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Another Glorious Red New Zealand Summer

Pohutukawa Metrosideras excelsaYou can tell that summer and the festive season are here. It’s difficult to miss with the tell-tale red lights of the pohutukawa (Metrosideros excelsa) signalling the way. The pohutukawa is also known as the New Zealand Christmas Tree because of the beautiful crimson display that flares at the end of November and right through January.

The red flower heads look like balls of fluff thanks to their petals being inconspicuous. The mass is made of long red stamens, lightly tipped with golden pollen sacks. And they light up the tree as if covered in red tinsel.

The pohutukawa is a New Zealand native but comes from the Myrtaceae or Myrtle family that also gives us clove, guava, feijoa and eucalyptus. It’s less fragrant than the other relatives but is so well loved that we can’t get enough of it.

More on the beauty, the symbolism and the protection of New Zealand pohutukawa with plenty of links, after the jump Read more

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Have you undervalued plantlife lately?

If there was ever any doubt as to how flippin’ cool plants are – you need to watch this video. Part botany recruitment video, it’s a great overview of the study and history of botany. There are also fantastic examples of just how useful plants are.  Botany Without Borders via Bushman’s Friend

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MBmkTJkghQ&e]

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An Apple’s Family Tree

Apple WhakapapaThis family tree shows how the various popular varieties of New Zealand apples have been bred. They originated with the Cox’s Orange Pippin from the United Kingdom, and the Delicious variety from the United States. Royal gala and braeburn are both hugely popular varieties. My personal favourite though is the crisp and tangy golden delicious.

It’s just one of hundreds of beautiful images, graphs, video and audio resources that form Te Ara – the online encyclopedia of New Zealand. Te Ara has launched their new section of the site The Settled Landscape, which looks at the agriculture, horticulture and the general taming of New Zealand.  Their section on  The Bush is a luscious look at the unique flora and fauna here – more about that some other time. The encyclopedia is an incredible resource and hours of fun.

Come for the pictures stay for the fascinating info. There’s sooooo much for a horticulturally-minded wee thing to enjoy…..

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Brussels sprouts

Brussels sproutsSo I’ve been getting all angsty about my Brussels sprouts Brassica oleracea var. gemmifera. It turns out I planted them at the wrong time – curse you garden stores with attractive looking punnets. Apparently, I should be planting them now instead of 3 months ago.

Second thing I got wrong – they require a much firmer soil then the bed they are in right now. Well-limed, well-drained, well-firmed is the advice I’ve just received on the topic. Apparently, they’re a bit fussy. But I reckon these babies are going to be sooo worth it.

I realise this can be a very contentious issue. They are one of the least liked vegetables. But I think Brussels sprouts have just had really bad press. They’re delicious when grown well and cooked properly, with a really nice nutty flavour.

More on the joys of Brussels sprouting with recipes and nutritional info after the jump… Read more

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Getting All Natural on a Sunday

New Zealand bushSunday night nature documentaries have been a tradition since I was a kid. Unfortunately, TV stations don’t have the same concern and it’s left me yearning for some good David Attenborough. Unfortunately again, he can’t make them faster then I watch them so I’ve had to turn to the internet to sate my nature voyeurism.

TERRA: The Nature of Our World is the first online science and nature film series. 100 short films from all over the world take a look at the planet’s diversity. Cascading Effects shows the most beautiful landscapes while looking at the effects of global warming. You can also see why frogs really matter, Yellowstone’s nature corridor,  learn about parasite/host co-evolution (more interesting then it perhaps sounds), and coronal mass ejections (not as dirty as it sounds). And who would have thought there would be a hippo – cocaine connection?

Of particular interest to us LovePlantLife types is Algal Biofuels and Gimme Green looks at America’s obsession with lawns — don’t tell me it’s not an obsession, it’s a $40-billion industry! But the sparkling diamond must be Jewels of the Jungle, 6 episodes about Dr. Gary Strobel’s hunt for medicinal plant compounds through the world’s jungles. This stuff is pure gold!

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Photosynthesis

photosynthesisWant to know how photosynthesis works? Spend 5 minutes watching this illustrated presentation showing you how it’s done.

Aren’t things so much easier to understand when illustrated?

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Robot flowers for the robot bees

Robot flower

A giant mechanical flower that opens and closes at dawn and dusk, made by students at the University Of Buenos Aires in Argentina. (Via Suicide Bots – hot Bot on Bot Action. Photo by Don)

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Flowers in Motion

I like drum and bass, I love flowers. This video is fantastic. Thanks to tifftai for sharing. Check out more at Plants in Motion

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cz3wscJMbuo&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1]

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Labour day work and angelica surpluses

Angelica archangelicaYesterday was an absolutely gorgeous Labour Day, which saw me spring cleaning the garden. My medicinal herb garden got a general weed and several species avoided strangulation by the kikuyu, St John’s wort and violets which are running mad. The calendula got tidied up and the chamomile is doing well. And it’s really nice to see my bloodwort, comfrey, goldenrod and marshmallow making stellar returns.

I planted out my shallots and transplanted the Jerusalem artichokes to somewhere a bit more agreeable.So they don’t interfere with my more valuable root crops – good garlic is extremely important.

I have angelica Angelica archangelica going crazy in random places all over the garden so I need to find some uses. I might need to try this angelica liquer and all 17 of these angelica recipes to try to get it back under control. Now is time to harvest the stems, but I’ll keep plenty on to get some of the roots in autumn. Plants for a Future has a great write-up on it. I love that project!

More gardening adventures after the jump…
Read more

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Greensulate – Insulation from Mushrooms

In the very cool but very warm plant product category this week, we have Greensulate – a low-cost, rigid insulating board made from mushroom spores.

“The insulation is created by pouring a mixture of insulating particles, hydrogen peroxide, starch, and water into a panel mold. Mushroom cells are then injected into the mold, where they digest the starch producing a tightly meshed network of insulating particles and mycelium. The end result is an organic composite board that has a competitive R-Value a measurement of resistance to heat flow and can serve as a firewall.” (Thanks Sustainable Times)

Spores from oyster mushrooms are used in the board which according to David Blume can be grown on distillers grains. Another part of link in the permacultural chain? Corn – alcohol – distillers grains – oyster mushrooms – earthworms – castings – and insulation board? I may have to get one of these NZ oyster mushroom kits for Christmas.

Watch the video Stop Global Warming by Growing Styrofoam with Fungi on YouTube.com.

Read Environmentally Friendly Organic Insulation Uses Mushroom Spores at ScienceDaily.com

Image: Oyster mushrooms by the lovely maggihc @ Dog Hill Kitchen

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