#bulbous perennial

[jillraggett]

Plant of the Day

Wednesday 16 October 2024

The sparkling white flowers of Nerine bowdenii ‘Alba’  (Bowden lily, Cornish lily, Cape flower, Guernsey lily) bloom before the leaves appear. This is a frost hardy perennial that thrives on a well-drained soil in a sunny location. This bulb is a native of South Africa.

Jill Raggett

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Word List: The Secret History

A list of "beautiful" words used in The Secret History by Donna Tartt

for your next poem/story

Apparition - an unusual or unexpected sight; a ghostly figure

Ascetic - practicing strict self-denial as a measure of personal and especially spiritual discipline

Beguiling - agreeably or charmingly attractive or pleasing

Boudoir - a woman's dressing room, bedroom, or private sitting room

Consolatory - giving hope and strength in times of grief, distress, or suffering

Conspicuous - obvious to the eye or mind

Cufflinks - a usually ornamental device consisting of two parts joined by a shank, chain, or bar for passing through buttonholes to fasten shirt cuffs

Discursive - moving from topic to topic without order; rambling

Erratic - having no fixed course

Hinc illae lacrimae - hence those tears; that is what those tears were for

Hyacinth - a plant of the ancients held to be a lily, iris, larkspur, or gladiolus; a bulbous perennial herb (Hyacinthus orientalis) widely grown for its dense spikes of fragrant flowers

Incivility - the quality or state of being uncivil; a rude or discourteous act

Incredulous - unwilling to admit or accept what is offered as true : not credulous; skeptical

Intimately - in a manner intended to prevent knowledge or awareness by others

Jauntily - sprightly in manner or appearance; lively

Machiavellian - suggesting the principles of conduct laid down by Machiavelli; specifically: marked by cunning, duplicity, or bad faith

Miasma - a vaporous exhalation formerly believed to cause disease; an influence or atmosphere that tends to deplete or corrupt

Morrow - the next day

Peculiarity - the quality or state of being peculiar; a distinguishing characteristic; oddity, quirk

Picturesque - charming or quaint in appearance

Providence - divine guidance or care

Quiver - to shake or move with a slight trembling motion

Rosewood - any of various tropical trees (especially genus Dalbergia) yielding valuable cabinet woods of a usually dark red or purplish color streaked and variegated with black

Schizophrenic - characterized by disturbances in thought (such as delusions), perception (such as hallucinations), and behavior (such as disorganized speech or catatonic behavior), by a loss of emotional responsiveness and extreme apathy, and by noticeable deterioration in the level of functioning in everyday life

Séance - session, sitting; a spiritualist meeting to receive spirit communications

Traitorous - guilty or capable of treason

Undulating - forming or moving in waves; fluctuating

Unstring - to loosen or remove the strings of; to make weak, disordered, or unstable

Voluptuous - suggesting sensual pleasure by fullness and beauty of form

Winter - the colder half of the year

If any of these words make their way into your next poem/story, do tag me, or leave a link in the replies. I would love to read your work!

More: Word Lists

[tiredwitchplant]

Everything You Need to Know About Herbs: Garlic

Garlic (Allium sativum)

*Kitchen Herb *Medical Herb *Feminine

Folks Names: Ajo, Poor Man’s Treacle, Stinkweed, Stinking Rose

Planet: Mars

Element: Fire, Earth

Deities: Hecate

Abilities: Protection, Healing, Exorcism, Lust, Anti-Theft, Aphrodisiac, Banishment, Purification, Clarity

Characteristics: A bulbous perennial plant that can grow to from 1- 3 ft tall. Has pale pink or green white flowers. Is part of the lily family and native from Central Asia. It is grown by dividing the bulbs and is harvested during the late summer.

History: It was first noted by Confucius in the Book of Odes. However, the lore refers garlic back to the beginning of time. It is said that when the devil’s left foot touched soil outside the Garden of Eden, garlic sprung up and his right foot produced onions. This caused it to be first associated with the Devil himself but the Greeks considered it a protector herb later on. Greek midwives would make sure that at the birth of a child, the whole room smelled of the cloves to protect the newborns from Lilith, the mother of all demons. If the cloves were not placed around the neck of the babies, it was believed that Lilith would strange the babies and frighten the mothers into madness. It was also a great remedy herb as every part of it was used in over 125 different treatments.

How to Grow Garlic

Easy to Grow: Yes

Rating : Beginner Friendly

Seeds Accessible: Yes but growing from bulbs is easier

How to Grow Garlic

Video Guide

Seeds

Magical Properties:

Was worn to guard against the plague

Sailors carried some on board to protect from wreckage

Soldiers wore garlic as a defense and ate it for courage

Worm to guard off foul weather and monsters

Bite into garlic to send away evil spirits or sprinkle garlic powder on the floor

Garlic was eaten on festival days to Hecate and was left at crossroads as a sacrifice to her

Brides carried garlic in their pockets for good luck

Rubbed onto pots and cooking pans, can remove negative vibrations

Can induce lust and attract lovers

Burned in an incense can be used to exorcise evil spirits from one’s home

Can strengthen energy fields and break curses

Medical Usage:

Can combat high cholesterol and hypertension

Was believed to ward off cancer and hepatitis

Can boost your immune system and is a powerful antibiotic for any sickness

Helps to keep blood thin and protect against blood clots and raised blood-sugar levels

Was used to dress wounds in WW1

A remedy for chest infections, digestive infections, and prevent circulatory problems

Sources

[vintagrafica]

Swamp lily or Crinum erubescens

Crinum pedunculatum also known as the swamp lily, river lily or mangrove lily, is a bulbous perennial. It likes either full sun or partial shade. It is usually found on the edge of forests, but also at the high tide level close to mangroves.

Available now on Redbubble

[askdreemurkids]

Ranunculus bulbosus, commonly known as bulbous buttercup or St. Anthony's turnip,[1] is a perennial flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae. It has bright yellow flowers, and deeply divided, three-lobed long-petioled basal leaves.

The stems are 20–40 cm tall, erect, branching, and slightly hairy, with a swollen corm-like base.[2]: 120 [3] There are alternate and sessile leaves on the stem. The flower forms at the apex of the stems, with 5–7 petals,[3] the sepals strongly reflexed.[2] The flowers are glossy yellow and 1.5–3 cm wide. The plant blooms from April to July.

The native range of Ranunculus bulbosus is Western Europe between about 60°N and the Northern Mediterranean coast. It grows in both the eastern and western parts of North America as an introduced weed.[4] Bulbous buttercup grows in lawns, pastures and fields in general, preferring nutrient-poor, well-drained soils. Although it doesn't generally grow in proper crops or improved grassland, it is often found in hay fields[5] and in coastal grassland.

The bulbous buttercup gets its name from its distinctive perennating organ, a bulb-like swollen underground stem or corm, which is situated just below the soil surface. After the plant dies in heat of summer, the corm survives underground through the winter.[6][7] Although the presence of a corm distinguishes Ranunculus bulbosus from some other species of buttercup such as Ranunculus acris, the species also has distinctive reflexed sepals.

Other names for the bulbous buttercup are "Goldcup" because of the colour and shape of the leaves, and "Frogs-foot" from their form.[8]

This plant, like other buttercups, contains the toxic glycoside ranunculin, which gives it a bitter, acid taste, so cases of poisoning in humans are rare.[9] It is also avoided by livestock when fresh, but when the plant dries the toxin is lost, so hay containing the plant is safe for animal consumption.[3] Pigs are unaffected by the toxin and eat bulbous buttercups avidly, being prepared to travel long distances to find them;[10] hence the folk name of the plant, St Antony's Turnip, after the patron saint of swineherds.

[warriors-rewritten-chaos]

Warrior Cats Prefixes- L

I had a WC Name Generator on Perchance that I made but I don't seem to have access anymore, so I'm remaking it here as just a simple list. The definitions used are the ones that Clan cats have for those things, and thus are the origins of the names. Definitions used are whatever I found when I googled it.

Laburnum-: "[noun] a small European tree that has hanging clusters of yellow flowers succeeded by slender pods containing poisonous seeds"

Lagoon-: "[noun] a small freshwater lake near a larger lake or river"

Lake-: "[noun] a large body of water surrounded by land"

Lamb-: "[noun] a young sheep"

Lamprey-: "[noun] an eel-like aquatic jawless vertebrate that has a sucker mouth with horny teeth and a rasping tongue"

Lapis-: "[noun] a deep-blue metamorphic rock used as a semi-precious stone"

Larch-: "[noun] a deciduous conifer tree native to the cooler regions of the northern hemisphere, where they are found in lowland forests in the high latitudes, and high in mountains further south"

Lark-: "[noun] a small ground-dwelling songbird, typically with brown streaky plumage, a crest, and elongated hind claws, and with a song that is delivered in flight"

Larkspur-: "[noun] an annual Mediterranean plant of the buttercup family, which bears spikes of spurred flowers"

Laurel-: "[noun] any of a number of shrubs and other plants with dark green glossy leaves; [noun] an aromatic evergreen shrub related to the bay tree, several kinds of which form forests in tropical and warm countries"

Lavender-: "[noun] a member of the genus of 47 known species of perennial flowering plants in the mints family, Lamiaceae. It is native to the Old World, primarily found across the drier, warmer regions of mainland Eurasia"

Leaf-: "[noun] a flattened structure of a higher plant, typically green and blade-like, that is attached to a stem directly or via a stalk"

Leech-: "[noun] an aquatic or terrestrial annelid worm with suckers at both ends"

Lemming-: "[noun] a small, short-tailed, thickset rodent related to voles"

Leopard-: "[noun] a large, solitary cat that has a yellowish-brown or brown coat with black spots and usually hunts at night"

Leptonia-: "[noun] a genus of small and medium sized pink-spored mushrooms"

Lettuce-: "[noun] a cultivated plant of the daisy family, with edible leaves"

Lichen-: "[noun] a plantlike organism that typically forms a low crusty, leaflike, or branching growth on rocks, walls, and trees"

Light-: "[noun] the natural agent that stimulates sight and makes things visible; [adj] (of a color) pale"

Lightning-: "[noun] the occurrence of a natural electrical discharge of very short duration and high voltage between a cloud and the ground or within a cloud, accompanied by a bright flash and typically also thunder"

Lilac-: "[noun] a Eurasian shrub or small tree of the olive family, that has fragrant violet, pink, or white blossoms; [noun] a pale pinkish-violet color; [adjective] of a pale pinkish-violet color"

Lily-: "[noun] a bulbous plant with large trumpet-shaped, typically fragrant, flowers on a tall, slender stem"

Linden-: "[noun] a deciduous tree with heart-shaped leaves and fragrant yellowish blossoms, native to north temperate regions"

Linnet-: "[noun] a mainly brown and gray finch with a reddish breast and forehead"

Lion-: "[noun] a large tawny-colored cat that lives in prides, found in Africa and northwestern India. The male has a flowing shaggy mane and takes little part in hunting, which is done cooperatively by the females"

Little-: "[adj] small in size, amount, or degree"

Lizard-: "[noun] a reptile that typically has a long body and tail, four legs, movable eyelids, and a rough, scaly, or spiny skin"

Loach-: "[noun] a small elongated bottom-dwelling freshwater fish with several barbels near the mouth"

Loam-: "[noun] a fertile soil of clay and sand containing humus"

Lobelia-: "[noun] a chiefly tropical or subtropical plant of the bellflower family"

Lobster-: "[noun] a large marine crustacean with a cylindrical body, stalked eyes, and the first of its five pairs of limbs modified as pincers"

Locust-: "[noun] a large and mainly tropical grasshopper with strong powers of flight. It is usually solitary, but from time to time there is a population explosion, and it migrates in vast swarms that cause extensive damage to crops"

Log-: "[noun] a part of the trunk or a large branch of a tree that has fallen or been cut off"

Long-: "[adj] measuring a great distance from end to end"

Loon-: "[noun] any of several large birds (genus Gavia of the family Gaviidae) of Holarctic regions that feed on fish by diving and have their legs placed far back under the body for optimal locomotion underwater"

Lost-: "[adj] unable to find one's way, not knowing one's whereabouts"

Lotus-: "[noun] any of a number of large water lilies"

Loud-: "[adj] producing or capable of producing much noise, easily audible"

Luck-: "[noun] success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one's own actions; [noun] chance considered as a force that causes good or bad things to happen; [noun] something regarded as bringing about or portending good or bad things"

Lucky-: "[adj] having, bringing, or resulting from good luck"

Lupine-: "[noun] a plant of the pea family with deeply divided leaves and tall colorful tapering spikes of flowers"

Lynx-: "[noun] a wild cat with yellowish-brown fur (sometimes spotted), a short tail, and tufted ears, found chiefly in the northern latitudes of North America and Eurasia"

[aisphotostuff]

White Aliums @ Ightham Mote NT Kent by Adam Swaine Via Flickr: Allium neapolitanum is a bulbous herbaceous perennial plant in the onion subfamily within the Amaryllis family. Common names include Neapolitan garlic, Naples garlic, daffodil garlic, false garlic, flowering onion, Naples onion, Guernsey star-of-Bethlehem, star, white garlic, and wood garlic..

[ambisun]

Snakehead Flower - A Little Rain Oracle

Snakehead Flower, Fritillaria meleagris comes from the lily family Liliaceae. A bulbous flower speckled like a snake’s skin, this purple and fuchsia perennial is named the snakehead flower. It bows its head down and features structured leaves that make it a great indoor plant, one that is incredibly good at cleansing the air. 

[bethlehem-garden]

Allium karataviense, or Turkestan onion, is a low-growing bulbous perennial plant native to Central Asia. It produces round heads of star-shaped, pinkish-white flowers atop short stalks in late spring to early summer. The leaves are broad, fleshy, and bluish-gray in color, making it an attractive ornamental plant for rock gardens or border plantings. Allium karataviense prefers full sun to partial shade and well-drained soil. It is drought tolerant and requires little watering once established. This plant is not typically invasive; as always, check your local extension office.

One particular concern - the leaves are broad, and this is an early grower. Take care with what you're planting next to it, lest you accidentally shade something out. I learned this lesson the hard way with some poor Echinacea!

[comparativeoracle]

Snakehead Flower. Art by Ambi Sun, from A Little Rain Oracle.

Snakehead Flower, Fritillaria meleagris comes from the lily family Liliaceae. A bulbous flower speckled like a snake’s skin, this purple and fuchsia perennial is named the snakehead flower. It bows its head down and features structured leaves that make it a great indoor plant, one that is incredibly good at cleansing the air.

[jillraggett]

Plant of the Day

Friday 1 March 2024

It was only a few days ago I wrote about Iris 'Blue Note' (Reticulata) but my friend had such a lovely display of this small, early bulb, protected by a frame of Cornus alba (dogwood) stems, that here it is again!

Jill Raggett

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Words related to Spring

to include in your next poem/story

Bloodroot - a plant (Sanguinaria canadensis) of the poppy family having a red root and sap and bearing a solitary lobed leaf and white flower in early spring.

Bluebonnet - either of two low-growing annual lupines (Lupinus subcarnosus or L. texensis) of Texas with silky foliage and blue flowers.

Coltsfoot - a perennial composite herb (Tussilago farfara) with yellow flower heads appearing before the leaves.

Crocus - any of a genus (Crocus) of herbs of the iris family developing from corms and having solitary long-tubed flowers and slender linear leaves.

Magnolia - any of a genus (Magnolia of the family Magnoliaceae, the magnolia family) of American and Asian shrubs and trees with entire evergreen or deciduous leaves and usually showy white, yellow, rose, or purple flowers usually appearing in early spring.

Morel - any of several edible fungi (genus Morchella, especially M. esculenta) having a conical cap with a highly pitted surface.

Mourning cloak - a blackish-brown nymphalid butterfly (Nymphalis antiopa) that has a broad yellow border on the wings and is found in temperate parts of Europe, Asia, and North America.

Skunk cabbage - any of several early-blooming perennial herbs of the arum family that occur in shaded, wet to swampy areas and have a fetid odor suggestive of a skunk.

Spring peeper - a small brown tree frog (Pseudacris crucifer synonym Hyla crucifer) of the eastern U.S. and Canada that has a shrill piping call and breeds in ponds and streams in the spring. They are often just called peepers start singing on some of the earliest warm spring nights, ushering in the season with an evocative chorus. While they are highly successful in permanent ponds, they also utilize temporary, ephemeral ponds that appear briefly in the spring due to rain and snowmelt.

Tulip - any of a genus (Tulipa) of Eurasian bulbous herbs of the lily family that have linear or broadly lanceolate leaves and are widely grown for their showy flowers.

If any of these words make it into your poem/story, please tag me. Or leave a link in the replies. I'd love to read them!

Word Lists: Summer ⚜ Autumn ⚜ More: Word Lists

[unzipcraft]

Discover the Charm of Chinese Lantern Plant Varieties

Description/Taste

Chinese Lantern plants are straight stalks with large and heart-shaped, flat leaves that are decorated with white flowers and vibrantly colored bulbous seeds in pods. White flowers have five petals that have a slight bent shape, which ranges from between 1 and 2 centimeters in diameter. As the flower ages it will lose its petals and allow the calyx to grow and cover the growing berry. The calyx that is inflated, often referred to as the seedpod of the plant, is green at first it changes to orange, yellow, and red-orange with the onset of maturity. As the pod matures it also becomes thinner and brittle, with a paper-like consistency typically between 4 and 5 centimeters wide. Chinese Lantern berries average 1 to 2 centimeters and are aqueous, which means they contain numerous tiny white seeds. The berries change in color from bright red to an orange creamy hue as they mature and change in flavor from very acidic and sour to slightly sweet, acidic and tangy when they reach maturity. It is vital to know that only ripe berries can be eaten of the Chinese Lantern plant. the leaves, calyx and stems are considered to be inedible.

Seasons/Availability

Chinese Lantern flowers bloom in the first part of fall.

Current Facts

Chinese lanterns, botanically known as Physalis alkekengi, are beautiful, herbaceous perennial that is less than a meters in height. It belongs to Solanaceae which is also known as nightshade. Their Chinese Lantern's name Chinese Lantern was derived from the flowering plant's bright and inflated seed pods. They are reminiscent of Asian lanterns. Although the pods of seeds aren't real blooms, they're frequently described as Chinese Lantern flowers when found on the plant. Apart from the pod's vibrant color the calyxes, which are protected by a protective layer, contain tiny berries that can be used in medical and culinary applications once they are ripe. Chinese lanterns are a well-loved garden plant, however despite their attractive appearance it has an aggressive nature and is able to develop rhizomes in the underground and earn it the designation as an invading species within a few parts in Europe as well as Asia. The plants are typically grown in containers to stop their spread and the seeds are removed, dried and used as a decorative element in floral arrangements. Dry Chinese lanterns keep their vibrant hues and last for a long time without degrading. The seed pods are sometimes cut open, which allows the seeds to expand into various shapes as they dry.

Nutritional Value

Chinese Lantern The berries of Chinese Lantern are a great supply of Vitamin C, an antioxidant that enhances collagen production on the skin, decreases inflammation and also boosts your immune system. The berries also have vitamin A, a nutrient which aids in maintaining the health of organs calcium, which helps strengthen teeth and bones, and lesser amounts of iron and the mineral phosphorus. In the traditional Chinese and Unani treatments, Chinese Lantern berries were utilized in the past to diuretize and were believed to possess anti-inflammatory properties.

Applications

Only ripe berries from Chinese Lantern plants are edible The calyxes, leaves, and berries that are not ripe are considered poisonous which is why they should never be eaten. Chinese Lantern fruit berries change into light cream or orange when they mature. They have a subtle sweet, tangy flavour which can be consumed fresh cooked, dried, or cooked. The berries that are raw can be consumed in a single serving as a snack or they can be added to salads with greens and chopped into relishes. They can also be cut into salsas or blended into smoothies and juices. Chinese Lantern berries can also be chopped and spread over toast, to replace sweet tomatoes in cooking or simmered into sauces for roasting meats. Alongside savory dishes they can also be made into jams, or incorporated into pie fillings or baked into tarts, cakes and Scones. Chinese Lantern berries are delicious with a variety of meats, including turkey, pork poultry, fish cucumbers, avocadoes corn honey, dark chocolate citrus, peaches and herbs like rosemary, basil and parsley. These berries are kept in husks of paper until they are ready for use. They continue to mature. After being husked, the berries will last between 1 and 3 days in a refrigerator.

Ethnic/Cultural Info

The Japanese are known as the "Obon" or "Bon". Japan, Chinese Lantern flowers are also referred to in Japan as Japanese Lantern flowers, and the bright orange pods symbolize used in bon or Obon. Bon Obon or Obon festival. The mid-summer to early autumn holiday is a celebration of the return of spirits of the ancestors back to earth. In the course of the celebration, each town has its own celebration that include music, dance as well as live music. A lot of Japanese families also place lanterns on their homes to help guide spirits. Graves are cleaned and decorated with gifts for the ancestors. Japanese lantern flowers are an extremely popular gift because the seed pods that are inflated closely resemble lanterns, which is a symbol of harmony and guidance between deceased and living family members. In the lead up to the Bon festival every summer, a market referred to in the form of Hozuki Ichi is held to offer offerings for the coming holiday. From the Edo period the market is held every year for the past ten years, in addition to Japanese Lantern flowers are the most popular item sold at the market. They are offered in a variety of sizes or as individual stalks. Japanese Lantern berries can also be offered for sale and are believed to have more healing properties when consumed during the market.

Geography/History

Chinese Lantern plants originate from temperate regions that span between Southeastern Europe to East Asia and have been thriving wild since the time of the ancients. The robust plant exhibits strong nature, allowing it to spread quickly once it is planted. Throughout their natural surroundings, the plant has spread into wild landscapes and has even extended across Western Europe. Chinese Lantern plants also were brought in North America and Australia, where they are cultivated as a unique cultivar for home gardens. Presently, Chinese Lantern plants are cultivated wild across Asia, Europe, North America as well as Australia. The berries aren't commercially manufactured and are instead harvested from wild or domestic gardening plants.

[tearsinthemist]

Galanthus (from Ancient Greek γάλα, (gála, "milk") + ἄνθος (ánthos, "flower")), or snowdrop, is a small genus of approximately 20 species of bulbous perennial herbaceous plants in the family Amaryllidaceae. The plants have two linear leaves and a single small white drooping bell-shaped flower with six petal-like (petaloid) tepals in two circles (whorls). The smaller inner petals have green markings.

[vintagrafica]

Pineapple flower or Eucomis punctata

The pineapple flower or wine eucomis, is a species of flowering plant in the asparagus family Asparagaceae. A deciduous bulbous perennial used as an ornamental plant, it is endemic to South Africa.

Available now on Redbubble

[thetalesofrosaspandan]

The Lilium

Lilium is a genus of bulbous perennials grown for their very showy, often fragrant flowers. Among the 100 species, there are four main flower shapes: trumpet, bowl, recurved, and funnel. 

Source: Fine Gardening