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Herbs & Plants

Euphorbia resinifera

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Botanical Name: Euphorbia resinifera
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Genus: Euphorbia
Species: E. resinifera
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Malpighiales

Synonyms: Euphorbia officinarum. Poisonous Gum-Thistle. Dergmuse. Darkmous. Euphorbium Bush. Gun Euphorbium.

Habitat:  Euphorbia resinifera grows in the slopes of the Great Atlas range in Morocco.

Description:    Euphorbia resinifera is a leafless perennel shrub growing about 4 feet in height, resembling a cactus in appearance forming multi-stemmed cushion-shaped clumps up . It has many branches. The stems are erect, succulent, four-angled, with short but sharp pairs of 6 mm spines on the angles, spaced about 1 cm apart up the stem..CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES

The flowers are small, simple, and bright yellow, and the fruit a small capsule with one seed in each cell. Specimens sent to Kew in 1870 have never flowered, but others have done so in Paris. Both Pliny and Dioscorides knew the drug, and its name is classical.

The milky juice is collected from incisions made in the fleshy branches, and is so acrid that it burns the fingers. It flows down the stems and encrusts them as it hardens in the sun. Poor Arabs bring in the resinous masses for sale in Morocco, whence it is chiefly exported from Mogador. The dust is so intensely irritant to the mucous membrane that the mouth and nose of those handling it must be covered by a cloth.

In commerce the drug is found in yellowish-brown ‘tears’ that have a waxy appearance. They are almost transparent, slightly aromatic only when heated, and often pierced with holes made by the prickles of the plant while drying. The taste is slight, but becomes very acrid.

It is said to be employed as an ingredient of paint used for preserving ships’ bottoms.

Part Used in medicines: Concrete resinous juice.

Constituents: The chief constituent is resin, and it also contains wax, calcium malate, potassium malate, lignin, bassorin, volatile oil, and water, with no soluble gum. Another analysis gives euphorbone, euphorbo-resene, euphorbic acid, calcium malate, a very acrid substance not yet isolated, and vegetable debris.

The acrid resin is soluble in alcohol, and will burn brilliantly, becoming very aromatic.

The powder is yellowish, and violently sternatatory.

Medicinal Uses:
The internal use of the drug has been abandoned, owing to the severity of its action. It is an irritant emetic and cathartic. Its chief use is as a vesicant, and principally in veterinary practice. It has been used in dropsy; mixed with cantharides as a ‘gout plaister’; and as an errhine in chronic brain, ear, or eye complaints, sometimes mitigated with the powder of Convallaria maialis, but accidents have led to its use being discontinued.

In commerce the drug is found in yellowish-brown ‘tears’ that have a waxy appearance. They are almost transparent, slightly aromatic only when heated, and often pierced with holes made by the prickles of the plant while drying. The taste is slight, but becomes very acrid.

Other Uses:  

It is said to be employed as an ingredient of paint used for preserving ships’ bottoms.

At Mogador, the branches are used for tanning leather.
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/Euphorbia_resinifera
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/s/spurge84.html

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Herbs & Plants

Fucus helminthocorton

Botanical Name : Fucus helminthocorton
Family: Fucaceae
Genus: Fucus
Kingdom: Chromalveolata
Phylum: Heterokontophyta
Class: Phaeophyceae
Order: Fucales

Synonym: Alsidium Helminthocorton.

Habitat: Fucus helminthocorton is native to Mediterranean coast, specially Corsica.

Description:
The drug is obtained from twenty to thirty species of Algae, chiefly Sphaerococcus helminthocorton. It is cartilaginous, filiform repeatedly forked, colour varies from white to brown, it has a nauseous taste, bitter and salt, odour rather pleasant....CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES

Part Used in medicine: The whole  plant.
Medicinal Uses:
In Europe as an anthelmintic and febrifuge, it acts very successfully on lumbricoid intestinal worms. A decoction is made of it from 4 to 6 drachms to the pint. Dose, a wineglassful three times daily.
Resources:
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/m/moscor49.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fucus_vesiculosus

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Herbs & Plants

Stachvs Sieboldii

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Botanical Name : Stachvs Sieboldii
Family:    Lamiaceae
Genus:    Stachys
Species:    S. affinis
Kingdom:    Plantae
Order:    Lamiales

Other Names: Stachys affinis, the Chinese artichoke, chorogi, knotroot, artichoke betony, or crosne

Habitat :This species occurs wild in Northern China, where it is also cultivated, its native name being Tsanyungtzu, while in Japan it is called Chorogi. It was introduced as a culinary vegetable by the late Dr. M. T. Masters, F.R.S., in 1888. The tubers are eaten more in France than in this country. It grows in wet and submersed areas; 0-3200 m. Gansu, Hebei, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Xinjiang.

Description:
While the plant is easy to grow, the tubers are small, convoluted, and indented, so they are considered very tedious, if not difficult to clean properly. The thin skin ranges from a pale beige to ivory-white colour. The flesh underneath, under proper cultivation, is white and tender. Chinese poets compare it to jade beads. It is in season  generally commencing with October……….CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES
CLICK  & SEE THE PICTURES

Cultivation:  It is perfectly hardy and may be left in the ground until required for use. Planting should take place in the spring and the tubers dug through the winter as required. The plants are perfectly easily grown and extraordinarily productive.

Propagation  : Seed – sow spring in a cold frame. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. If sufficient growth has been made, it is possible to plant them out during the summer, otherwise grow them on in pots for their first summer, leaving the tubers in the pots to overwinter in a cold frame and then plant out in late spring when in active growth. Seed is rarely if ever produced on plants growing in Britain. Division. The tubers can be harvest and replanted at any time whilst they are dormant. They do start into growth fairly early in the year so it is better to have moved them by the end of March.

Edible Uses: The flavor of the stem tubers is delicate, and they can be prepared similarly to Jerusalem artichokes in cooking. It is used as a vegetable, in salad compositions, but more so as a garnish. It has a nutty, artichoke-like flavor.

In Chinese and Japanese cuisine, the Chinese artichoke is primarily pickled. In particular, its tuber is a part of Osechi, cooked for celebrating Japanese New Year. Dyed red by leaves of red shiso after being pickled, it is called Chorogi.

In French cuisine, its cooked tuber is often served alongside dishes named japonaise or Japanese-styled.

Medicinal Uses:
The dried and powdered root is anodyne. The entire plant has been used in the treatment of colds and pneumonia.

Chinese artichoke is composed mostly of carbohydrate with some protein. One hundred grams of this vegetable contains 80 calories. The Chinese artichoke plant is very similar and directly related to the European plant, wood betony or lousewort. Wood betony is renowned for its use in traditional European medicine and for the treatment of a number of ailments. They include heartburn, varicose veins, urinary tract inflammation and respiratory tract inflammation. It also has calming effects and is used for headaches and neuralgia. Chinese artichoke, both the root and the plant, are used in Chinese traditional medicine although for different ailments, mainly to treat symptoms of the common cold. So far there has been very little research into the active constituents of the Chinese artichoke plant, although wood betony is know to contain alkaloids, tannins and glycosides.

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/Stachys_affinis
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/a/artic067.html
http://www.pfaf.org/user/plant.aspx?LatinName=Stachys+affinis
https://food-nutrition.knoji.com/chinese-artichoke-or-crosne-culinary-uses-and-nutrition/

Categories
Herbs & Plants

Rosa rubiginosa

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Botanical Name : Rosa rubiginosa
Family: Rosaceae
Genus: Rosa
Species: R. rubiginosa
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Rosales

Synonyme: Rose, Eglantine, R. eglanteria.

Common Names: Sweet briar or Eglantine Rose

Habitat :Rosa rubiginosa  is native to Europe, including Britain, from Scandanavia south and east to Spain, the Caucasus and Himalayas. It grows on open copses and old hedgerows. Usually found on calcareous soils, it is one of the first shrubs to colonize chalk grassland.

Description:
It is a dense deciduous shrub 2–3 m high and across, with the stems bearing numerous hooked prickles.The foliage has a strong apple-like fragrance. The leaves are pinnate, 5–9 cm long, with 5-9 rounded to oval leaflets with a serrated margin, and numerous glandular hairs. The flowers are 1.8–3 cm diameter, the five petals being pink with a white base, and the numerous stamens yellow; the flowers are produced in clusters of 2-7 together, from late spring to mid summer. The fruit is a globose to oblong red hip 1–2 cm diameter

CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES
Cultivation:
Succeeds in most soils, preferring a circumneutral soil and a sunny position. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Dislikes water-logged soils. Grows well with alliums, parsley, mignonette and lupins. Garlic planted nearby can help protect the plant from disease and insect predation. Grows badly with boxwood. Grows well on chalk. A very ornamental plant. The leaves are apple-scented. The flowers are slightly scented. Hybridizes freely with other members of this genus[80]. Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus.
Propagation:
Seed. Rose seed often takes two years to germinate. This is because it may need a warm spell of weather after a cold spell in order to mature the embryo and reduce the seedcoat. One possible way to reduce this time is to scarify the seed and then place it for 2 – 3 weeks in damp peat at a temperature of 27 – 32°c (by which time the seed should have imbibed). It is then kept at 3°c for the next 4 months by which time it should be starting to germinate. Alternatively, it is possible that seed harvested ‘green’ (when it is fully developed but before it has dried on the plant) and sown immediately will germinate in the late winter. This method has not as yet(1988) been fully tested. Seed sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame sometimes germinates in spring though it may take 18 months. Stored seed can be sown as early in the year as possible and stratified for 6 weeks at 5°c. It may take 2 years to germinate. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. Plant out in the summer if the plants are more than 25cm tall, otherwise grow on in a cold frame for the winter and plant out in late spring.Cuttings of half-ripe wood with a heel, July in a shaded frame. Overwinter the plants in the frame and plant out in late spring. High percentage. Cuttings of mature wood of the current seasons growth. Select pencil thick shoots in early autumn that are about 20 – 25cm long and plant them in a sheltered position outdoors or in a cold frame. The cuttings can take 12 months to establish but a high percentage of them normally succeed. Division of suckers in the dormant season. Plant them out direct into their permanent positions. Layering. Takes 12 months.

Edible Uses :
Edible Parts: Flowers; Fruit; Seed; Stem.
Edible Uses: Tea.

Fruit – cooked. It is used in making jellies etc. The taste is best after a frost. The fruit is up to 25mm in diameter[200], but there is only a thin layer of flesh surrounding the many seeds. Some care has to be taken when eating this fruit, see the notes above on known hazards. A pleasant tasting fruity-flavoured tea is made from the fruit, it is rich in vitamin C. Petals – raw or cooked. Remove the bitter white base. Used in confectionery. Young shoots – raw. Used as they come through the ground in spring. The seed is a good source of vitamin E, it can be ground into a powder and mixed with flour or added to other foods as a supplement. Be sure to remove the seed hairs.

 

Meditional Uses:
An infusion of dried rose petals can be used to treat headaches and dizziness, with honey added the infusion is used as a heart and nerve tonic and a blood purifier. A decoction of the petals is used to treat mouth sores.  The seed is rich in vitamin E and an oil extracted from the seed is used externally in the treatment of burns, scars and wrinkles. The fruit of many members of this genus is a very rich source of vitamins and minerals, especially in vitamins A, C and E, flavonoids and other bio-active compounds. It is also a fairly good source of essential fatty acids, which is fairly unusual for a fruit. It is being investigated as a food that is capable of reducing the incidence of cancer and also as a means of halting or reversing the growth of cancers.

Other Uses:
In addition to its pink flowers, it is valued for its scent, and the hips that form after the flowers and persist well into the winter.
The plant makes a good low hedge. The prickles on the stem make it a useful security hedge.

Known Hazards : There is a layer of hairs around the seeds just beneath the flesh of the fruit. These hairs can cause irritation to the mouth and digestive tract if ingested.

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://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_rubiginosa
http://www.herbnet.com/Herb%20Uses_RST.htm?Voucher2=Connect+to+Internet
http://www.plant-identification.co.uk/skye/rosaceae/rosa-rubiginosa.htm

http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Rosa+rubiginosa

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Herbs & Plants

Camel Thorn(Alhagi maurorum)

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Botanical Name :Alhagi maurorum
Family: Fabaceae/Leguminosae
Subfamily: Faboideae
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Fabales
Genus: Alhagi
Species: A. maurorum
SynonymsAlhagi camelorum – Fisch.,Alhagi persarum – Boiss.&Buhse., Alhagi pseudalhagi – (M.Bieb.)Desv. ex B.Keller.&Shap., Hedysarum pseudalhagi – M.Bieb.
Common Name : Camelthorn. Manna tree,

Habitat: This shrub is native to the region extending from the Mediterranean to Russia but has been introduced to many other areas of the world, including Australia, southern Africa, and the western United States.   Edges of ditches, waste and often saline places etc in Turkey. Grows in dry barren places.

Description:
The decidious perennial plant grows from a massive rhizome system which may extend over six feet deep into the ground. New shoots can appear over 20 feet from the parent plant. Above the ground the plant rarely reaches four feet in height. It is a heavily-branched gray-green thicket with long spines along the branches. It bears small bright pink to maroon pea flowers and small legume pods which are brown or reddish and constricted between the seeds. The seeds are mottled brown beans.
..CLICK & SEE
The plant, which is grayish green and hairless, has simple, entire leaves that are alternately arranged. The leaf shape is oval to lance-shaped. The small (3/8 inch), pea-like flowers are pinkish purple to maroon and are borne on short, spine-tipped branches that arise from the leaf axils. The reddish-brown to tan fruits are constricted between the seeds, with a short narrow beak at the end.

Camelthorn is a noxious weed in its non-native range. It is a contaminant of alfalfa seed and grows readily when accidentally introduced to a cultivated field. It has a wide tolerance of soils, thriving on saline, sandy, rocky, and dry soils. It does best when growing next to a source of water, such as an irrigation ditch. It is unpalatable to animals and irritating when it invades forage and grazing land.

It is hardy to zone 0. It is in flower in July. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs)It can fix Nitrogen.
The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils and can grow in saline soil. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

Cultivation :
Requires a sunny position in a well-drained light or medium soil. Plants are not very hardy in Britain, they can be grown outdoors in the summer but require protection in the winter. The stems of the plant are covered in sharp spines. Like the closely related gorse (Ulex europaea) the flowers have a pineapple scent. (A slightly strange report because the gorse flowers have a strong coconut fragrance.) This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby.

Propagation
:-
Seed – pre-soak the seed for 12 hours in warm water and sow March/April in a warm greenhouse. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a greenhouse for at least the first winter. Plant out into their permanent positions in the summer. Cuttings of young shoots in a frame.

Edible Uses:-
Edible Parts: Manna.

A sweet-tasting manna is exuded from the twigs at flowering time. It is exuded during hot weather according to one report. It contains about 47% melizitose, 26% sucrose, 12% invert sugar. Another manna is obtained from the pods – it is sweet and laxative. Root – cooked. A famine food, it is only used in times of need .

Medicinal Actions &  Uses
:-
Diaphoretic; Diuretic; Expectorant; Laxative.

The whole plant is diaphoretic, diuretic, expectorant and laxative. An oil from the leaves is used in the treatment of rheumatism. The flowers are used in the treatment of piles.


Scented Plants

Flowers: Fresh
The flowers have a pineapple scent.

Resources:
http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants.php?Alhagi+maurorum
http://www.wildflowers.co.il/english/plant.asp?ID=183
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alhagi_maurorum

http://www.texasinvasives.org/invasives_database/detail.php?symbol=ALMA12

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