lysimachia nemorum is an evergreen Perennial growing to 0.5 m (1ft 8in). It is a low creeping hairless plant, leaves opposite, pale green, rounded to lanceolate, pointed. Flowers bright yellow, saucer shaped 10 to 15 mm solitary, long stalked with slender sepal teeth.

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It is in flower from May to September. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees, flies, self.The plant is self-fertile.
Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil. Suitable pH: acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist or wet soil.

 

Cultivation:
An easily grown plant, succeeding in a moist or wet loamy soil in sun or partial shade. Hardy to at least -25°c. Most species in this genus seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits.

Propagation:
Seed – sow spring or autumn in a cold frame. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer. Division in spring or autumn. Very easy, larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the spring. Basal cuttings, March to April in a cold frame. Harvest the shoots with plenty of underground stem when they are about 8 – 10cm above the ground. Pot them up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer.
Medicinal Uses: Lysimachia nemorumn is an astringent herb, yellow pimpernel is used as a wound herb to staunch bleeding.

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:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysimachia_nemorum
http://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/yellow-pimpernel
http://www.pfaf.org/User/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Lysimachia+nemorum

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Herbs & Plants

Alchemilla xanthochlora

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Botanical Name: Alchemilla xanthochlora
Family: Rosaceae
Subfamily:Rosoideae
Tribe: Potentilleae
Genus: Alchemilla
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Rosales

Synonym(s):
*Alchemilla gottsteiniana Opiz
*Alchemilla pratensis Opiz
*Alchemilla sylvestris auct.
*Alchemilla vulgaris auct.
*Alchemilla mollis.
* Alchemilla speciosa.
*Alchemilla xanthochlora.

Common Names: Lady’s Mantle, Dewcup, Stellaria, Lion’s Foot, Nine Hooks

Habitat : Alchemilla xanthochlora is native to Europe, including Britain, from Norway to Spain and east to Poland. It grows on the moist meadows, open woods, pastures and also on rock ledges in mountainous areas.

Description:
Alchemilla xanthochlora is a perennial plant, growing to 0.3 m (1ft) by 0.3 m (1ft in).It has cupped leaves that hold water droplets after a rain, and the frothy sprays of dainty yellow flowers that bloom in late spring and early summer.

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It is not frost tender. It is in flower from Jun to September, and the seeds ripen from Aug to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Apomictic.The plant is self-fertile. This is a wonderful companion plant to day lilies or roses.
Cultivation:
Easily grown in ordinary soil in sun or part shade. Prefers a well-drained neutral or basic soil. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Succeeds in dry shade. An aggregate species that includes A. mollis and A. speciosa. This plant is listed as A. xanthochlora. Rothm. in ‘Flora Europaea’. Plants seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits.
Propagation:
Seed – sow spring in a cold frame. The seed usually germinates in 3 – 4 weeks at 16°c. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on a cold frame for their first winter, planting out in late spring or early summer. Division in spring or autumn. The divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions, though we find it best to pot them up and keep them in a sheltered position until they are growing away well.

Edible Uses:
Edible Parts: Leaves; Root.
Edible Uses:

Young leaves – raw or cooked. A dry, somewhat astringent flavour. They can be mixed with the leaves of Polygonum bistorta and Polygonum persicaria then used in making a bitter herb pudding called ‘Easter ledger’ which is eaten during Lent. Root – cooked. An astringent taste. The leaves are used commercially in the blending of tea.

Medicinal Uses:
Alterative; Antirheumatic; Astringent; Diuretic; Emmenagogue; Febrifuge; Sedative; Styptic; Tonic; Vulnerary.

Alchemilla xanthochlora has a long history of herbal use, mainly as an external treatment for cuts and wounds, and internally in the treatment of diarrhoea and a number of women’s ailments, especially menstrual problems. The herb is alterative, antirheumatic, astringent, diuretic, emmenagogue, febrifuge, sedative, styptic, tonic and vulnerary[. The leaves and flowering stems are best harvested as the plant comes into flower and can then be dried for later use. The fresh root has similar and perhaps stronger properties to the leaves, but is less often used. The plant is rich in tannin and so is an effective astringent and styptic, commonly used both internally and externally in the treatment of wounds. It helps stop vaginal discharge and is also used as a treatment for excessive menstruation and to heal lesions after pregnancy. Prolonged use can ease the discomfort of the menopause and excessive menstruation. The freshly pressed juice is used to help heal skin troubles such as acne and a weak decoction of the plant has been used in the treatment of conjunctivitis.

Other Uses: A useful ground cover plant, though somewhat slow to spread.

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://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Alchemilla+xanthochlora
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alchemilla
http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/202919/0

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Herbs & Plants

Dactylorhiza incarnata

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Botanical Name : Dactylorhiza incarnata
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Genus: Dactylorhiza
Species: D. incarnata
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Asparagales

Synonyms: Orchis incarnata. O. latifolia. O. strictifolia.

Common Names: Marsh Orchid ,Early marsh-orchi

Habitat : Dactylorhiza incarnata is native to Europe, including Britain, north to Norway and east to W. Asia. It grows in wet meadows and marshes in rich soils.

Description:
Dactylorhiza incarnata is perennial orchid plant.The long leaves are lanceolate and, in most species, also speckled. They grow along a rather long stem which reaches a height of 70-90 cm. Leaves higher on the stem are shorter than leaves lower on the stem.

The inflorescence, compared to the length of the plant, is rather short. It consists of a compact raceme with 25-50 flowers. These develop from axillary buds. The dominant colors are all shades of pink to red, sprinkled with darker speckles.

Bent-back sides of lowest petal is best ID feature. Three kinds occur here: pink (common), purple (frequent) and red (very rare). The red ones are ssp coccinea and the purple ones are ssp pulchella. The pink ones have traditionally been regarded as ssp incarnata, and they key out to this in the books. However some experts believe that all the pink ones are a form of ssp pulchella, and this is supported by the fact that they frequently form what appears to be a single population with the purple ones…..CLICK & SEE : 

It is in flower from Jun to July. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects.
CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES: 

Edible Uses:  The root bulb  is  cooked. It is very nutritious. It is a source of ‘salep‘, a fine white to yellowish-white powder that is obtained by drying the tuber and grinding it into a powder. Salep is a starch-like substance with a sweetish taste and a faint somewhat unpleasant smell. It is said to be very nutritious and is made into a drink or can be added to cereals and used in making bread etc. One ounce of salep is said to be enough to sustain a person for a day.
Medicinal Uses:

Demulcent; Nutritive.

Salep is very nutritive and demulcent. It has been used as a diet of special value for children and convalescents, being boiled with water, flavoured and prepared in the same way as arrowroot. Rich in mucilage, it forms a soothing and demulcent jelly that is used in the treatment of irritations of the gastro-intestinal canal. One part of salep to fifty parts of water is sufficient to make a jelly. The tuber, from which salep is prepared, should be harvested as the plant dies down after flowering and setting seed .
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:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dactylorhiza_incarnata
http://plant-identification.co.uk/skye/orchidaceae/dactylorhiza-incarnata.htm
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Dactylorhiza+incarnata
http://orchids.wikia.com/wiki/Dactylorhiza

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Herbs & Plants

Rampion bellflower

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Botanical Name : Campanula rapunculus
Kingdom: Plantae
Family: Campanulaceae
Genus: Campanula
Species: C. rapunculus
Order: Asterales

Synonyms:
*Campanula elatior Hoffmanns. & Link
*Campanula lusitanica f. bracteosa (Willk.) Cout.
*Campanula lusitanica f. racemoso-paniculata (Willk.) Cout.
*Campanula lusitanica f. verruculosa (Hoffmanns. & Link) Cout.
*Campanula lusitanica var. cymoso-spicata (Willk.) Cout.
*Campanula lusitanica auct.
*Campanula verruculosa Hoffmanns. & Link

Common Names : Rampion bellflower, rampion, or rover bellflower

Habitat :Rampion bellflower is found wild in England, on gravelly roadsides and hedgebanks and in open pastures, from Stafford southwards, but it is uncertain whether it should be held as a true native in the localities in southern England, where it is now established.  This species prefers limestone soils and grows in dry meadows, cultivated beds, forests of oaks and pine trees, along roadsides and lane, at an altitude of 0–1,500 metres (0–4,900 ft) above sea level.

This plantis present in western Asia, northern Africa and in most of Europe, except Iceland, Ireland and Norway. It has been introduced in Denmark, southern Sweden and Great Britain

Description:
Rampion bellflower is a biennial (but can be made perennial) herbaceous plant reaches on average 40–80 centimetres (16–31 in) of height, with a maximum of 100 centimetres (39 in) . The stem is erect, lightly hairy, branched on the top. The basal leaves are petiolated, ovate, slightly toothed and arranged in a rosette, while the upper leaves are sessile and narrow lanceolate. The hermaphrodite flowers are clustered in a racemose inflorescence, with a bell-shaped, light blue or violet corolla, about two centimeters long. They are arranged along the stem in a fairly narrow one-sided facing cluster. The flowering period extends from May through September. The fruit is a dehiscent capsule in the form of inverted cone with many seeds. The thick root looks like a small turnip and it is edible.

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The leaves are variable, 1 to 3 inches long, the radical leaves oblong or ovate, on long stalks and slightly crenate, the stem-leaves narrow and mostly entire, or obscurely toothed. The flowers, which bloom in July and August, are about 3/4 inch long, reddish purple, blue or white, on short peduncles, forming long, simple or slightly branched panicles. The corolla is divided to about the middle into five lanceolate segments. The capsule is short and erect, opening in small lateral clefts, close under the narrow linear segments of the calyx.

Drayton names it among the vegetables and pot-herbs of the kitchen garden, in his poem Polyolbion, and there is a reference to it in the slang of Falstaff, showing how generally it was in cultivation in this country in Shakespeare’s time.

There is an Italian tradition that the possession of a rampion excites quarrels among children. The plant figures in one of Grimm’s tales, the heroine, Rapunzel, being named after it, and the whole plot is woven around the theft of rampions from a magician’s garden. In an old Calabrian tale, a maiden, uprooting a rampion in a field, discovers a staircase that leads to a palace far down in the depths of the earth.

Cultivation:
Rampion is easily cultivated and will flourish in ordinary good soil, though a moist, sandy soil suits it best.

Seeds should be sown in shallow drills, a foot apart, in May, and thinned out to 5 or 6 inches in the rows. The young plants should be moderately watered at first.

If grown for culinary use, it must not be allowed to flower, and the roots should be earthed up several inches on each side in order to blanch them. They are fit for use in November, and should be lifted then and stored in a frost-proof place.

Medicinal Action and Uses:
Gerard tells us: ‘Some affirme that the decoction of the roots are good for all inflammation of the mouth and almonds of the throte and other diseases happening in the mouth and throte, as the other Throte warts.’

An old writer states that the distilled water of the whole plant is excellent for the complexion and ‘maketh the face very splendent.’

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/r/rampio03.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campanula_rapunculus

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Herbs & Plants

Conopodium majus

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Botanical Name : Conopodium majus
Family: Apiaceae
Genus: Conopodium
Species: C. majus
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Order: Apiales

Synonyms: Bunium flexuosum – Stokes, Conopodium denudatum – Koch.

Common Name ;Pignut, Hognut, and more indirectly Saint Anthony’s nut

Habitat ;Conopodium majus is native to Europe, including Britain, from Norway to Spain, east to Italy and Corsica. It grows in  Woods, hedgerows and fields. It is never found on alkaline soils

Description:
Conopodium majus is a small herbaceous perennial common in woods, grasslands, and hedgerows across Europe. It flowers from May to June producing white flowers in compound umbels and has finely divided leaves.It has a smooth, slender, curving stem, up to 1 m high, much-divided leaves, and small, white flowers in many-rayed terminal compound umbels.

The stem terminates in a single tuber up to 20cm below ground with thin fibrous roots growing across its surface (Hather 1993). This storage organ is edible with a nutty flavour similar to chestnut and available all year round.

 

CLICK TO SEE THE PICTURE…...(01)....(1).…..(2)……..(3)..…....

It is hardy to zone 0 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from May to June, and the seeds ripen from July to August. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. The plant is self-fertile.

The rounded “nut” (inconsistently described by authorities as a tuber, corm, or root) is similar to a chestnut in its brown colour and its size (up to 25 mm in diameter), and its sweet, aromatic flavour has been compared to that of the chestnut, hazelnut, sweet potato, and Brazil nut. Palatable and nutritious, its eating qualities are widely praised, and it is popular among wild food foragers, but it remains a minor crop, due in part to its low yields and difficulty of harvest.

Cultivation:
Never found on alkaline soils in the wild. See the plants native habitat for other ideas on its cultivation needs. This species responds to cultivation by producing larger tubers. With careful selective breeding it is probably possible to produce a much more productive plant.

Propagation:
Seed – sow spring in a cold frame. Germination is usually quick and good. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and plant them out when in early summer. It is also possible to sow in situ, though this requires a lot more seed to produce the same amount of plants from a protected sowing. Division in late summer as the plant dies down.

Edible Uses:
Edible Parts: Root.

Tubers – raw or cooked. A very pleasant food with a flavour somewhat between a sweet potato and hazelnuts, with a hot aftertaste of radish. We have never detected this hot aftertaste, and feel that the flavour is reminiscent of brazil nuts. There is only one tuber on each plant, this is rather small and difficult to harvest, but the size could probably be increased by cultivation.

Medicinal Uses
The powdered roots have been recommended as a cough remedy.

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/Conopodium_majus
http://digedibles.com/database/plants.php?Conopodium+majus
http://www.herbnet.com/Herb%20Uses_OPQ.htm

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