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Herbs & Plants

Crataegus coccinoides

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Botanical Name: Crataegus coccinoides
Family: Rosaceae
Genus: Crataegus
Series: Diltatae
Kingdom:Plaantae
Order: Rosales

Common Names;Kansas hawthorn, Red hawthorn and Large-flowered cockspurthorn.

Habitat: Crataegus coccinoides is native to Central N. America – Illinois and Missouri to Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. Uncommon in Oklahoma.It grows in the dry uplands on limestone hills.

Description:
Crataegus coccinoides is a spiny large deciduous shrub or a small tree, to 4.6 m (15 ft) in height and 10 cm (4 in) in diameter. Crown broad and rounded with spreading branches. Bark dark brown and scaly. Twigs lustrous brown, glabrous; with many spines up to 5 cm (2 in) in length. Leaves alternate,simple, broadly ovate, 6-7.5 cm (2.4-3 in) long and 5-6 cm (2-2.4 in) wide, glabrous,dull dark green above, paler beneath, pubescent when young, glabrous with age, variable, either acute, rounded or narrow at base, acute at apex, serrate or doubly serrate with several shallow lobes above the middle, turning dull dark green above, paler beneath. Flowers in corymbs, glabrous, 4-7, 1.9 cm (0.75 in) wide, calyx-tube broadly obconic and glabrous; petals 5, white; styles 5; stamens 20, anthers rose colored; flowers appear in May. Fruits pomes, 2 cm (0.8 in) diameter, subglobose and terminally flattened, shiny dark red with many pale dots, pulp thick and juicy; seeds 5.

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It is in flower in May. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Midges.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 and can grow in very alkaline soils.
It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers dry moist or wet soil and can tolerate drought. The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure. It can tolerate atmospheric pollution.
Cultivation:
A very easily grown plant, it prefers a well-drained moisture retentive loamy soil but is not at all fussy. Once established, it succeeds in excessively moist soils and also tolerates drought. It grows well on a chalk soil and also in heavy clay soils. A position in full sun is best when plants are being grown for their fruit, they also succeed in semi-shade though fruit yields and quality will be lower in such a position[11, 200]. Most members of this genus succeed in exposed positions, they also tolerate atmospheric pollution. Seedling trees take from 5 – 8 years before they start bearing fruit, though grafted trees will often flower heavily in their third year. The flowers have a foetid smell somewhat like decaying fish. This attracts midges which are the main means of fertilization. When freshly open, the flowers have more pleasant scent with balsamic undertones. Hybridizes freely with other members of this genus. Seedlings should not be left in a seedbed for more than 2 years without being transplanted.
Propagation:
Seed – this is best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame, some of the seed will germinate in the spring, though most will probably take another year. Stored seed can be very slow and erratic to germinate, it should be warm stratified for 3 months at 15°c and then cold stratified for another 3 months at 4°c. It may still take another 18 months to germinate[78]. Scarifying the seed before stratifying it might reduce this time[80]. Fermenting the seed for a few days in its own pulp may also speed up the germination process. Another possibility is to harvest the seed ‘green’ (as soon as the embryo has fully developed but before the seedcoat hardens) and sow it immediately in a cold frame. If timed well, it can germinate in the spring. If you are only growing small quantities of plants, it is best to pot up the seedlings as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow them on in individual pots for their first year, planting them out in late spring into nursery beds or their final positions. When growing larger quantities, it might be best to sow them directly outdoors in a seedbed, but with protection from mice and other seed-eating creatures. Grow them on in the seedbed until large enough to plant out, but undercut the roots if they are to be left undisturbed for more than two years
Edible Uses:
Fruit – raw or cooked. Firm and sub-acid. The fruit can be used in making pies, preserves, etc, and can also be dried for later use. The fruit is borne in small clusters and is up to 17mm in diameter. There are up to five fairly large seeds in the centre of the fruit, these often stick together and so the effect is of eating a cherry-like fruit with a single seed.
Medicinal Uses:
Cardiotonic; Hypotensive.

Although no specific mention has been seen for this species, the fruits and flowers of many hawthorns are well-known in herbal folk medicine as a heart tonic and modern research has borne out this use. The fruits and flowers have a hypotensive effect as well as acting as a direct and mild heart tonic[222]. They are especially indicated in the treatment of weak heart combined with high blood pressure. Prolonged use is necessary for it to be efficacious. It is normally used either as a tea or a tincture.

Other Uses:
Wood – heavy, hard, tough, close-grained. Useful for making tool handles, mallets and other small

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/Crataegus_coccinioides
http://www.biosurvey.ou.edu/shrub/crat-coc.htm
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Crataegus+coccinoides

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Herbs & Plants

Artemisia vestita

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Botanical Name : Artemisia vestita
Family: Asteraceae
Subfamily:Asteroideae
Tribe: Anthemideae
Genus: Artemisia
Kingdom:Plantae
Order: Asterales

Common Names : Russian Wormwood

Habitat :Rtemisia vestita is native to E. Asia from Pakistan to China and Tibet. It grows on hills, rocky slopes, grasslands, shrublands and outer forest margins at elevations of 2000 – 4300 metres.

Description:
Artemisia vestita is a perennial plant, growing to 1.2 m (4ft). It is in flower from Aug to October, and the seeds ripen from Aug to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects.Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. Suitable pH: acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.

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Cultivation:
Easily grown in a well-drained circumneutral or slightly alkaline loamy soil, preferring a warm sunny dry position. Established plants are drought tolerant. Plants are longer lived, more hardy and more aromatic when they are grown in a poor dry soil. This species is closely related to A. sacrorum and A. gmelinii, it is often confused with those species. We are not sure if this plant is annual, biennial or perennial, since various reports differ. Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer.

Propagation:
Seed – surface sow from late winter to early summer in a greenhouse, making sure that the compost does not dry out. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant out in late spring or early summer. Division in spring or autumn. Basal cuttings in late spring. Harvest the young shoots when about10 – 15cm long, pot up in a lightly shaded position in a greenhouse or cold frame and plant them out when well rooted. Very easy.

Medicinal Uses:
The plant is antiphlogistic and febrifuge. Anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive effect of flavones isolated from Artemisia vestita.

Known Hazards: Although no reports of toxicity have been seen for this species, skin contact with some members of this genus can cause dermatitis or other allergic reactions in some people.

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/Artemisia_(genus)
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18721870
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Artemisia+vestita

Categories
Herbs & Plants

Veronica officinalis

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Botanical Name: Veronica officinalis
Family: Plantaginaceae/Scrophulariaceae
Genus: Veronica
Species: V. officinalis
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Lamiales

Common Names: Heath speedwell, Common gypsyweed, Common speedwell, or Paul’s betony

Habitat: Veronica officinalis is native to Europe, Eastern North America (Maryland) , and western Asia. It grows in heaths, moors, grassland, dry hedgebanks and coppices, often on dry soils

Description:
Veronica officinalis is a herbaceous perennial plant with hairy green stems 10–50 cm long that cover the ground in mats and send up short vertical shoots which bear soft violet flowers. The leaves are 1.5–5 cm long and 1–3 cm broad, and they are opposite, shortly stalked, generally about an inch long, oval and attenuated into their foot-stalks, their margins finely toothed. It flowers from May until August.The flowers are in dense, axillary, manyflowered racemes, 1 1/2 to 6 inches long, the individual flowers nearly stalkless on the main flower-stalk, their corollas only 1/6 inch across, pale blue with dark blue stripes and bearing two stamens with a very long style. The capsule is inversely heart-shaped and notched, longer than the oblong, narrow sepals. The plant is of a dull green and is generally slightly hairy, having short hairs, sometimes smooth.CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES
Cultivation:
Easily grown in a moderately fertile moisture retentive well drained soil. Prefers cool summers. Thrives in light shade or in open sunny positions.

Propagation :
Seed – sow 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. If you have sufficient quantity, the seed can be sown in situ in the autumn or the spring. Division in autumn or spring. Larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found that it is best to pot up smaller divisions and grow them on in light shade in a greenhouse or cold frame until they are growing away well. Plant them out in the summer or the following spring.

The fresh herb is faintly aromatic. After drying, it is inodorous. It has a bitterish, warm, and somewhat astringent taste.

Constituents: Enz found a bitter principle, soluble in water and alcohol, but scarcely so in ether, and precipitated by the salts of lead, but not by tannic acid; an acrid principle; red colouring matter, a variety of tannic acid, producing a green colour with ferric salts; a crystallizable, fatty acid, with malic, tartaric, citric, acetic and lactic acids; mannite; a soft, dark green bitter resin.

Mayer, of New York (in 1863), found evidences of an alkaloid and of a saponaceous principle. Vintilesco (1910) found a glucoside both in this species and in Veronica chamaedrys.

Edible Uses: A bitter tangy tea is made from the fresh flowering herb or the dried leaves. The dried leaves can be added to tea blends.

Medicinal Uses:

Alterative; Antipruritic; Antirheumatic; Astringent; Diuretic; Expectorant; Stomachic; Tonic.

This species of Veronica retained a place among our recognized remedies until a comparatively late period, and is still employed in herbal medicine.
Its leaves possess astringency and bitterness.

The leaves and roots are alterative, astringent, mildly diuretic, mildly expectorant, stomachic and tonic. They have been employed in the treatment of pectoral and nephritic complaints, haemorrhages, skin diseases and the treatment of wounds, though the plant is considered to be obsolete in modern herbalism. The leaves are harvested in the summer and dried for later use .

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/Veronica_officinalis
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/s/specom75.html
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Veronica+officinalis

Categories
Herbs & Plants

Fragaria ovalis

Botanical Name: Fragaria ovalis
Family: Rosaceae
Genus: Fragaria
Species: F. virginiana
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Rosales

Common Name : Rocky Mountain Strawberry

Habitat: Fragaria ovalis is native to South-western N. America. It grows in the coniferous forests in Arizona. Found at 2100 – 3300 metres in the Rockies.

Description:
Fragaria ovalis is a perennial plant, growing to 0.2 m (0ft 8in). It is not frost tender. It is in flower from Apr to May, and the seeds ripen from Jun to July. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects…...CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES

Cultivation:
Prefers a fertile, well-drained, moisture retentive soil in a sunny position. Tolerates semi-shade though fruit production will be reduced. Used in breeding programmes with F. x ananassa in order to convey winter hardiness and for producing ever-bearing and day-neutral varieties.

Propagation:
Seed – sow early spring in a greenhouse. The seed can take 4 weeks or more to germinate. The seedlings are very small and slow-growing at first, but then grow rapidly. Prick them out into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and plant them out during the summer. Division of runners, preferably done in July/August in order to allow the plants to become established for the following years crop. They can also be moved in the following spring if required, though should not then be allowed to fruit in their first year. The runners can be planted out direct into their permanent positions

Edible Uses:Fruits & leaves…..The fruit is eaten raw, cooked or used in preserves etc. Small but tasty. The fruit can also be dried for later use. The dried leaves are a tea substitute.

Medicinal Uses: Not Known

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/Virginia_strawberry
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Fragaria+ovalis

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Herbs & Plants

Cyanella orchidiformis

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Botanical Name : Cyanella orchidiformis
Family: Tecophilaeaceae
Genus: Cyanella
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Asparagales

Common Name : Lady’s Hand

Habitat: Cyanella orchidiformis is native to South Africa – southern Namibia to Clanwilliam. It grows in rocky flats to lower and middle slopes, often in wet sites.

Description:
Cyanella orchidiformis is a BULB growing to 0.3 m (1ft). The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) .It usually has a flattish rosette of rather broad leaves and few-branched inflorescenses………..CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES 
Cyanella plants have deep-seated corms and they usually bear a branched inflorescence. The leaves, arranged in a basal rosette, are deciduous. The flowers are orchid-like in appearance and range from blue, mauve, brown, orange, yellow, pink and white. Cyanella species are mostly characteristic of the more arid parts of the winter rainfall region and are pollinated by bees.

Cultivation: Prefers a light sandy soil. Requires a very warm sunny position in a well-drained soil, it is best grown at the foot of a south-facing wall or in a south-facing bed. Plants are not very frost hardy, but they can be grown outdoors in the milder areas of the country if given a good mulch. Plant the bulbs 15cm deep in autumn to flower in spring or in the spring to flower in the summer. Lift the bulbs when they die down, dry them and store in a cool place until it is time to replant. Flowers are produced in 3 – 4 years from seed.
Propagation : Seed  sow the seed thinly in the autumn in a greenhouse so that it will not be necessary to thin the seedlings. Once the seed has germinated, grow on the seedlings in the same pot for their first year, giving an occasional liquid feed to ensure that they do not become mineral deficient. Pot up 2 – 3 small bulbs to a pot when the plants are dormant and grow them on in a greenhouse until the bulbs reach flowering size. Plant them out in the spring, after the last expected frosts. Division of offsets when the plants are dormant. Larger bulbs can be planted straight out into their permanent positions, but it is best to pot up the smaller bulbs and grow them on for a year in a cold frame before planting them out.
Edible Uses: The root bulb is cooked & eaten.
Medicinal Uses: Not known
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/Cyanella
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Cyanella+orchidiformis
http://www.bidorbuy.co.za/item/195076589/Cyanella_orchidiformis_Seeds_Indigenous_South_African_Perennial_Edible_Bulb.html

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