Tag Archives: Vegetation

Cumin

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Cumin

Cumin: a humble little spice that will improve your cuisine.

  • Cumin is a historical spice that comes from a plant of the same name, native to parts of the Mediterranean, Middle East and India, which is from the family Apiaceae, the family of carrot and parsley.
  • ‘Cumin’ is also known as ‘cummin’, ‘jeera’, and ‘jira’, and the plant’s scientific name is Cuminum cyminum.
  • Cumin seeds are ridged and are a yellow-brown colour, 3 to 6 mm (0.1 to 0.23 inches) long, which are visually similar to caraway seeds, and they have a peppery, earthy and citrus flavour.
  • What is known as black cumin, comes from a different, but related plant known as Bunium bulbocastanum, or the unrelated plant, Nigella sativa, both of which have a different flavour.
  • Cumin was used in mummification processes in Ancient Egypt, and in the Middle Ages, cumin was used to symbolise love and faithfulness.

Cumin, Ground, Yellow, Powder, Ten Random Facts, spice, Cummin,

  • Approximately 70% of the world’s cumin (270,000 tonnes or 300,000 tons per year) is produced in India, and is also the main exporter of the spice, although the country also uses all but 10% of what it produces.
  • Cumin seeds are used mainly as a spice, either grounded or whole, in soups, gravies, pickles, bread products, and spice mixes, especially curry powder, as well as bird food.
  • Cumin has been used for medicinal purposes, and is sometimes used to treat muscle cramps and problems in the digestive system, such as vomiting and appetite loss.
  • Cumin has a relatively high content of iron and is a good source of manganese, calcium, vitamin B1 and phosphorus.
  • Cumin was historically very popular among the Greeks and Romans, due to it being a good replacement of pepper that was expensive at the time.
Bibliography:
Cumin, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumin
Cumin seeds, 2014, The World’s Healthiest Foods, http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=91

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Buxus

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Buxus

Grow a hedge of buxus.

  • Buxus is a group of evergreen plants that contain 70 species that are native to parts of Europe, Asia, America and Africa.
  • Buxus suit a wide range of conditions and are generally best grown in full sun, although shady conditions can be tolerated by some species.
  • ‘Buxus’ is also known as ‘boxwood’ and ‘box’, and comes from the family Buxaceae, the box family.
  • Buxus are shrubs or small trees that grow to a height of 2 metres to a maximum of 15 metres (6.5 to 50 feet) in height, depending on the species and whether the plant is clipped to contain its size.
  • Buxus have flowers that are small and coloured in yellow-green shades, that generally appear in spring.

Buxus, boxwood, plant, hedge, white, green, Ten Random Facts, Australia

  • Buxus are slow growing and are popularly used as a decorative plant, particularly as hedges, topiary or bonsai.
  • Buxus plants have very good quality, hard wood, which is denser than water, and has historically been used to make boxes, chess pieces, printing using woodblocks, and musical instruments and parts, particularly form the strings and woodwind class and is still used for many of these purposes today.
  • Small branches of Buxus have been found in Ancient Romans’ tombs.
  • Buxus sometimes have a scent of a fox or cat urine, which displeases some people.
  • Buxus leaves have a low level of toxicity if consumed, although it can be fatal for small animals.
Bibliography:
Boxwood, n.d, BCI, http://www.bonsai-bci.com/files/Boxwood.pdf
Buxus, 2013, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buxus

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Caraway Seed

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Caraway Seed

Do not be carried away with caraway seeds.

  • Caraway seeds grow on the caraway plant, that has the scientific name of ‘Carum carvi’, and is from the family Apiaceae, the family of parsley and carrot.
  • Caraway seeds are shaped as a crescent and grow to be 2 millimetres (0.08 inches) in length.
  • Caraway seeds are technically dry fruit, rather than seeds, from the European, and possibly Asian and North African, biennial plant of the same name that grows to be 40 to 60 centimetres (15 to 24 inches) in height.
  • Caraway seeds have a taste hinting of anise and a smell of sweet pepper, and sometimes caraway thyme can be used as a replacement, along with similar flavoured spices that include anise, fennel, dill, cumin, liquorice-root and coriander.
  • Caraway seeds are often used as spice, most famously in bread, but are also used in cakes, desserts, alcoholic beverages, German sausages, curry and Indian traditional food, among others.

Caraway Seeds, Spice, Fruit, plant, Bowl, Many, Ten random facts, food

  • Oil can be distilled from caraway seeds, that is then used to add a pleasant smell to soap, perfume and other fragrant toiletry products.
  • Caraway seeds are probably one of the oldest used spices, having been eaten for thousands of years, and in Ancient Egypt they were used to treat digestive system problems, and is still believed to be effective for the digestion of foods, soothe stomach pains and cramps, and to help prevent wind buildup.
  • Caraway seeds have significant quantities of zinc, vitamin C, manganese, potassium, magnesium, copper, phosphorus and protein, and are high in calcium and dietary fibre.
  • Caraway seeds were believed to ward off witches, so they were historically used as a ‘protection food’.
  • Caraway seeds are typically brown to grey in colour, with a pale outline, and are harvested in the middle of summer upon ripening.
Bibliography:
Caraway, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caraway
Grieve M, Caraway, 2014, Botanical.com, http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/c/carawa20.html
History of Caraway, 2014, Our Herb Garden, http://www.ourherbgarden.com/herb-history/caraway.html

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Queensland Bottle Tree

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Queensland Bottle Tree

Bulging Queensland bottle trees.

  • Queensland bottle trees are Australian native trees that have a trunk shaped like a bottle and have bell shaped, creamy-yellow coloured flowers that usually appear in spring and summer.
  • The scientific name of a Queensland bottle tree is Brachychiton rupestris, and they are from the family Malvaceae, the family of mallows that includes hibiscus plants, but were originally from the archived family Sterculiaceae.
  • Contrary to popular belief, Queensland bottle trees are not hollow, but have fibrous interiors, and are bottle-shaped due to the stored water in the trunk.
  • Queensland bottle trees are usually grown from seed, and are popularly used in recreation areas and gardens, often providing good shade.
  • Queensland bottle trees have been traditionally used as shelter, rope and food, particularly by indigenous Australians.

Queensland Bottle Tree, Swell, Adult, Australia, Ten Random Facts, Plant

  • Queensland bottle trees can range from 4 to 20 metres (13 to 65 feet) in height and do not produce a bottle shaped trunk until about five to eight years of age.
  • Queensland bottle trees grow best in full sun and in temperatures of the sub-tropics and the tropics.
  • Queensland bottle trees have boat-shaped seed pods full of many seeds that have hairs on them that can irritate the skin if touched.
  • ‘Queensland bottle trees’ are also known as ‘Queensland-flaschenbaums’, ‘Narrowleaf bottle trees’, ‘Kurrajong bottle trees’ and ‘Kurrajongs’.
  • Queensland bottle trees can survive up to three months out of soil, and they are therefore commonly transported to various countries, even as a mature tree.
Bibliography:
Brachychiton rupestris, 2013, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachychiton_rupestris
Campbell C, Fact Sheet: Bottle Trees, 2008, Gardening Australia, http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s2183287.htm
Cheung P, Brachychiton rupestris, 2013, AustraliaNationalBotanic Gardens, http://www.anbg.gov.au/gnp/interns-2005/brachychiton-rupestris.html

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Slender Vervain

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Slender Vervain

Slender vervain: a pest in some places, an ornament in others.

  • A ‘slender vervain’ is also known as a ‘tuberous vervain’, ‘purpletop’, ‘purple verbena’, ‘veined verbena’, ‘large-veined verbena’, ‘sandpaper verbena’, and it also has many other common names.
  • Slender vervains are native to many countries in South America, and more specifically Brazil and Argentina.
  • Slender vervains can grow up to 60 centimetres (24 inches) in height.
  • The scientific name for slender vervain is ‘Verbena rigida’, and it has also been known as ‘Verbena venosa’, and it comes from the family Verbenaceae, the family of vervains or verbenas.
  • Slender vervains have purple or magenta coloured flowers that bloom on the top of spikes at the top of the plant in summer and autumn, and the plants have rigid, rough and hairy leaves that have serrated edges.

Slender Vervain, Purple, verbena rigidia, weed, Australia, Flower, Ten Random Facts

  • In 1993, Slender vervains were awarded the United Kingdom Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit.
  • Slender vervains are best grown in areas with full sun and damp, well drained soil, and are often grown to add colour in the garden, in pots, or for cut flowers.
  • Slender vervains grow from rhizomes, and are herbacious perennials with parts of the plants dying off each year.
  • Slender vervains are classified as a weed in South Africa, Australia and some parts of the United States, and are found near roads, inhabiting forests, fields and river areas, as well as cotton farming land.
  • Slender vervains were introduced into Europe by Dr John Gillies, a Scottish botanist and retired navy surgeon, in approximately 1820.
Bibliography:
Bourne V, How to Grow: Verbena Rigidia, 2013, The Telegraph, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/howtogrow/3348813/How-to-grow-Verbena-rigida.html
Verbena Rigidia (Herb), 2010, Global Invasive Species Database, http://www.issg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?fr=1&sts=&lang=EN&si=1371
Verbena Rigida, 2013, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verbena_rigida

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Dianthus

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Dianthus

Smell the sweet fragrance of dianthus.

  • ‘Dianthus’ are also known as ‘carnations’, ‘pinks’ or ‘sweet williams’, although these terms are more specific to certain species.
  • The dianthus genus, includes 300 species of perennial plants with beautiful flowers.
  • Dianthus comes from the family Caryophyllaceae, the pink or carnation family.
  • Dianthus are native to Europe or Asia, but a select quantity of species can be found in either North America or Africa.
  • Dianthus flowers are five-petalled, and they are generally frilled or serrated on the edge, hence the common name ‘pink’ (not a reference to the colour).

Dianthus, Pink, White, Single, Dead, Prim, Frilled, Ten Random Facts, Flower, Australia

  • Dianthus flowers are typically patterned in shades of pink but can also be white, purple, yellow, orange or red in colour.
  • Dianthus flower from spring through to autumn, and some species have a sweet smell of spice.
  • ‘Dianthus’ comes from the Greek words for ‘of Zeus’ (a god in Greek mythology) and ‘flower’, ‘dios’ and ‘anthos’ respectively.
  • Dianthus plants grow between 10 cm (4 inches) and 1.5 metres (5 feet) in height, and often have grey or blue-green foliage
  • Dianthus are often used for cut or decorative purposes, and more than 100 species have earned the Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society in the United Kingdom.
Bibliography:
Dianthus, 2013, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianthus
Mackey B, Dianthus, Carnations, Pinks, 2014, HowStuffWorks, http://home.howstuffworks.com/define-dianthus-carnation-pinks.htm

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