We depend on donations from users of our database of over 8000 edible and useful plants to keep making it available free of charge and to further extend and improve it. In recent months donations are down, and we are spending more than we receive. Please give what you can to keep PFAF properly funded. More >>>

Follow Us:
 
Date Posted: 22/02/2015
 
Blog Heading: Plant & Page of the Week 23 Feb 2015
 
Message:

Plant & Page of the Week 23 Feb 2015

Page of the week:
Ground Cover Plants
http://www.pfaf.org/user/cmspage.aspx?pageid=81

When people take up gardening, whatever methods they use, their usual aim is to grow a range of plants very few of which would usually be found wild on their land. It is, of course, wise to try and use those species that are best adapted to the conditions of the particular site but, gardeners being gardeners, we generally want to try and grow a wider range of plants than this. Of course, this means that these plants are at a general disadvantage on the site and the tendency is for the native plants to re-establish themselves. Thus begins the long preoccupation with weeding, the constant battle to maintain those plants we want to grow at the expense of the plants that want to grow there.

There are many ways of trying to control weeds. We can remove them by hoeing them out or by burning them with a flame gun. We can try to prevent them growing by putting down mulches. Each of these methods have their advantages and disadvantages and each has situations where they are applicable. In this leaflet we will look at another method of controlling weeds - by growing carefully selected plants that can spread to cover the ground and that will out-compete the weeds

Like other forms of weed control, ground cover has its advantages and disadvantages. Its primary advantages include:-

    By covering the ground with a carpet of vegetation it prevents the germination of weed seeds.
    When established, it prevents the ingress of perennial weeds.
    It protects the soil from erosion and water loss. This can be particularly useful on steep slopes.
    It acts as an insulating cover for the soil, keeping it cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter.
    It is a living mulch that helps to build up humus levels in the soil.
    It provides habitats and cover for beneficial insects and other predators.
    It can be very attractive.
    It can provide us with various other commodities - food, medicines etc.

The disadvantages include:-

    It can provide a habitat for slugs, snails and other pests. This is to a large extent mitigated by the beneficial creatures it also encourages, but it is best not to grow slug-susceptible plants in a ground cover if you normally have a problem with slugs.
    It can compete with other plants for food and water.
    If the ground cover is too vigorous it can overrun the plants you want to grow.

 

Checklist of plants suitable for ground cover:: http://www.pfaf.org/user/cmspage.aspx?pageid=249

 

Top EdibleShrubs No 12 Tea Plant.:


http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Camellia+sinensis

The leaves are infused in hot water and used as the drink that is commonly known as tea. It is widely drunk in many areas of the world. Green tea is made from the steamed and dried leaves, whilst black tea (the form most commonly drunk in the west) is made from leaves that have been fermented and then dried. Tea contains polyphenols, these are antioxidants that help to protect the body against heart diseases, stroke and cancer. It also contains the stimulant caffeine which, when taken in excess, can cause sleeplessness and irritability and also, through its action as a diuretic, act to remove nutrients from the body. Tea is also rich in tannin and is a possible cause of oesophageal cancer. Cold tea is sometimes used as a soaking liquid to flavour dried fruit. One report says that the leaves are used as a boiled vegetable. The leaves contain about 25.7% protein, 6.5% fat, 40.8% carbohydrate, 5% ash, 3.3% caffeine, 12.9% tannin. Terminal sprouts with 2-3 leaves are usually hand-plucked, 10 kg of green shoots (75-80% water) produce about 2.5 kg dried tea. The bushes are plucked every 7-15 days, depending on the development of the tender shoots. Leaves that are slow in development always make a better flavoured product. Various techniques are used to produce black teas, usually during July and August when solar heat is most intense. Freshly picked leaves are spread very thinly and evenly on trays and placed in the sun until the leaves become very flaccid, requiring 13 hours or more, depending on heat and humidity. Other types of black teas are made by withering the leaves, rolling them into a ball and allowing to ferment in a damp place for 3-6 hours, at which time the ball turns a yellowish copper colour, with an agreeable fruity one. If this stage goes too far, the leaves become sour and unfit for tea. After fermenting, the ball is broken up and the leaves spread out on trays and dried in oven until leaves are brittle and have slight odour of tea. Tea is then stored in air-tight tin boxes or cans. As soon as harvested, leaves are steamed or heated to dry the natural sap and prevent oxidation to produce green tea. Still soft and pliable after the initial treatment, the leaves are then rolled and subjected to further firing. Thus dried, the leaves are sorted into various grades of green tea. The flowers are made into 'tempura' using the edible oil that is obtained from the seed. A clear golden-yellow edible oil resembling sasanqua oil is obtained from the seed. The oil needs to be refined before it is eaten. An essential oil distilled from the fermented dried leaves is used as a commercial food flavouring. Tea extract is used as a flavour in alcoholic beverages, frozen dairy desserts, candy, baked goods, gelatines, and puddings. Tea is a potential source of food colours (black, green, orange, yellow, etc.).


Top Edible Trees No 13  #EdibleTrees:
Scarlet Hawthorn Crataegus ellwangeriana: http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Crataegus+ellwangeriana

Fruit - raw or cooked. Juicy and acid. An excellent dessert fruit, it has an acid yet sweet flavour,is juicy but with a mealy texture, it makes very pleasant eating. The fruit can also be used in making pies,
preserves etc, and can be dried for later use. A reasonable size, it is about 15mm in diameter.
A specimen at Kew has fruits up to 25mm 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.

 

D'autres cultures vivrières


Il existe littéralement des milliers d’espèces de plantes comestibles cultivables en climat tempéré, et pourtant, la plupart des gens n’en connaissent qu’une trentaine disponibles chez le marchand de légumes, et dont la plupart ont été importées. Dans ce chapitre, nous vous présentons une petite sélection de plantes comestibles peu connues, qui sont toutes assez faciles à cultiver dans la plupart des terrains, et qui demandent peu d'attention. Toutes sont des plantes vivaces à moins que le contraire ne soit indiqué.

http://www.pfaf.org/user/cmspage.aspx?pageid=283

 
 
 
© 2010, Plants For A Future. Plants For A Future is a charitable company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales. Charity No. 1057719, Company No. 3204567.