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Botany Photo of the Day Recent Comments
On May 9, 2008 1:31 PM, Lorax commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
I grow them within their native range - tuber colour is a matter of cultivar and doesn't seem to affect flavour any.
I've eaten them raw, but only after exposing them to sunlight for a couple of days. They are very tasty with salt. The oxalic acid content of the tubers is very low to begin with, and the sunlight seems to break this down. Certainly cooking does.
I wouldn't actually be too concerned with the oxalic acid content in Oca, since both Spinach and Rhubarb contain more.
On May 9, 2008 11:19 AM, breanna commented on Akebia quinata:
what in there
On May 9, 2008 11:19 AM, Margaret-Rae Davis commented on Moringa oleifera:
Thank you so much for the wonderful photograph and all the information. I am amazed at all I learned about the tree. All the different stages in it's growth seem so important. This will take re-reading to asorb all you have given.
Thank you again,
Margaret-Rae
On May 9, 2008 10:28 AM, ramniwas goyal commented on Bombax ceiba:
I want complete details of simal tree,its crop in india,its avalability,history,usage etc. with photographs.
On May 9, 2008 8:12 AM, Lorax commented on Musa textilis:
Abacá is definitely becoming big here in Ecuador; I've been seeing traditional toquilla hats (called Panama Hats everywhere else) made of the Abacá fibre as well, and it compares favourably to the palm. I have an Abacá shirt, and it's lasted nearly 10 years with no sign of wear.
It's interesting to note that while the fibre of M. textilis is the most heavily commecialised, a strong bast fibre can be made using the stalks of almost any banana plant. Cavendish bananas (M. x acuminata), for example, produce a fibre very similar in weight and texture to silk, and it has long been a tradition in Ecuador to make rope from the stems of Plantain bananas (M. x paradisiaca.)
And yes, Knox, that's how Musa inflorescences work - they open in layers until the female flowers (which produce the fruits) are spent, which is about 20 or 30 layers depending on species, then continue by layers for the male flowers.
On May 9, 2008 6:36 AM, Denis commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
I've grown them for several years. I purchased my base stock from Nichols Garden Nursery in Albany, Oregon.
Cooked, their taste is hard to distinguish from "baby" potatoes, but with a more delicate texture.
I think oxalic acid breaks down during cooking, as there was no detectable flavor in the cooked tubers; however, it is probably worth a little research before eating it raw (I haven't tried it that way myself).
On May 9, 2008 5:42 AM, Knox commented on Musa textilis:
Thanks Connor. Very interesting write-up. It appears that the flower petals keep opening in groups of four to provide almost continual flowering. Am I correctly interpreting the photograph?
On May 9, 2008 4:39 AM, tt commented on Dodecatheon pulchellum:
pulchellum is a new borrowed word?
On May 9, 2008 12:35 AM, armelle de Saint Sauveur commented on Moringa oleifera:
If you want to learn more about Moringa (and about the APPEF project in Togo), you can go to the international Moringa Network: www.moringanews.org
You will find a lot of information in the Document section and in the Workshop section.
All the best
Dr Armelle de Saint Sauveur, Director, Moringanews
On May 8, 2008 11:10 PM, Elizabeth Revell commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
Here in New Zealand we call the pictured corms "yams". I know that true yams are different, but that's marketing for you. They're a lot bigger than the small corms on ornamental flowering oxalis, quite a few varieties of which are a pest weed in our gardens (north of the Waikato, anyway, thanks to our warm winters). Some varieties are very non-spreading, others (the pests) are prolific producers of tiny pup bulblets which break off and lurk in the soil when their parent is weeded out ... Mind you, when they flower at least they're pretty weeds!
On May 8, 2008 10:16 PM, Bonita M. commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
Well this is amazing!! I love this plant. I also knew it as a shamrock plant. Just learned last year it's real name Oxalis. My daughter has a purple leaved and lavender flowered one that she has had for years in her home. I have had the green leaved white flower variety and the purple one but both died off last year. (I had them outside). I did notice the little corms in the pot. Awww isn't mother nature grand?
On May 8, 2008 8:35 PM, nick commented on Euphorbia myrsinites:
I just found this site.Thank you all for your postings. I to have just tangled with what I was thinking was a garden love, beautiful bloom , evergreen in the northwest, didn't even mind trimming her after the bloom, but.... i feel like i just tangled with a demon.. not even realizing that i had sap on me, my eye started burning running my nose started huting and stopped up . i too showered rinsed my eyes with soap and water and and still wow wee!!!!
On May 8, 2008 3:22 PM, Michael F commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
"I wonder if they are at all related to the regular potato as us Westerners know them" - no, they're not. Oca is in the family Oxalidaceae, Potato in the family Solanaceae.
"I'd love to try to grow this here in BC - but I haven't found tubers for sale" - you'd presumably run into the high latitude difficulties mentioned in the account above: "Outside of its native area, such as in higher latitudes, autumn frosts may kill the plant before the tubers are fully developed. Under such conditions, commercially relevant yields are hard to achieve".
On May 8, 2008 1:43 PM, Old Ari commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
Is the acid, Oxalic? If so be careful.
On May 8, 2008 10:58 AM, Eva commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
I'd love to try to grow this here in BC - but I haven't found tubers for sale. Does anyone know where they are available? Heres a US co that sells to US only: http://www.horizonherbs.com/product.asp?specific=2081
On May 8, 2008 10:08 AM, Eric in SF commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
Can a moderator approve my link-laden post from earlier this morning? I assume the links caused it to be sent to someone for approval.
On May 8, 2008 9:58 AM, Paul Jay Reed commented on Moringa oleifera:
I just happen to have some Moringa seeds. The packet says: 75-80% germination rate, plant 1" deep, germination 2-5 weeks.
http://api.flickr.com/services/feeds/photos_public.gne?id=49288626@N00&lang=en-us&format=rss_200
On May 8, 2008 9:35 AM, elizabeth a airhart commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
i also know of the flowering
plant oxalis my mother had
one on her window sill
perhaps there are markets
here in the states
i live in florida whole foods
might know of it
always interesting around here
On May 8, 2008 9:16 AM, George L. in Vermont commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
Gorgeous critters!
Do these tubers contain oxalic acid and how does that effect their nutritional value?
On May 8, 2008 8:16 AM, ingrid commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
Oops, meant 3-leaved, of course!!
On May 8, 2008 8:15 AM, June commented on Moringa oleifera:
I read this post with great interest. I am Sri Lankan and just about all gardens there have a spindly "murunga" or "drumstick" tree. We never ate the roots but the pods and leaves were eaten regularly. As kids we loved "drumstick curry" because of the work involved scraping the flesh off the hard peel! The leaves have a distinct taste which I would not describe as an "off taste". To cook the leaves, the leaves were first stripped of the main stem and then cooked by lightly sauteing it with a small amount of onion. In the coastal areas, crabs were always cooked in a curry with Murunga leaves. In the hills, the leaves were blended into a pan fried bread (called roti's) by the Indian tamils (mostly very poor workers' in the tea estates). I am very glad to now know that these leaves are very nourishing. Thank you.
On May 8, 2008 8:09 AM, Eric in SF commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
Here are several shots of Oca from markets in southern Peru:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ericinsf/138832803/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ericinsf/137153423/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ericinsf/137199899/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ericinsf/137153718/
Oca is also a common root vegetable in New Zealand, where it's called a Yam.
On May 8, 2008 6:57 AM, Sunny commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
Here is a great book online that has a lot of information about many andean crops, including oca.
http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=030904264X
On May 8, 2008 6:29 AM, ingrid commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
These are so beautiful! I'm also only familiar with the 4-leaved oxalis which grows in our garden & woodland (London,UK), must admit I didn't even know they had small corms. I'll be reading up about that for the near future, it's truly whetted my appetite (in both senses!). Our garden oxalis always gets a rust fungus & dies so maybe never has a chance to develop a corm??
Thanks so much for the wonderful BPotD!
On May 8, 2008 5:45 AM, Hollis commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
I chew on wild oxalis stems occasionally (O. stricta) ... they are tart! So I found it interesting that there's a truly edible Oxalis product
On May 8, 2008 5:13 AM, Deb commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
Beautiful! And the only Oxalis I'm really familiar with are the Shamrocks (being born on St. Patrick's Day). But the corms look like miniature versions of the tubers shown above. I'd be interested in seeing the leafy portions of these.
On May 8, 2008 2:04 AM, Elizabeth Revell commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
What a wonderful picture. I had no idea that they came in such a variety of shapes and colours. Does this affect their flavour at all? I've only ever seen or eaten the pink nobbly ones - which are delicious - but I would love it if someone in New Zealand started to market such a variety as you display.
On May 8, 2008 12:49 AM, Sue in Bremerton WA commented on Oxalis tuberosa:
They are beautiful. I wonder if they are at all related to the regular potato as us Westerners know them. One time a lady gave me some Jerusalem artichokes that weren't too bad. She grew them instead of potatos, just for fun.
Good article... Thanks so much.
On May 7, 2008 10:32 PM, Denis commented on Moringa oleifera:
with the specific epithet "oleifera" (I believe it mean "oil bearing") I was surprised there was no mention of it being used as a source of some sort of edible oil.
Is that also a use of this versatile plant?
On May 7, 2008 2:15 PM, Equisetum commented on Moringa oleifera:
I had a seed-grown Moringa (assuming the seed in the packet was correctly identified) in a pot for years here in Zone Schizophrenic -- cold enough for almost all apples, warm enough for avocadoes, with a bit of scheming; gets to 18 degrees F. for a while some years, to the high twenties routinely, but not for very long in a normal year; very hot dry summers. My plant never bloomed, which is why I have to take the vendor's word for the ID -- a well-known herb company I've since found to have an extremely cavalier attitude about what it puts in its seed packets. The Moringa, if it was, came up fairly quickly at ambient temperature (soil near the surface 55 F. night, 80 or higher daytime in late April would be normal) -- as I remember, after a day's soak and perhaps nicking seed that didn't swell.
It's my understanding that the name is because the fat taproot looks like horseradish, not that it tastes like it. Mine certainly didn't. The leaves were tough, a bit bitter, and didn't inspire me to make a meal of them, nor add them to one. (We didn't find the 'drumsticks' I once found in an Indian grocery in Berkeley, CA palatable either -- though they may have been overripe or old, or both.) One account's writer
http://www.ednakelly.com/gardening/moringa
mentions that her first plant's leaves had an "off" flavor, and that her second tasted OK and was much prettier -- I suspect that her first plant may have been "sweet neem," as the local Indians call Murraya koenigii. Mine looked very very much like the drumstick tree when I had them both. The M. koenigii leaves have a very dark rather skunky aroma (?) on the tongue, recognisable in some restaurant curries once the original has been tasted.
I did find a chart of the nutritional value of the stripped leaves of Moringa (at http://www.echotech.org/technical/technotes/moringabiomasa.pdf); it looks to me to be similar to that of alfalfa leaves (another 'miracle' food for humans, or so its purveyors would like us to believe) --less, at a guess, as #1 dairy alfalfa (with stems) runs from about 18 to 24% protein, with dried Moringa leaf powder at about 27%. Other nutrient content is (vitamin A, calcium) is comparable to that found in alfalfa too -- good but not miraculous.
Back to the plant: I eventually got tired of dragging the 22" pot into the greenhouse and started leaving it out, and then got tired of waiting for the not all that interesting tree to bloom, and cut it off at the base in midsummer, there being some things I didn't think I could disentangle also in the pot, and it came back several times. I think it's a pretty sturdy plant! Note that sometimes plants in pots resist frost better than those in the ground here, for no reason I've figured out yet, and that the Drumstick Tree pot spent its first winters sitting on greenhouse heating cable in an otherwise unheated greenhouse.
mm
