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Is It A Weed or Flowe
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RAIt's true that any plant can be a weed, but the reverse is also true, that i RAwe can redeem our weeds if we identify their value. RABest of luck in your weed / plant identification quest. (Different stalks for different folks 8-) I understand the much dispised dandylion is not native to north america; it was brought here by some of our anglo-saxon ancestors who felt it had medicinal attributes (I had an uncle who made an interesting wine from it 8-). Ciao, Ack. --- # SLMR 2.1a # "We know too much and feel too little." Bertrand Russell * Origin: BBS Networks @ www.bbsnets.com [8010] (8:8/62) |
#3
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"raycruzer" wrote:
wrote: RAIt's true that any plant can be a weed, but the reverse is also true, RAthat we can redeem our weeds if we identify their value. I understand the much dispised dandylion is not native to north america; it was brought here by some of our anglo-saxon ancestors who felt it had medicinal attributes (I had an uncle who made an interesting wine from it 8-). The dandelion was also accepted as a potherb centuries back. Although largely rejected in home gardens, today the dandelion is known to be good forage on the ranges, and is especially relished by sheep and cattle. Actually there is no THE dandelion, but it is a genus with many species and some are native to the USA. What we usually call dandelion is the Common Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale). It was valued as a medicinal plant and cultivated, so its true source is not obvious except to say the northern Hemishere, and more specifically, EUrasia. Many attribute it to the UK. Other dandelion species include: Taraxacum albidum - the white-flowering dandelion is found in Japan and Korea. Taraxacum bessarabicum - in found in Southeastern Europe. Taraxacum brassicaefolium - mustard-leaved dandelion is found in East Asia. Taraxacum californicum - California dandelion is native to California and an endangered species. Taraxacum carneocoloratum - fleshy dandelion is native to Alaska Taraxacum eriophorum - woolbearing dandelion is native in the Western US. Taraxacum erythropodium - is found in Eastern Asia. Taraxacum formosanum - is found in Taiwan. Taraxacum heterolepis - is found in Manchuria. Taraxacum hondoense - is found in Japan Taraxacum hybernum - is found in Italy and Balkans. Taraxacum japonicum - is a Japanese dandelion Taraxacum kok-saghyz - rubber dandelion; Russian dandelion Taraxacum laevigatum (syn. T. erythrospermum), Red-seeded dandelion or rock dandelion is found in the UK. Taraxacum lyratum - harp dandelion is native to the Western US. Taraxacum magellanicum - is found in Southern South America and New Zealand. Taraxacum megalorrhizon - is found in Southern Europe. Taraxacum mongolicum - is found in China. Taraxacum obovatum - is found in the Mediterranean regions. Taraxacum palustre - narrow-leaved marsh dandelion is native to the UK. Taraxacum phymatocarpum - northern dandelion is native to Alaska. Taraxacum platycarpum - is found in Central Japan. Taraxacum sinicum - is found in East Asia. Taraxacum spectabile - showy dandelion or red-veined dandelion. Taraxacum tibeticum - is found in Tibet. Taraxacum variegatum - is found in East Asia. ====== A weed is just a plant in the wrong place, so any plant can be a weed. Invasive plants are more often considered weeds. -- Pardon my spam deterrent; send email to Visit my Rhododendron and Azalea web pages at: http://home.earthlink.net/~rhodyman/rhody.html Also visit the Rhododendron and Azalea Bookstore at: http://home.earthlink.net/~rhodyman/rhodybooks.html Cheers, Steve Henning in Reading, PA USA Zone 6 |
#4
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In article , Stephen
Henning wrote: "raycruzer" wrote: wrote: RAIt's true that any plant can be a weed, but the reverse is also true, RAthat we can redeem our weeds if we identify their value. I understand the much dispised dandylion is not native to north america; it was brought here by some of our anglo-saxon ancestors who felt it had medicinal attributes (I had an uncle who made an interesting wine from it 8-). The dandelion was also accepted as a potherb centuries back. Although largely rejected in home gardens, today the dandelion is known to be good forage on the ranges, and is especially relished by sheep and cattle. Actually there is no THE dandelion, but it is a genus with many species and some are native to the USA. What we usually call dandelion is the Common Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale). It was valued as a medicinal plant and cultivated, so its true source is not obvious except to say the northern Hemishere, and more specifically, EUrasia. Many attribute it to the UK. Other dandelion species include: [list clipped] Plus a lot of people call sundry hawkweeds dandelions. The name T. officianale may actually embrace scores or hundreds of species originally from Northern Europe, as the "variants" are so extreme that for any other plant they'd definitely get their own species names. It's too bad it's too weedy to just grow as an intentional crop, as the roots especially can be extremely good eating, & should have been selectively bred for fatter roots, as some variants have long stringy root difficult to work with, others have stubbier really fat roots splendid for the table, & a root-hunt in the meadows can be frustrating if the given strain or variant all have long stringy taproots. I harvest the largest fresh leaves as tastier than most lettuce, & far tastier than spinach or chard or any number of crappier greens. I occasionally set out to harvest the roots but it's hard locally to find the ones with roots big enough to be worth skinning. Here's the only way I prepare them: Skin 'em with a potato pealer, cut them in inch-long segments & cut those in half lengthwise, soak in water overnight then discard the water. Fry them in a bit of oil & flavor with soysauce. Good enough for a side-dish sprinkled with sesame seeds, or mixed with freshly oven-baked or wok-fried hulled pumpkin seeds -- careful, the seeds "hop" as they heat up -- or tossed into fried rice or noodles. Oh god, I gotta go dig some right now. I know people fight dandelions then come to hate them because it's impossible to win the war. I like them so much for eatin' it's impossible for me to hate them, even though being at least a little annoyed by there omnipresence in no-weeds-allowed gardens is inescapable. -paghat the ratgirl -- Get your Paghat the Ratgirl T-Shirt he http://www.paghat.com/giftshop.html "In every country and in every age, the priest has been hostile to liberty. He is always in alliance with the despot." -Thomas Jefferson |
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