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Pineapple – Plant of the Month, July
Plant of Month profile contributed by Jessica Grandey Common NamesPineapple, Pine Apple, Piña(Spanish,) Ananas(Dutch, French, Hindi) Abacaxi (Portuguese,) Nanas (Southern Asia and East Indies,Tupi) Bahunetra (Sanskrit)
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Lippia Alba – Plant of the Month, June
Plant of Month profile contributed by Jessica Grandey Common NamesBushy Lippia, Bushy Matgrass, Licorice Verbena, Lippia, Marguerite; Marguerite Blanche; Marguerite Des Jardins; Melisse. Hindi: Basula; Chinese: 白棘枝, Kwéyòl: twa tas, Portuguese: erva-cidreira-brasileiraSpanish: Juanilama, Salvia morada, Salvia sija, Sanalotodo“The local and traditional names are numerous in Latin America, because of widespreadtraditional use, and are generally derived from its aromatic smell or medicinal properties. The most common name in Brazil is cidreira, but this can also be used for 17 other lemon-scented herbs with similar uses” (Matos et al., 1996).
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Magnolia – Plant of the Month, May
Plant of Month profile contributed by Jessica Grandey Common NamesMagnolia, Hou Po (China), Honoki (Japan) Indian Bark. Japanese white bark, The flower is Xin Yi Hua in TCM, Blue Magnolia, Swamp Sassafras, Cucumber Tree, Lily tree Latin NameMagnolia Officinalis, Magnolia Grandiflora, and many more FamilyMagnoliaceae HabitatNative to China’s mountains and valleys and grows wild in mountainous regions. Now used inmany parts of the world as a garden tree or for landscaping. Magnolias are spreading,evergreen, or deciduous trees or shrubs. They have large fragrant flowers that can bebowl-shaped or star-shaped. Cutting propagation is preferred for most magnolias. It is commonin moist, acid soils close to wet places such as ponds, streams,…
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Peach – Plant of the Month, April
Plant of Month profile contributed by Jessica Grandey Common Names Peach, Peach tree, Persian apple, Momo, Táo Ren. Latin Name Prunus persica, Amygdalus persica Family Rosaceae HistoryPeach is an old European folk remedy that was adopted by the Indigenous people as a food and medicine when European settlers brought it to the New World. Peach trees were first cultivated in China but the Persians created a variety that was prized by the Chinese. Peaches have been mentioned in literature as far back as 49AD and there have been findings in ancient Chinese manuscripts going back to 1100BC
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Mulberry – Plant of the Month, March
Plant of Month profile contributed by Jessica Grandey Common Names Mulberry.Chinese name: Sang Shen (Berry/Fruit), Sang Ye (Leaves), Sang Bai Pi (Bark)Persian name: TootAyurveda: ShahtootFolk names: Tut, Morera, GelsoThe sap is known as “blood of a goose” in Magical formulas. Latin NameMorus Alba (white mulberry) and Morus Nigra (black mulberry)There are upwards of 50 genera and about 900 species. FamilyMoraceae
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Gotu Kola – Plant of the Month, February
Plant of Month profile contributed by Jessica Grandey Common Names Indian pennywort, marsh pennywort, Asiatic pennywort, antanan in Pakistan. In Malay cuisine it is known as pegaga, brahmi booti in Hindi, brahmi in Marathi, saraswati aku in Telugu, kudangal in Malayalam, ondelaga in Kannada, Vallarai keerai in Tamil, brahmi (Sanskrit in Ayurveda-not to be confused with Bacopa monnieri), Pohe kula (Hawaii), man t’ien hsing (Chinese), ji xue sao (TCM) pegagam (Indonesian), hang kor chew (Chinese) or nuoc rau ma (Vietnamese) Latin NameCentella Asiatica FamilyApiaceae (The Carrot and parsley family)
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Chickweed – Plant of the Month, January
Common Names: Tropical chickweed, Drymary, whitesnow, West Indian Chickweed, heartleaf drymary Latin name: Drymaria Cordata Family: Caryophyllaceae – Pink
