Leucaena leucocephala leucocephala (“leu” meaning white from the Greek “leukos” and “cephala” – head refers to the flowers) also known as cuaje, huajes, hauxya, huaxin, guash, guashe (Chiapas), guaje beans, cacalas, cascalhuite, Leadtree, White Popinac, Wild Tamarind or River Tamarind; Uaxim (Maya), ipil ipil (Philippines), Narendhar (India), Safed babul (Hindi), White Babool, Yin He Huan (Chinese) When the Spanish arrived in southern Mexico in 1521, … Continue reading Guaje.
Tagetes lemmonii Also called : rudilla, Lemmons marigold, Copper Canyon Daisy, Mountain Marigold, Mexican Marigold, Passionfruit Marigold, Tree Marigold, Tangerine Marigold, Mount Lemmon Marigold, Texas tarragon T.lucida (pericón) is also known by the moniker Mexican Mint Marigold. (See Post : Pericón. Tagetes lucida) T.lemmonii is native to the states of Sonora and Sinaloa in north-western Mexico as well as southern Arizona in the Estados Unidos. … Continue reading Mexican Mint Marigold
Bifora testiculata syn Coriandrum radians (M.Bieb.) Also called : cilantro, cilantro real, carrot weed, bird’s eye, European bishop, Wild Bishop, Dubbelkoriander, Dobbeltkoriander, Getreideverpester (cereal polluter), Bumnieher, Kosbor Salvagg, חריריים מצויים, كزبرة In 1905 Joseph Rose whilst working for the US Herbarium (1) noted in the describing of Porophyllum macrocephalum (2) that it had the “odor of bifora”. This piqued my interest as it was my … Continue reading Bifora. Another Cilantro Substitute?
Cover Image from the Voynich Manuscript Also called : Chepiche, escobilla, pipicha, pipizca Tlatlaolton has been classified as Porophyllum coloratum (1) (Kunth) DC (2). The common names pipicha (pipizca) and chepiche refer generally to P.tagetoides which is a narrow leaved variety of porophyllum. P.coloratum is considered a synonym of P.macrocephalum which is a broad leaved variety of pore leaf and this adds to the confusion … Continue reading Tlatlaolton. Which Porophyllum Are You?
Amaranthus species plants can be broken down into 3 basic categories, grain, leaf and ornamental. All varieties of the plant can be eaten as a green leafy vegetable when the plants are young enough and all will provide seed to one degree or another but only a few provide enough seed to be considered viable as a foodstuff. Species primarily used for their seeds are … Continue reading Medicinal Qualities of Amaranth
(Pectis papposa) Syn. Pectis angustifolia Torr also called Fetid marigold, Pague, Limoncillo, Lemonscent, Crownseed Pectis, Lemon-scented Pectis, Lemonscent Pectis, Lemonweed, TshéGdannItc’iih (Navajo), manzanilla del coyote, ban mansani:ya, caasol heecto (small caasol), caasol ihasii quiipe (pleasant smelling caasol (Seri), ban manzani;ya I have recently come across this plant during my research into the porophyllums. I was initially drawn to the porophyllum species because of the impact … Continue reading Chinchweed : Pectis papposa
Hierba de Zorrillo Amongst the names papalo has accrued lies the not altogether unexpected moniker “skunk weed”, although I have never found the word “zorrillo” used and for some reason online translators always come back with “hierba mofeta”; the word used is mampuritu (1) and mampurite (2) (Morton 1968). My grasp of Spanish is rudimentary at best and there is no doubt I am missing … Continue reading Papalo and Pipicha. Skunk Weed?
I recently came across a term that I had never heard before. Plant Blindness. The term was coined in 1999 by botanists James Wandersee and Elisabeth Schussler. They described it as “the inability to see or notice the plants in one’s own environment”. William (2003) puts a little more into it “Plant blindness is a form of cognitive bias, which in its broadest meaning, is … Continue reading Dandelion? Identifying Wild Plants
Cnidoscolus chayamansa (Syn C.aconitifolius) Also called : Tree spinach Chaya or Chayamansa is originally from southern Mexico and is popular in Yucatecan Maya cuisine. Chaya grows in size from a large shrub to a small tree. It has edible leaves that are considered more nutritious than spinach that are rich in vitamin C, calcium, iron, phosphorus, and are an important source of protein. There are many … Continue reading Chaya
Featured Image by Saad Chaudhry Taraxacum officinale Also called : Diente de león , amargón (bitter), plumerillo, panadero, moraja (Sinaloa), cerraja (Jalisco), globillo, chipule, achicoria, lechuguilla, nocuana-gueeta (Zapotec), botón de oro (gold button) Dandelions are an ubiquitous weed that can be found in all environments from the countryside to the inner city. They are considered native to Eurasia but have migrated to all countries on … Continue reading Quelite : Dandelion
