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Thailand: Gac fruit (<i>Momordica cochinchinensis</i>), Chiang Mai, northern Thailand.<br/><br> Gấc (<i>Momordica cochinchinensis</i>), originally discovered in Vietnam, is a type of perennial melon grown throughout Southeast Asia and Northeastern Australia. Gấc is notable for its orange-reddish color resulting from its rich content of beta-carotene and lycopene.
Thailand: Gac fruit (<i>Momordica cochinchinensis</i>), Chiang Mai, northern Thailand.<br/><br> Gấc (<i>Momordica cochinchinensis</i>), originally discovered in Vietnam, is a type of perennial melon grown throughout Southeast Asia and Northeastern Australia. Gấc is notable for its orange-reddish color resulting from its rich content of beta-carotene and lycopene.
Thailand: Gac fruit (<i>Momordica cochinchinensis</i>), Chiang Mai, northern Thailand.<br/><br> Gấc (<i>Momordica cochinchinensis</i>), originally discovered in Vietnam, is a type of perennial melon grown throughout Southeast Asia and Northeastern Australia. Gấc is notable for its orange-reddish color resulting from its rich content of beta-carotene and lycopene.
Thailand: Gac fruit (<i>Momordica cochinchinensis</i>), Chiang Mai, northern Thailand.<br/><br> Gấc (<i>Momordica cochinchinensis</i>), originally discovered in Vietnam, is a type of perennial melon grown throughout Southeast Asia and Northeastern Australia. Gấc is notable for its orange-reddish color resulting from its rich content of beta-carotene and lycopene.
Quassia is a flora genus in the family Simaroubaceae. Its size is disputed; some botanists treat it as consisting of only one species, <i>Quassia amara</i> from tropical South America, while others treat it in a wide circumscription as a pantropical genus containing up to 40 species of trees and shrubs.<br/><br/> The genus was named after a former slave from Surinam, Graman Quassi in the eighteenth century. He discovered the medicinal properties of the bark of <i>Quassia amara</i>.
Vietnam / Philippines: Gac fruit (<i>Momordica cochinchinensis</i>), from Francisco Manuel Blanco's <i>Flora de Filipinas</i>, 1883.<br/><br> Gấc (<i>Momordica cochinchinensis</i>), originally discovered in Vietnam, is a type of perennial melon grown throughout Southeast Asia and Northeastern Australia. Gấc is notable for its orange-reddish color resulting from its rich content of beta-carotene and lycopene.
Wisteria (also spelled Wistaria or Wysteria) is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae, that includes ten species of woody climbing vines native to the Eastern United States and to China, Korea, and Japan.<br/><br/> Some species are popular ornamental plants, especially in China and Japan.
The tulip is a perennial, bulbous plant with showy flowers in the genus Tulipa, of which around 75 wild species are currently accepted and which belongs to the family Liliaceae. The genus's native range extends west to the Iberian Peninsula, through North Africa to Greece, the Balkans, Turkey, throughout the Levant (Syria, Israel, Lebanon, Jordan) and Iran, North to Ukraine, southern Siberia and Mongolia, and east to the Northwest of China.<br/><br/> The tulip's centre of diversity is in the Pamir, Hindu Kush, and Tien Shan mountains. It is a typical element of steppe and winter-rain Mediterranean vegetation. A number of species and many hybrid cultivars are grown in gardens, as potted plants, or as cut flowers.
The tulip is a perennial, bulbous plant with showy flowers in the genus Tulipa, of which around 75 wild species are currently accepted and which belongs to the family Liliaceae. The genus's native range extends west to the Iberian Peninsula, through North Africa to Greece, the Balkans, Turkey, throughout the Levant (Syria, Israel, Lebanon, Jordan) and Iran, North to Ukraine, southern Siberia and Mongolia, and east to the Northwest of China.<br/><br/> The tulip's centre of diversity is in the Pamir, Hindu Kush, and Tien Shan mountains. It is a typical element of steppe and winter-rain Mediterranean vegetation. A number of species and many hybrid cultivars are grown in gardens, as potted plants, or as cut flowers.
Basilius Besler (1561–1629) was a respected Nuremberg apothecary and botanist, best known for his monumental botanical study <i>Hortus Eystettenis</i>, 1613.<br/><br/> He was curator of the garden of Johann Konrad von Gemmingen, prince bishop of Eichstätt in Bavaria. The bishop was an enthusiastic botanist who derived great pleasure from his garden, which rivaled Hortus Botanicus Leiden among early European botanical gardens outside Italy.
Basilius Besler (1561–1629) was a respected Nuremberg apothecary and botanist, best known for his monumental botanical study <i>Hortus Eystettenis</i>, 1613.<br/><br/> He was curator of the garden of Johann Konrad von Gemmingen, prince bishop of Eichstätt in Bavaria. The bishop was an enthusiastic botanist who derived great pleasure from his garden, which rivaled Hortus Botanicus Leiden among early European botanical gardens outside Italy.
Monarda is a genus of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. The genus is endemic to North America.<br/><br/> Common names include bee balm, horsemint, oswego tea, and bergamot, the latter inspired by the fragrance of the leaves, which is reminiscent of bergamot orange (Citrus bergamia). The genus was named for the Spanish botanist Nicolás Monardes, who wrote a book in 1574 describing plants of the New World.
<i>Iris germanica</i> grows up to 120 cm high and 30 cm wide. The roots can go up to 10 cm deep. It is a rhizomatous perennial that blooms in April to June. Lifting, dividing and replanting the rhizomes is best done once flowering has finished as this is when the plant grows the new shoots that will flower the following year.<br/><br/> Hundreds of hybrids exist representing every colour from jet black to sparkling whites. The only colour really missing is bright scarlet.
Ginger or ginger root is the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale, consumed as a delicacy, medicine, or spice. It lends its name to its genus and family (Zingiberaceae). Other notable members of this plant family are turmeric, cardamom, and galangal. The distantly related dicots in the Asarum genus have the common name wild ginger because of their similar taste.<br/><br/> Ginger cultivation began in South Asia and has since spread to East Africa and the Caribbean.
Cloves (Syzygium aromaticum) are the aromatic dried flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae. Cloves are native to the Maluku islands in Indonesia and used as a spice in cuisines all over the world. Cloves are harvested primarily in Indonesia, India, Madagascar, Zanzibar, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. They have a numbing effect on mouth tissues.<br/><br/>The clove tree is an evergreen that grows to a height ranging from 8–12 m, having large leaves and sanguine flowers in numerous groups of terminal clusters. The flower buds are at first of a pale color and gradually become green, after which they develop into a bright red, when they are ready for collecting. Cloves are harvested when 1.5–2 cm long, and consist of a long calyx, terminating in four spreading sepals, and four unopened petals which form a small ball in the center.
According to oral tradition, tea has been grown in China for more than four millennia. The earliest written accounts of tea making, however, date from around 350 AD, when it first became a drink at the imperial court.<br/><br/> Around 800 AD tea seeds were taken to Japan, where regular cultivation was soon established. Just over five centuries later, in 1517, tea was first shipped to Europe by the Portuguese soon after they began their trade with China. In 1667 the Honourable East India Company ordered the first British shipment of tea from China, requesting of their agents ‘one hundred pounds weight of the best tey that you can get’.<br/><br/> In 1826 the Dutch bought seeds from Japan for cultivation in their growing East Indian Empire, supplementing this effort in 1833 by imports of seeds, workers and implements from China. Meanwhile, also in the 1830s, the East India Company began growing tea on an experimental basis in Assam – the first one hundred boxes of Assamese tea reached Britain in 1840, and found a ready market.<br/><br/> About the same time, tea seedlings were transplanted from Assam to Sri Lanka and planted in the highlands around Kandy. By the beginning of the present century tea was very much in fashion, with plantations established as far afield as Vietnam in Southeast Asia, Georgia in Europe, Natal, Malawi, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique in Africa, Argentina, Brazil and Peru in South America, and Queensland in Australia. Despite this proliferation, however, Sri Lanka remains the largest producer of tea in the world today, with the fragrant black leaf the mainstay of its economy.
Styrax benzoin is a species of tree native to Sumatra in Indonesia. Common names for the tree include gum benjamin tree, loban (in Arabic), kemenyan (in Indonesia and Malaysia), onycha, and Sumatra benzoin tree.<br/><br/> Benzoin resin, a dried exudation from pierced bark, is currently produced from various Styrax species native to Sumatra, Java, and Thailand. Commonly traded are the resins of S. tonkinensis (Siam benzoin), S. benzoin (Sumatra benzoin), and S. benzoides. The name 'benzoin' is probably derived from Arabic lubān jāwī (لبان جاوي, 'Javan frankincense'); compare the obsolete terms 'gum benjamin' and 'benjoin'. This incidentally shows that the Arabs were aware of the origin of these resins, and that by the late Middle Ages at latest international trade in them was probably of major importance.
Frankincense has been traded on the Arabian Peninsula and in North Africa for more than 5000 years.<br/><br/> A mural depicting sacks of frankincense traded from the Land of Punt adorns the walls of the temple of ancient Egyptian Queen Hatshepsut, who died in 1458 BCE. The Incense trade route or the Incense Road of Antiquity comprised a network of major ancient trading routes linking the Mediterranean world with Eastern sources of incense (and spices), stretching from Mediterranean ports across the Levant and Egypt through Arabia to India.<br/><br/> The incense trade flourished from South Arabia to the Mediterranean between roughly the 3rd century BCE to the 2nd century CE. The Incense Route served as a channel for trading of goods such as Arabian frankincense and myrrh; Indian spices, ebony, silk and fine textiles; and East African rare woods, feathers, animal skins and gold.
Karlsruhe in SW Germany was founded by and named after Margrave Karl Wilhelm of Baden-Durlach in 1715. He lived in the Karlsruhe Schloss (castle) whose baroque gardens were arranged in a concentric pattern and the 32 avenues radiating from the central tower gave rise to the circular shape of the town. The Karlsruhe Tulpenbuch contains some magnificent hand painted images of tulips, as well as other flowers.
The tulip is a perennial, bulbous plant with showy flowers in the genus Tulipa, of which up to 109 species have been described and belongs to the family Liliaceae. The genus's native range extends from as far west as Southern Europe, North Africa, Anatolia, and Iran to the Northwest of China.<br/><br/> The tulip's centre of diversity is in the Pamir, Hindu Kush, and Tien Shan mountains. A number of species and many hybrid cultivars are grown in gardens, as potted plants, or to display as fresh-cut flowers. Most cultivars of tulip are derived from Tulipa gesneriana.<br/><br/> Sydenham Teast Edwards (1768 – 8 February 1819) was a natural history illustrator born in 1768 in Usk, Monmouthshire, Scotland.
The nutmeg tree is any of several species of trees in genus Myristica. The most important commercial species is Myristica fragrans, an evergreen tree indigenous to the Banda Islands in the Moluccas (or Spice Islands) of Indonesia. The nutmeg tree is important for two spices derived from the fruit: nutmeg and mace.<br/><br/> Nutmeg is the seed of the tree, roughly egg-shaped and about 20 to 30 mm (0.8 to 1 in) long and 15 to 18 mm (0.6 to 0.7 in) wide, and weighing between 5 and 10 g (0.2 and 0.4 oz) dried, while mace is the dried 'lacy' reddish covering or aril of the seed. The first harvest of nutmeg trees takes place 7–9 years after planting, and the trees reach full production after 20 years. Nutmeg is usually used in powdered form. This is the only tropical fruit that is the source of two different spices.<br/><br/> The common or fragrant nutmeg, Myristica fragrans, native to the Banda Islands of Indonesia, is also grown in Penang Island in Malaysia and the Caribbean, especially in Grenada. It also grows in Kerala in southern India.
Sandalwoods are medium-sized hemiparasitic trees. Notable members of this group are Indian sandalwood (Santalum album) and Australian sandalwood (Santalum spicatum). Others in the genus species have fragrant wood. These are found in India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Australia, Indonesia, and the Pacific Islands. In India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka it is called Chandan.<br/><br/> The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades
Sandalwoods are medium-sized hemiparasitic trees. Notable members of this group are Indian sandalwood (Santalum album) and Australian sandalwood (Santalum spicatum). Others in the genus species have fragrant wood. These are found in India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Australia, Indonesia, and the Pacific Islands. In India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka it is called Chandan.<br/><br/> The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades
The Hmong are an Asian ethnic group from the mountainous regions of China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. Hmong are also one of the sub-groups of the Miao ethnicity in southern China. Hmong groups began a gradual southward migration in the 18th century due to political unrest and to find more arable land.
The Hmong are an Asian ethnic group from the mountainous regions of China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. Hmong are also one of the sub-groups of the Miao ethnicity in southern China. Hmong groups began a gradual southward migration in the 18th century due to political unrest and to find more arable land.
Frankincense has been traded on the Arabian Peninsula and in North Africa for more than 5000 years.<br/><br/> A mural depicting sacks of frankincense traded from the Land of Punt adorns the walls of the temple of ancient Egyptian Queen Hatshepsut, who died in 1458 BCE. The Incense trade route or the Incense Road of Antiquity comprised a network of major ancient trading routes linking the Mediterranean world with Eastern sources of incense (and spices), stretching from Mediterranean ports across the Levant and Egypt through Arabia to India.<br/><br/> The incense trade flourished from South Arabia to the Mediterranean between roughly the 3rd century BCE to the 2nd century CE. The Incense Route served as a channel for trading of goods such as Arabian frankincense and myrrh; Indian spices, ebony, silk and fine textiles; and East African rare woods, feathers, animal skins and gold.
Myrrh is the aromatic oleoresin of a number of small, thorny tree species of the genus Commiphora, which grow in dry, stony soil. An oleoresin is a natural blend of an essential oil and a resin. Myrrh resin is a natural gum.<br/><br/> When a tree wound penetrates through the bark and into the sapwood, the tree bleeds a resin. Myrrh gum, like frankincense, is such a resin. When people harvest myrrh, they wound the trees repeatedly to bleed them of the gum. Myrrh gum is waxy, and coagulates quickly. After the harvest, the gum becomes hard and glossy. The gum is yellowish, and may be either clear or opaque. It darkens deeply as it ages, and white streaks emerge.<br/><br/> Myrrh gum is commonly harvested from the species Commiphora myrrha, which is native to Yemen, Somalia, and eastern Ethiopia. The related Commiphora gileadensis, native to Eastern Mediterranean and particularly the Arabian Peninsula, is the biblically referenced Balm of Gilead. Several other species yield bdellium, and Indian myrrh.<br/><br/> The oleo gum resins of a number of other Commiphora and Balsamodendron species are also used as perfumes, medicines (such as aromatic wound dressings), and incense ingredients.
Myrrh is the aromatic oleoresin of a number of small, thorny tree species of the genus Commiphora, which grow in dry, stony soil. An oleoresin is a natural blend of an essential oil and a resin. Myrrh resin is a natural gum.<br/><br/> When a tree wound penetrates through the bark and into the sapwood, the tree bleeds a resin. Myrrh gum, like frankincense, is such a resin. When people harvest myrrh, they wound the trees repeatedly to bleed them of the gum. Myrrh gum is waxy, and coagulates quickly. After the harvest, the gum becomes hard and glossy. The gum is yellowish, and may be either clear or opaque. It darkens deeply as it ages, and white streaks emerge.<br/><br/> Myrrh gum is commonly harvested from the species Commiphora myrrha, which is native to Yemen, Somalia, and eastern Ethiopia. The related Commiphora gileadensis, native to Eastern Mediterranean and particularly the Arabian Peninsula, is the biblically referenced Balm of Gilead. Several other species yield bdellium, and Indian myrrh.<br/><br/> The oleo gum resins of a number of other Commiphora and Balsamodendron species are also used as perfumes, medicines (such as aromatic wound dressings), and incense ingredients.
Abu Yahya Zakariya' ibn Muhammad al-Qazwini (1203-1283) was a Persian physician, astronomer, and geographer from the Persian town of Qazvin. He served as legal expert and judge (qadi) in several localities in Persia and at Baghdad. He travelled around in Mesopotamia and Syria, and finally entered the circle patronized by the governor of Baghdad, ‘Ata-Malik Juwayni (d. 1283 CE).<br/><br/> Al-Qazwini's most famous work was an Arabic cosmography entitled 'Aja'ib al-makhluqat wa-ghara'ib al-mawjudat, or 'Marvels of Creatures and Strange Things in Existence'. This treatise, frequently illustrated, was immensely popular and is preserved today in many copies. It was translated into Persian and Turkish.<br/><br/> Frankincense, also called olibanum (Arabic: lubbān), is an aromatic resin obtained from trees of the genus Boswellia, particularly Boswellia sacra. It is used in incense and perfumes.<br/><br/> There are four main species of Boswellia which produce true frankincense and each type of resin is available in various grades. The grades depend on the time of harvesting, and the resin is hand-sorted for quality.
The pomegranate /ˈpɒmɨɡrænɨt/, botanical name Punica granatum, is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub or small tree growing between 5–8 meters (16–26 ft) tall. The pomegranate is widely considered to have originated in Iran and has been cultivated since ancient times. Today, it is widely cultivated throughout the Mediterranean region of southern Europe, the Middle East and Caucasus region, northern Africa and tropical Africa, the Indian subcontinent, Central Asia and the drier parts of southeast Asia. Introduced into Latin America and California by Spanish settlers in 1769, pomegranate is also cultivated in parts of California and Arizona. In the Northern Hemisphere, the fruit is typically in season from September to February. In the Southern Hemisphere, the pomegranate is in season from March to May. The pomegranate has been mentioned in many ancient texts, notably in Babylonian texts, the Book of Exodus, the Homeric Hymns and the Quran. In recent years, it has become more common in the commercial markets of North America and the Western Hemisphere. Pomegranates are used in cooking, baking, juices, smoothies and alcoholic beverages, such as martinis and wine.
Maize ( from Spanish: maíz after Taíno mahiz), known in some English-speaking countries as corn, is a large grain plant domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times.<br/><br/> The leafy stalk produces ears which contain the grain, which are seeds called kernels. Maize kernels are often used in cooking as a starch.
Lilium (members of which are true lilies) is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world.<br/><br/> Most species are native to the temperate northern hemisphere, though their range extends into the northern subtropics. Many other plants have 'lily' in their common name but are not related to true lilies.
Common wheat was first domesticated in Western Asia during the early Holocene, and spread from there to North Africa, Europe and East Asia in the prehistoric period.<br/><br/> Wheat first reached North America with Spanish missions in the 16th century, but North America's role as a major exporter of grain dates from the colonization of the prairies in the 1870s. As grain exports from Russia ceased in the First World War, grain production in Kansas doubled.<br/><br/> Worldwide, bread wheat has proved well adapted to modern industrial baking, and has displaced many of the other wheat, barley, and rye species that were once commonly used for bread making, particularly in Europe.
Opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is the species of plant from which opium and poppy seeds are extracted. Opium is the source of many opiates, including morphine, thebaine, codeine, papaverine, and noscapine. The Latin botanical name means the "sleep-bringing poppy", referring to the sedative properties of some of these opiates.
The lemon is a small evergreen tree native to Asia, and the tree's ellipsoidal yellow fruit. The fruit is used for culinary and non-culinary purposes throughout the world, primarily for its juice, though the pulp and rind (zest) are also used in cooking and baking. The juice of the lemon is about 5% to 6% citric acid, which gives lemons a sour taste. The distinctive sour taste of lemon juice makes it a key ingredient in drinks and foods such as lemonade.<br/><br/> The origin of the lemon is a mystery, though it is thought that lemons first grew in Assam (a region placed in Northeast India), northern Burma, and China.
Helianthus (sunflower) is a genus of plants comprising about 52 species in the Asteraceae family, all of which are native to North America. The common name 'sunflower' also applies to the popular annual species <i>Helianthus annuus</i>. This and other species, notably Jerusalem artichoke (<i>H. tuberosus</i>), are cultivated in temperate regions as food crops and ornamental plants.<br/><br/> The genus is one of many in the Asteraceae that are known as sunflowers. It is distinguished technically by the fact that the ray flowers, when present, are sterile, and by the presence on the disk flowers of a pappus that is of two awn-like scales that are cauducous (that is, easily detached and falling at maturity). Some species also have additional shorter scales in the pappus, and there is one species that lacks a pappus entirely.
Opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is the species of plant from which opium and poppy seeds are extracted. Opium is the source of many opiates, including morphine, thebaine, codeine, papaverine, and noscapine. <br/><br/> The Latin botanical name means the "sleep-bringing poppy", referring to the sedative properties of some of these opiates.
Monarda is a genus of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. The genus is endemic to North America.<br/><br/> Common names include bee balm, horsemint, oswego tea, and bergamot, the latter inspired by the fragrance of the leaves, which is reminiscent of bergamot orange (Citrus bergamia). The genus was named for the Spanish botanist Nicolás Monardes, who wrote a book in 1574 describing plants of the New World.
Paprika is a spice made from ground, dried fruits of Capsicum annuum, either bell pepper or chili pepper varieties or mixtures thereof. Paprika is often associated with Hungary, as it is commonplace in Hungarian cuisine. Spain and Portugal introduced Capsicum annuum to the Old World from the Americas.<br/><br/> Spanish pimentón, as it is known there, often has a smoky flavor because of how the Spanish dry it. Some versions of paprika and pimentón are smoked. The seasoning is used in many cuisines to add color and flavor to dishes, but it is usually associated with Turkey, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Hungary, Romania, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Morocco, and South Africa.
Lilium (members of which are true lilies) is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world.<br/><br/> Most species are native to the temperate northern hemisphere, though their range extends into the northern subtropics. Many other plants have "lily" in their common name but are not related to true lilies.
<i>Gardenia jasminoides</i>, (common gardenia, cape jasmine or cape jessamine) is an evergreen flowering plant of the family Rubiaceae. It originated in Asia and is most commonly found growing wild in Vietnam, Southern China, Taiwan, Japan, Myanmar and India. With its shiny green leaves and heavily fragrant white summer flowers, it is widely used in gardens in warm temperate and subtropical climates, and as a houseplant in temperate regions.<br/><br/> It has been in cultivation in China for at least a thousand years, and was introduced to English gardens in the mid 18th century. Many varieties have been bred for horticulture, with low growing, and large- and long-flowering forms.
Conquered by France in 1859, Saigon was influenced by the French during their colonial occupation of Vietnam, and a number of classical Western-style buildings and French villas in the city reflect this. Saigon had, in 1929, a population of 123,890, including 12,100 French.
Black pepper (Piper nigrum) is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit, known as a peppercorn when dried, is approximately 5 millimetres (0.20 in) in diameter, dark red when fully mature, and, like all drupes, contains a single seed. Peppercorns, and the ground pepper derived from them, may be described simply as pepper, or more precisely as black pepper (cooked and dried unripe fruit), green pepper (dried unripe fruit) and white pepper (unripe fruit seeds).<br/><br/> Black pepper is native to south India, and is extensively cultivated there and elsewhere in tropical regions. Currently Vietnam is the world's largest producer and exporter of pepper, producing 34% of the world's Piper nigrum crop as of 2008.<br/><br/> Dried ground pepper has been used since antiquity for both its flavor and as a medicine. Black pepper is the world's most traded spice. It is one of the most common spices added to European cuisine and its descendants. The spiciness of black pepper is due to the chemical piperine, not to be confused with the capsaicin that gives fleshy peppers theirs. It is ubiquitous in the modern world as a seasoning, and is often paired with salt.
Rafflesia arnoldii produces the largest individual flower of any species in the world. But you might not want to get too close to it because it has 'a penetrating smell more repulsive than any buffalo carcass in an advanced stage of decomposition'.<br/><br/> Illustration by Friederich AW Miquel [1863].
The cashew tree is a tropical evergreen that produces the cashew nut and the cashew apple. Officially classed as Anacardium occidentale, it can grow as high as 14 metres (46 ft), but the dwarf cashew, growing up to 6 metres (20 ft), has proved more profitable, with earlier maturity and higher yields.<br/><br/> The cashew nut is served as a snack or used in recipes, like other nuts, although it is actually a seed. The cashew apple is a fruit, whose pulp can be processed into a sweet, astringent fruit drink or distilled into liqueur.<br/><br/> The shell of the cashew nut yield derivatives that can be used in many applications from lubricants to paints, and other parts of the tree have traditionally been used for snake-bites and other folk remedies.<br/><br/> Originally native to northeastern Brazil, the tree is now widely grown in tropical regions, Vietnam and Nigeria being major producers.
The peony is a flowering plant in the genus Paeonia, the only genus in the family Paeoniaceae. They are native to Asia, Southern Europe and Western North America. Boundaries between species are not clear and estimates of the number of species range from 25 to 40. Most are herbaceous perennial plants 0.5–1.5 metres (1.6–4.9 ft) tall, but some resemble trees 1.5–3 metres (4.9–9.8 ft) tall. They have compound, deeply lobed leaves and large, often fragrant, flowers, ranging from red to white or yellow, in late spring and early summer.
Opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is the species of plant from which opium and poppy seeds are extracted. Opium is the source of many opiates, including morphine, thebaine, codeine, papaverine, and noscapine. <br/><br/> The Latin botanical name means the "sleep-bringing poppy", referring to the sedative properties of some of these opiates.
The coconut palm (<i>Cocos nucifera</i>), is a member of the family Arecaceae (palm family). It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which, botanically, is a drupe, not a nut. The spelling cocoanut is an archaic form of the word. The term is derived from 16th-century Portuguese and Spanish coco, meaning 'head' or 'skull, from the three indentations on the coconut shell that resemble facial features.<br/><br/> Found throughout the tropic and subtropic area, the coconut is known for its great versatility as seen in the many uses of its different parts. Coconuts are part of the daily diets of many people. Coconuts are different from any other fruits because they contain a large quantity of 'water' and when immature they are known as tender-nuts or jelly-nuts and may be harvested for drinking. When mature, they still contain some water and can be used as seednuts or processed to give oil from the kernel, charcoal from the hard shell and coir from the fibrous husk. The endosperm is initially in its nuclear phase suspended within the coconut water. As development continues, cellular layers of endosperm deposit along the walls of the coconut, becoming the edible coconut 'flesh'.<br/><br/> When dried, the coconut flesh is called copra. The oil and milk derived from it are commonly used in cooking and frying; coconut oil is also widely used in soaps and cosmetics. The clear liquid coconut water within is a refreshing drink. The husks and leaves can be used as material to make a variety of products for furnishing and decorating. It also has cultural and religious significance in many societies that use it.
Clematis is a genus of about 300 species within the buttercup family Ranunculaceae. Their garden hybrids have been popular among gardeners, beginning with <i>Clematis</i> 'Jackmanii', a garden standby since 1862. More hybrid cultivars are being produced constantly. They are mainly of Chinese and Japanese origin.<br/><br/> Most species are known as clematis in English, while some are also known as traveller's joy, a name invented for the sole British native, <i>C. vitalba</i>, by the herbalist John Gerard; virgin's bower for <i>C. viticella</i>; old man's beard, applied to several with prominent seedheads; and leather flower or vase vine for the North American Clematis viorna.
Areca catechu is the areca palm or areca nut palm betel palm, Filipino: bunga, Indonesia/Malay: pinang, Malayalam: അടക്ക adakka, Kannada: ಅಡಿಕೆ Adike), a species of palm which grows in much of the tropical Pacific, Asia, and parts of east Africa.<br/><br/> The palm is believed to have originated in either Indonesia/Malaysia or the Philippines. Areca is derived from a local name from the Malabar Coast of India and catechu is from another Malay name for this palm, caccu.<br/><br/> This palm is often called the betel tree because its fruit, the areca nut, is often chewed along with the betel leaf, a leaf from a vine of the Piperaceae family.
Lilium (members of which are true lilies) is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world.<br/><br/> Most species are native to the temperate northern hemisphere, though their range extends into the northern subtropics. Many other plants have 'lily' in their common name but are not related to true lilies.
<i>Anemone hortensis</i>, commonly called Broad Leaved Anemone, is a perennial herbaceous plant with an underground rhizome, belonging to the genus Anemone of the Ranunculaceae family. The Genus name 'Anemone' comes from the Greek ἄνεμος (anemos, meaning wind ), as an ancient legend tells that the flowers opens only when the wind blows.<br/><br/> Albuca is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae. The genus is distributed mainly in southern and eastern Africa, with some species occurring in northern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.
Palm oil (also known as dendê oil, from Portuguese) is an edible vegetable oil derived from the mesocarp (reddish pulp) of the fruit of the oil palms, primarily the African oil palm Elaeis guineensis, and to a lesser extent from the American oil palm Elaeis oleifera and the maripa palm Attalea maripa.<br/><br/> Palm oil is a common cooking ingredient in the tropical belt of Africa, Southeast Asia and parts of Brazil. Its use in the commercial food industry in other parts of the world is buoyed by its lower cost and by the high oxidative stability (saturation) of the refined product when used for frying.
Magnolia is a large genus of about 210 flowering plant species in the subfamily Magnolioideae of the family Magnoliaceae. It is named after French botanist Pierre Magnol.<br/><br/> The natural range of Magnolia species is a disjunct distribution, with a main centre in east and southeast Asia and a secondary centre in eastern North America, Central America, the West Indies, and some species in South America.
Basilius Besler (1561–1629) was a respected Nuremberg apothecary and botanist, best known for his monumental botanical study <i>Hortus Eystettenis</i>, 1613.<br/><br/> He was curator of the garden of Johann Konrad von Gemmingen, prince bishop of Eichstätt in Bavaria. The bishop was an enthusiastic botanist who derived great pleasure from his garden, which rivaled Hortus Botanicus Leiden among early European botanical gardens outside Italy.
The papaya (from Carib via Spanish), papaw, or pawpaw is the fruit of the plant Carica papaya, the sole species in the genus Carica of the plant family Caricaceae. It is native to the tropics of the Americas, perhaps from southern Mexico and neighbouring Central America. It was first cultivated in Mexico several centuries before the emergence of the Mesoamerican classical civilizations.<br/><br/> The papaya is a large, tree-like plant, with a single stem growing from 5 to 10 m (16 to 33 ft) tall, with spirally arranged leaves confined to the top of the trunk. The lower trunk is conspicuously scarred where leaves and fruit were borne. The leaves are large, 50–70 cm (20–28 in) in diameter, deeply palmately lobed, with seven lobes. Unusually for such large plants, the trees are dioecious. The tree is usually unbranched, unless lopped. The flowers are similar in shape to the flowers of the Plumeria, but are much smaller and wax-like. They appear on the axils of the leaves, maturing into large fruit - 15–45 cm (5.9–17.7 in) long and 10–30 cm (3.9–11.8 in) in diameter. The fruit is ripe when it feels soft (as soft as a ripe avocado or a bit softer) and its skin has attained an amber to orange hue.
Basilius Besler (1561–1629) was a respected Nuremberg apothecary and botanist, best known for his monumental botanical study <i>Hortus Eystettenis</i>, 1613.<br/><br/> He was curator of the garden of Johann Konrad von Gemmingen, prince bishop of Eichstätt in Bavaria. The bishop was an enthusiastic botanist who derived great pleasure from his garden, which rivalled Hortus Botanicus Leiden among early European botanical gardens outside Italy.
Opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is the species of plant from which opium and poppy seeds are extracted. Opium is the source of many opiates, including morphine, thebaine, codeine, papaverine, and noscapine.<br/><br/> The Latin botanical name means the "sleep-bringing poppy", referring to the sedative properties of some of these opiates.
A walnut is an edible seed of any tree of the genus Juglans (Family Juglandaceae), especially the Persian or English walnut, Juglans regia. Broken nutmeats of the eastern black walnut from the tree Juglans nigra are also commercially available in small quantities, as are foods prepared with butternut nutmeats from Juglans cinerea.<br/><br/> Walnuts are rounded, single-seeded stone fruits of the walnut tree. The walnut fruit is enclosed in a green, leathery, fleshy husk. This husk is inedible. After harvest, the removal of the husk reveals the wrinkly walnut shell, which is in two halves. This shell is hard and encloses the kernel, which is also made up of two halves separated by a partition. The seed kernels — commonly available as shelled walnuts — are enclosed in a brown seed coat which contains antioxidants.
Helianthus (sunflower) is a genus of plants comprising about 52 species in the Asteraceae family, all of which are native to North America. The common name 'sunflower' also applies to the popular annual species <i>Helianthus annuus</i>. This and other species, notably Jerusalem artichoke (<i>H. tuberosus</i>), are cultivated in temperate regions as food crops and ornamental plants.<br/><br/> The genus is one of many in the Asteraceae that are known as sunflowers. It is distinguished technically by the fact that the ray flowers, when present, are sterile, and by the presence on the disk flowers of a pappus that is of two awn-like scales that are cauducous (that is, easily detached and falling at maturity). Some species also have additional shorter scales in the pappus, and there is one species that lacks a pappus entirely.
The pomegranate /ˈpɒmɨɡrænɨt/, botanical name Punica granatum, is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub or small tree growing between 5–8 meters (16–26 ft) tall.<br/><br/> The pomegranate is widely considered to have originated in Iran and has been cultivated since ancient times. Today, it is widely cultivated throughout the Mediterranean region of southern Europe, the Middle East and Caucasus region, northern Africa and tropical Africa, the Indian subcontinent, Central Asia and the drier parts of southeast Asia. Introduced into Latin America and California by Spanish settlers in 1769, pomegranate is also cultivated in parts of California and Arizona.<br/><br/> In the Northern Hemisphere, the fruit is typically in season from September to February. In the Southern Hemisphere, the pomegranate is in season from March to May.<br/><br/> The pomegranate has been mentioned in many ancient texts, notably in Babylonian texts, the Book of Exodus, the Homeric Hymns and the Quran. In recent years, it has become more common in the commercial markets of North America and the Western Hemisphere.<br/><br/> Pomegranates are used in cooking, baking, juices, smoothies and alcoholic beverages, such as martinis and wine.
Narcissus is a genus of mainly hardy, mostly spring-flowering, bulbous perennials in the Amaryllis family, subfamily Amaryllidoideae. Various common names including daffodil, narcissus, and jonquil are used to describe all or some of the genus. They are native to meadows and woods in Europe, North Africa, and West Asia, with a center of distribution in the Western Mediterranean.<br/><br/> The number of distinct species varies widely depending on how they are classified, with the disparity due to similarity between species and hybridization between species. The number of defined species ranges from 26 to more than 60, depending on the authority.
Opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is the species of plant from which opium and poppy seeds are extracted. Opium is the source of many opiates, including morphine, thebaine, codeine, papaverine, and noscapine. <br/><br/> The Latin botanical name means the "sleep-bringing poppy", referring to the sedative properties of some of these opiates.
<i>Magnolia denudata</i>, known as the Yulan magnolia (simplified Chinese: 玉兰花; traditional Chinese: 玉蘭花; pinyin: yùlánhuā; literally: 'jade orchid/lily'), is native to central and eastern China.<br/><br/> It has been cultivated in Chinese Buddhist temple gardens since 600 CE. Its flowers were regarded as a symbol of purity in the Tang Dynasty and it was planted in the grounds of the Emperor's palace. It is the official city flower of Shanghai.<br/><br/><i>Magnolia denudata</i> is a rather low, rounded, thickly branched, and coarse-textured tree to 30 feet (9.1 m) tall. The leaves are ovate, bright green, 15 cm long and 8 cm wide. Bark is a coarse dark gray. The 10–16 cm white flowers that emerge from early to late spring, while beautiful and thick with a citrus-lemon fragrance, are prone to browning if subjected to frost.
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia.<br/><br/> Cannabis has long been used for fibre (hemp), for seed and seed oils, for medicinal purposes, and as a recreational drug. Industrial hemp products are made from Cannabis plants selected to produce an abundance of fibre. To satisfy the UN Narcotics Convention, some hemp strains have been developed which contain minimal levels of THC (Δ9- tetrahydrocannabinol), one of the psychoactive molecules that produces the 'high' associated with marijuana.<br/><br/> The psychoactive product consists of dried flowers of plants selectively bred to produce high levels of THC and other psychoactive chemicals. Various extracts including hashish and hash oil are also produced from the plant.
Cloves (Syzygium aromaticum) are the aromatic dried flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae. Cloves are native to the Maluku islands in Indonesia and used as a spice in cuisines all over the world. Cloves are harvested primarily in Indonesia, India, Madagascar, Zanzibar, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. They have a numbing effect on mouth tissues.<br/><br/> The clove tree is an evergreen that grows to a height ranging from 8–12 m, having large leaves and sanguine flowers in numerous groups of terminal clusters. The flower buds are at first of a pale color and gradually become green, after which they develop into a bright red, when they are ready for collecting. Cloves are harvested when 1.5–2 cm long, and consist of a long calyx, terminating in four spreading sepals, and four unopened petals which form a small ball in the center.
USA: Dracaena cinnabari (Dragon's Blood Tree of Socotra / Suqutra Island), Koko Crater Botanical Garden, Hawaii. Image taken by Daderot and released into the public domain in 2009.
Pierre Poivre (23 August 1719 – 6 January 1786) was a French horticulturalist born in Lyon; missionary to China and Cochinchina, Intendant of the Islands of Mauritius and Bourbon, and wearer of the cordon of St. Michel. Poivre was an uncle to renowned French naturalist Pierre Sonnerat (1748-1814).<br/><br/> In his early 20s he was a missionary in Far Eastern locations such as Cochinchina, Guangzhou and Macau. In the 1760s, Poivre became administrator of Ile de France (Mauritius) and Ile Bourbon (Réunion) in the Indian Ocean. He is famous for the construction of a botanical garden on Mauritius which consisted of trees, shrubs and plants from tropical sites worldwide.<br/><br/> He is especially known for introduction of spice plants such as clove and nutmeg to Mauritius and Reunion. During this period of time the Dutch had a virtual monopoly on these spices in the East Indies. In order to obtain these spices, Poivre had to organize clandestine smuggling forays to obtain plants and seeds from the Indies; the expeditions to obtain the species were conducted in 1769-1770. Poivre also was responsible for introducing these spice plants to the Seychelles.<br/><br/> Today in northern Mauritius, the Botanical Garden of Pamplemousses that Poivre created still flourishes, it is now a 25-hectare garden containing tropical plants and trees from Africa, Asia, the Americas as well as islands of the Indian Ocean. Also, Poivre Atoll in the Amirantes Island Group is named after him.
Opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is the species of plant from which opium and poppy seeds are extracted. Opium is the source of many opiates, including morphine, thebaine, codeine, papaverine, and noscapine.<br/><br/> The Latin botanical name means the "sleep-bringing poppy", referring to the sedative properties of some of these opiates.
Frankincense is an aromatic resin obtained from trees of the genus Boswellia; particularly Boswellia sacra. It is used in incense and perfumes.Frankincense has been traded on the Arabian Peninsula and in North Africa for more than 5000 years.<br/><br/> A mural depicting sacks of frankincense traded from the Land of Punt adorns the walls of the temple of ancient Egyptian Queen Hatshepsut, who died in 1458 BCE. The Incense trade route or the Incense Road of Antiquity comprised a network of major ancient trading routes linking the Mediterranean world with Eastern sources of incense (and spices), stretching from Mediterranean ports across the Levant and Egypt through Arabia to India.<br/><br/> The incense trade flourished from South Arabia to the Mediterranean between roughly the 3rd century BCE to the 2nd century CE. The Incense Route served as a channel for trading of goods such as Arabian frankincense and myrrh; Indian spices, ebony, silk and fine textiles; and East African rare woods, feathers, animal skins and gold.
Rosmarinus officinalis, commonly known as rosemary, is a woody, perennial herb with fragrant, evergreen, needle-like leaves and white, pink, purple, or blue flowers, native to the Mediterranean region. It is a member of the mint family Lamiaceae, which includes many other herbs.<br/><br/> The name 'rosemary' derives from the Latin for 'dew' (ros) and 'sea' (marinus), or 'dew of the sea. The plant is also sometimes called anthos, from the ancient Greek word ἄνθος, meaning 'flower'.
<i>Iris pallida</i> (Dalmatian iris or Sweet iris) is a hardy flowering perennial plant of the genus Iris, family Iridaceae. It is native to the Dalmatian coast (Croatia) but widely naturalised elsewhere. It is a member of the subgenus iris, meaning that it is a bearded iris, and grows from a rhizome.<br/><br/> It is cultivated as a garden plant, and commercially for extraction of essential oils from its rhizome (orris root). It has also been used as a medicinal plant in the Middle East to cure Urinary tract infections, by boiling the leaves or the rhizomes in water.
<i>Iris germanica</i> grows up to 120 cm high and 30 cm wide. The roots can go up to 10 cm deep. It is a rhizomatous perennial that blooms in April to June. Lifting, dividing and replanting the rhizomes is best done once flowering has finished as this is when the plant grows the new shoots that will flower the following year.<br/><br/> Hundreds of hybrids exist representing every colour from jet black to sparkling whites. The only colour really missing is bright scarlet.
Opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is the species of plant from which opium and poppy seeds are extracted. Opium is the source of many opiates, including morphine, thebaine, codeine, papaverine, and noscapine. <br/><br/> The Latin botanical name means the "sleep-bringing poppy", referring to the sedative properties of some of these opiates.
Quince is the sole member of the genus Cydonia in the family Rosaceae (which also contains apples and pears, among other fruits). The quince /ˈkwɪns/, is a small deciduous tree that bears a pome fruit, similar in appearance to a pear, and bright golden-yellow when mature. Throughout history the cooked fruit has been used as food, but the tree is also grown for its attractive pale pink blossom and other ornamental qualities.<br/><br/> The tree grows 5 to 8 metres (16 and a half feet to 26 feet) high and 4 to 6 metres (13 feet to 19 and a half feet) wide. The fruit is 7 to 12 centimetres (3 to 5 inches) long and 6 to 9 centimetres (2 to 3 and a half inches) across.<br/><br/> It is native to rocky slopes and woodland margins in South-west Asia, Turkey and Iran.
<i>Daphne mezereum</i>, commonly known as mezereon, is a species of Daphne in the flowering plant family Thymelaeaceae, native to most of Europe and Western Asia, north to northern Scandinavia and Russia. In southern Europe it is confined to medium to higher elevations and in the subalpine vegetation zone, but descends to near sea level in northern Europe. It is generally confined to soils derived from limestone.<br/><br/> It is a deciduous shrub growing to 1.5 m tall. The leaves are soft, 3–8 cm long and 1–2 cm broad, arranged spirally on the stems. The flowers are produced in early spring on the bare stems before the leaves appear. They have a four-lobed pink or light purple (rarely white) perianth 10–15 mm diameter, and are strongly scented. The fruit is a bright red berry 7–12 mm diameter; it is very poisonous for people, though fruit-eating birds like thrushes are immune and eat them, dispersing the seeds in their droppings.
Bitter orange, Seville orange, sour orange, bigarade orange, or marmalade orange refers to a citrus tree (Citrus aurantium) and its fruit. It is hybrid between Citrus maxima (pomelo) and Citrus reticulata (mandarin). Many varieties of bitter orange are used for their essential oil, which is used in perfume, as a flavoring and as a solvent. The Seville orange variety is used in the production of marmalade.<br/><br/> Bitter orange is also employed in herbal medicine as a stimulant and appetite suppressant, due to its active ingredient, synephrine. Bitter orange supplements have been linked to a number of serious side effects and deaths, and consumer groups advocate avoiding medicinal use of the fruit