Categories
Herbs & Plants

Cypripedium acaule

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Botanical Name : Cypripedium acaule
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Cypripedioideae
Genus: Cypripedium
Species: C. acaule
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Asparagales

Common Names: Nerve Root, Moccasin flower, Ladyslipper Orchid, Pink Lady’s Slipper, Stemless lady’s-slipper

Habitat :Cypripedium acaule is native to Eastern N. America – Nova Scotia to Nebraska, south to Mississippi and Alabama. It is usually found in the higher and dryer parts of coniferous woods, often in a thin layer of pine needles over rocks, it is also sometimes found in bogs and wet places.

Description:
Cypripedium acaule is a perennial orchid plant. It grows to 0.4 m (1ft 4in) at a slow rate.
It is hardy to zone (UK) 5. It is in flower from May to June. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects.

CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES

Unlike most other members of “Cypripedium”, the pouch of C. acaule opens in a slit that runs down the front of the labellum rather than a round opening. The plant consists of two plicate leaves near the ground. From between those leaves sprouts a long, pubescent stalk that bears a single pink flower. The sepals and petals tend to be yellowish-brown to maroon with a large pouch that is usually some shade of pink but can be nearly magenta. The white pouched-green petaled forma alba can occasionally be found mixed in with normal populations.
Cultivation:
Landscape Uses:Container, Woodland garden. Requires a position in semi-shade on a damp acid soil that is rich in humus. Plants grow well in a woodland garden or shady border. Orchids are, in general, shallow-rooting plants of well-drained low-fertility soils. Their symbiotic relationship with a fungus in the soil allows them to obtain sufficient nutrients and be able to compete successfully with other plants. They are very sensitive to the addition of fertilizers or fungicides since these can harm the symbiotic fungus and thus kill the orchid. Resents root disturbance. A very ornamental plant, it is quite difficult in cultivation and plants will often flower well in their first year then disappear. This is possibly because the plants are sold bare-rooted and do not have the necessary fungal symbiant they need in order to thrive. Only buy pot-grown plants in order to try and ensure that the symbiant is present. The plants are subject to damage by slugs. Special Features:North American native, Wetlands plant.

Propagation :
Seed – surface sow, preferably as soon as it is ripe, in the greenhouse and do not allow the compost to dry out. The seed of this species is extremely simple, it has a minute embryo surrounded by a single layer of protective cells. It contains very little food reserves and depends upon a symbiotic relationship with a species of soil-dwelling fungus. The fungal hyphae invade the seed and enter the cells of the embryo. The orchid soon begins to digest the fungal tissue and this acts as a food supply for the plant until it is able to obtain nutrients from decaying material in the soil. It is best to use some of the soil that is growing around established plants in order to introduce the fungus, or to sow the seed around a plant of the same species and allow the seedlings to grow on until they are large enough to move. Division with care in early spring, the plants resent disturbance. Remove part of the original rootball with the soil intact. Division is best carried out towards the end of the growing season, since food reserves are fairly evenly distributed through the rhizome. Small divisions of a lead and two buds, or divisions from the back (older) part of the rhizome without any developed buds, establish quickly using this method. Replant immediately in situ.

Medicinal Uses:
Antispasmodic; Kidney; Nervine; Sedative; Tonic.

The root is antispasmodic, nervine, sedative, tonic. It is said to be the equivalent of Valerian, Valeriana officinalis, in treating nervous complaints, sleeplessness etc. The roots have also been used in the treatment of menstrual disorders, stomach aches, kidney and urinary tract disorders and venereal disease. An infusion of the dried tuber is used, the tubers are harvested in the autumn. The active ingredients are not water-soluble.

Known Hazards : Contact with the fresh plant can cause dermatitis in sensitive people. Hairs on the leaves can cause a rash similar to poison ivy rash 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/Cypripedium_acaule
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Cypripedium+acaule

Categories
Herbs & Plants

Bulbophyllum inconspicuum

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Botanical Name : Bulbophyllum inconspicuum
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Epidendroideae
Genus: Bulbophyllum
Species: B. inconspicuum
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Asparagales

Synonyms: Inconspicuous Bulbophyllum

Habitat : Bulbophyllum inconspicuum is native to E. AsiaChina and Japan. It grows on Epiphytic on tree trunks in central and southern Japan.
Description: Bulbophyllum inconspicuum is an evergreen perennial orchid plant. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs)
CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES :

Cultivation : Epiphytes grow on another plant such as a tree, non-parasitically or other object such as a building or a telegraph wire. They derive moisture and nutrients from the air and rain and sometimes from debris accumulating around them. Epiphytes are usually found in the temperate zone (e.g., many mosses, liverworts, lichens and algae) or in the tropics (e.g., many ferns, cacti, orchids, and bromeliads). This plant can be mounted on a slab of treefern, a piece of cork bark or something similar.
Medicinal Uses:
Expectorant. It is used in the treatment of stomach cancers.

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/Bulbophyllum_inconspicuum
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Bulbophyllum+inconspicuum

Categories
Herbs & Plants

Orchis mascula

Botanical Name : Orchis maculata, Orchis latifolia, Orchis mascula, Orchis Morio, Orchis militaris, Orchis saccifera, Orchis pyrimidalis, Orchis coriphora, Orchis conopea

Family: Orchidaceae
Genus:     Orchis
Species: O. mascula
Kingdom: Plantae
Order:     Asparagales

Synonyms: Salep. Saloop. Sahlep. Satyrion. Levant Salep.

Common Names:Orchids, Early Purple Orchis

Habitat : The species is widespread across Europe, from Portugal to the Caucasus (Ireland, Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Spain, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Austria, Hungary,Czechia, Switzerland, Italy, former Yugoslavia, Albania, Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Ukraine, most of Russia), in northwest Africa (Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco) and in the Middle East (Lebanon, Syria, Iraq) up to Iran.It grows in a variety of habitats, from meadows to mountain pastures and woods, in full sun or shady areas, from 0–2,500 metres (0–8,202 ft) above sea level.

Description:
Orchis mascula is a herbaceous plant with stems up to 50–60 centimetres (20–24 in) of height, green at the base and purple on the apex. The root system consists of two tubers, rounded or ellipsoid. The leaves, grouped at the base of the stem, are oblong-lanceolate, pale green, sometimes with brownish-purple speckles. The inflorescence is 7.5–12.5 centimetres (3–5 in) long and it is composed of 6 to 20 flowers gathered in dense cylindrical spikes. The flower size is about 2.5 centimetres (0.98 in) and the color varies from pink to violet. The lateral sepals are ovate-lanceolate and erect, the median one, together with the petals, is smaller and cover the gynostegium. The labellum is three-lobed and convex, with crenulated margins and the basal part clearer and dotted with purple-brown spots. The spur is cylindrical or clavate, horizontal or ascending. The gynostegium is short, with reddish-green anthers. It blooms from April to June.

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Cultivation:  In general they are not difficult to grow, but there are a few points to note.  Orchis mascula likes a lime rich soil.

Seeds should be surface sown in a greenhouse, preferably as soon as they are ripe, do not allow the compost to dry out. The seed depends upon a symbiotic relationship with a species of soil-dwelling fungus, which acts as a food supply for the plant until it is able to obtain nutrients from decaying material in the soil.

It is best to use some of the soil that is growing around established plants in order to introduce the fungus, or to sow the seed around a plant of the same species and allow the seedlings to grow on until they are large enough to move.

Another way to grow this plant is by division of the tubers. As the flowers fade it produces a new tuber. If this is removed from the plant as its flowers are fading, the shock to the plant can stimulate new tubers to be formed. The tuber should be treated as being dormant, whilst the remaining plant should be encouraged to continue in growth in order to give it time to produce new tubers. The entire new growth is removed from the old tuber from which it has arisen and is potted up, the cut being made towards the bottom of the stem but leaving one or two roots still attached to the old tuber. This can often be done without digging up the plant. The old tuber should develop one or two new growths, whilst the new rosette should continue in growth and flower normally.
Edible Uses  :
Edible Parts: Root.
Edible Uses:

Root – cooked. 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:
Constituents: The most important constituent is mucilage, amounting to 48 per cent. It also contains sugar 1 per cent), starch (2.7 per cent), nitrogenous substance (5 per cent), and when fresh a trace of volatile oil. It yields 2 per cent of ash, consisting chiefly of phosphates and chlorides of potassium and calcium.

(The constituents of Salep are subject to great variation, according to the season of collection. Raspail found the old tuber, collected in autumn, to be free from starch, while the young one was richly supplied with it.)

Astringent, Demulcent, Expectorant, Nutritive.

Salep is very nutritive, astringent, expectorant 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.

Orchis mascula is an aphrodisiac according to Culpepper “ … provoke lust exceedingly.”

It cures worms in children. It heals the ‘kings evil’  –   Scrofula (Scrophula or Struma) refers to a variety of skin diseases; in particular, a form of tuberculosis, affecting the lymph nodes of the neck.

It was held in great repute in herbal medicine, being largely employed as a strengthening and soothing properties   To allay irritation of the gastro-intestinal canal, it is used by shaking 1 part of powdered Salep with 10 parts of cold water, until it is uniformly diffused, when 90 parts of boiling water are added and the whole well agitated. It has thus been recommended as an article of diet for infants and invalids suffering from chronic diarrhoea and bilious fevers.

In the German Pharmacopoeia, a mucilage of Salep appears as an official preparation.

Salep is very nutritive and demulcent, for which properties it has been used from time immemorial.

It forms a diet of especial value to convalescents and children, being boiled with milk or water, flavoured and prepared in the same way as arrowroot.  A decoction flavoured with sugar and spice, or wine, is an agreeable drink for invalids. Sassafras chips were sometimes added, or cloves, cinnamon and ginger.

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/Orchis_mascula
http://www.complete-herbal.com/details/orchis.html
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/o/orchid13.html

http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Orchis+mascula

Categories
Herbs & Plants

Goodyera pubescens

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Botanical Name:Goodyera pubescens
Family:Orchidaceae
Subfamily:Orchidoideae
Genus:Goodyera
Species:G. pubescens
Kingdom:Plantae
Order:Asparagales

Common Name :Rattlesnake Plantain

Habitat :Goodyera pubescens is native to eastern N. America – Maine to Florida, west to Alberta and Quebec. It grows in almost any wooded habitat with acid soils, mainly on moist humus soils in shady, upland woods of hemlock, pine, oak, or maple, less frequent in lowland woods, bogs, swamps; 0 -1600 metres

Description:
Goodyera pubescens is an evergreen Perennial orchid growing to 0.4m. It is of terrestrial species with variegated leaves. The variegation is in the form of a densely-reticulated network of veins that are a much lighter green than the rest of the leaf tissue. It is a creeping plant that divides on the ground surface and sends out short stolons. It may be terrestrial or, occasionally, epipetric, growing on rock shelves. It prefers mildly to moderately acidic soils, such as in oak-heath forests

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Plant pubescent above the leaves, 10-40 cm tall (including inflorescence), arising from a branching rhizome supported by a cluster of slightly fleshy, fibrous roots, often forming dense clusters of rosettes. Leaves 4-8, forming a basal rosette, petiolate, oblong-elliptical to elliptical-lanceolate, 3-9 cm long and 1-3.5 cm wide, dark green or blue-green with a prominent white stripe along the midrib and a prominent network of reticulate white markings. Inflorescence a downy, dense spicate raceme 10-40 cm tall, 20-50 flowered, typically cylindrical, each flower subtended by a small, lanceolate bract. Sepals ovate to ovate-lanceolate, concave, 4-5 mm long and 3-4 mm wide, white and smooth inside, the outer surfaces pubescent and often marked with green, lateral sepals typically smaller than dorsal sepal and slightly spreading; dorsal sepal connivent with petals to form a hood over the column. Petals oblong or spatulate, 3.5-6 mm long and about 3 mm wide, closely appressed to the dorsal sepal, white. Labellum deeply globular-saccate to scrotiform, the apex prolonged into an blunt point (looking somewhat like a spout), 3.5-4.5 mm long and 3-3.5 mm wide, white, pubescent outside.

It is hardy to zone 6. It is in leaf all year, in flower from July to August. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects.
The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

SIMILAR SPECIES: Goodyera pubescens can easily be confused with G. tesselata or perhaps G. repens var. ophioides. G. pubescens can be separated from G. tesselata by the labellum, which is concave in G. tesselata, but is deeply globular-saccate in G. pubescens. Also, the leaves of G. tesselata are smaller than those of G. pubescens, and typically lack the thick white central vein of G. pubescens. G. pubescens can be separated fromG. repens var. ophioides by the inflorescence, which is secund or loosely spiraled in G. repens var. ophioides, but is a cylindrical, densely-packed spike in G. pubescens.

Cultivation:
Requires a somewhat shady site and a well-drained compost of peat, leafmold and sand. Does well in the woodland garden. Orchids are, in general, shallow-rooting plants of well-drained low-fertility soils. Their symbiotic relationship with a fungus in the soil allows them to obtain sufficient nutrients and be able to compete successfully with other plants. They are very sensitive to the addition of fertilizers or fungicides since these can harm the symbiotic fungus and thus kill the orchid. This species is closely related to the British native species, G. repens. This plant is too rare in the wild to be harvested.

Propagation:
Seed – surface sow, preferably as soon as it is ripe, in the greenhouse and do not allow the compost to dry out. The seed of this species is extremely simple, it has a minute embryo surrounded by a single layer of protective cells. It contains very little food reserves and depends upon a symbiotic relationship with a species of soil-dwelling fungus. The fungal hyphae invade the seed and enter the cells of the embryo. The orchid soon begins to digest the fungal tissue and this acts as a food supply for the plant until it is able to obtain nutrients from decaying material in the soil. It is best to use some of the soil that is growing around established plants in order to introduce the fungus, or to sow the seed around a plant of the same species and allow the seedlings to grow on until they are large enough to move

Medicinal Uses:
Appetizer; Miscellany; Odontalgic; Ophthalmic; Poultice.

A tea made from the roots is used in the treatment of pleurisy and snakebites. A tea made from the leaves is taken to improve the appetite, as a treatment for colds, kidney ailments, rheumatism and toothaches. Externally, a poultice of the wilted leaves is used to cool burns, treat skin ulcers and relieve rheumatic joints. An ooze from the plant (this probably means the sap or the juice of the bulb) has been used as eye drops to treat sore eyes.

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://digedibles.com/database/plants.php?Goodyera+pubescens
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodyera_pubescens
http://www.botany.wisc.edu/orchids/Gpubescens.html

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Categories
Herbs & Plants

Cadaba fruticosa

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Botanical Name : Cadaba fruticosa
Family: Capparaceae
Genus: Cadaba
Species: C. fruticosa
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Brassicales
Synonyms: Cleome fruticosa

Common Names
: Kodham, Pulika Indian Cadaba
Common Names in other languages:
Hindi: kodhab, dabi, kadhab • Marathi: habal, vaelivee • Tamil: Vizhuthi, Adamorinika, Chikondi, Piluka • Telugu: Aadamorinika, Chavukkuttiyanku, chekonadi, Chemudu

Habitat : It is endemic on Indian Subcontinent: Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Indo-China: Myanmar.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Description:
Indian Cadaba is a climbing shrub, height up to 5 m. Oval leaves with rounded tip are arranged alternately on the branches. Flowers usually in terminal racemes, or axillary solitary. Petals 4, clawed. Disk-appendix about as long as the petal claw, tubular, often trumpet shaped, apex generally petaloid and more or less toothed. Stamens 4-6, exserted, spreading; filaments on a short androphore or irregularly fused with the gynophore. Fruit is nearly cylindrical, leathery – internal tissues surrounding the nearly round seeds are often orange coloured. Flowering: January-March.

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Medicinal Uses:
Tamil  nadu it is  used in Siddha medicine for more than 2000 years. The juice of the leaves is especially used to cure gonorrhoes.

You may click to see :Herbal folk medicines used for urinary complaints in tribal

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://vaniindia.org.whbus12.onlyfordemo.com/herbal/plantdir.asp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadaba_fruticosa
http://www.flowersofindia.net/catalog/slides/Indian%20Cadaba.html

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