The World Health Organization estimates that 75-80% of the worlds’ population use plant medicines either in part or entirely for health care. For many, plant...
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The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Rose Apples (Syzygium jambos) are getting ready. Well, that means we are at the beginning of the 2003 season for rare fruits here in Florida. The Rose Apple...
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The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Here are some close-up photos of semi-ripe and ripe Sugar Apples from 2 trees in Merritt Island, Florida. All the photos were posed and were shot in controlled...
71
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Guava (Psidium guajava), a member of the Myrtaceae family is widely grown across the world’s tropical belt. Fresh Guavas have yellow/green skin and the flesh...
70
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Among all the varieties of Longans, Fortune Eye is the last one of the season. Relatively uncommon, Fortune Eye offers hardly any or no distinguishing physical...
69
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Elegant watercolors of hundreds of flowers--from the familiar to the unusual--enliven the pages of a historic British gardening journal called Curtis's...
68
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
The Red Sugar Apples are relatively new compared to the more common green variety. Other than the external red color and the light red flesh inside, there is...
67
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Chicle is the milky juice or latex of the Sapodilla (Manilkara zapota) tree that was used as the base for all Chewing Gums. It is collected during the rainy...
66
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Florida is the source of numerous Mango cultivars, many of which have become important commercial export Mangos throughout the world. Morphological...
65
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
In August 2000, four (4) Indian scientists reported on a new chile cultivar found in the hills near the town of Tezpur in the state of Assam. This Chile was...
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The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
The first surviving introductions of Mango (Mangifera indica) germplasm entered Florida from the West Indies, beginning in 1861, when a Polyembryonic clone...
63
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
"Beneath these green Mountains where Spring rules the year, The Irbarbutus and Loquat in season appear, And feasting on Lychee - 300 a day, I shouldn't mind...
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The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
With the exception of the "Fortune Eye" variety, Longan season is usually over by late summer. Here are some photos of Kohala, possibly the most popular ...
61
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
This 9-ft tall, 6-year old Sugar Apple tree was grown from a seed brought from Thailand. The owner swore that the fruits of this tree were no different, in any...
60
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
SPICE PAGES of Gernot Katzer ... Currently 117 different Spice plants are covered. Emphasis is on their usage in ethnic cuisines, particularly in Asia. ...
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The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Florida's Mango industry was founded on early introductions of cultivars primarily from India. "Mulgoba", which had been introduced from India by USDA ...
58
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Java Plum or Jambolan (Syzygium cumini), an evergreen tree upto about 80 ft tall, is widely cultivated in the tropics. Also known as Syzygium jambolana,...
57
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
You are attracted by the aroma and/or looks of some cooked food in front of you. In great anticipation, you take a mouthful or may be a bite. And then the...
56
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
The consumption of fresh Mangoes in non-producing countries was very low until the mid 1970's. The USA and Europe were major importing countries, followed by...
55
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
For nine months in 2000, Tom Hart Dyke was a captive of the guerrillas. They seized him while he was collecting wild Orchids in the Colombian rain forest. Now...
54
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
An exceptional book in excess of 500 pages, profusely illustrated with photographs, is the result of extensive research and is now available online at, ...
53
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Many a people used to accept the word "tart" as synonymous with the word "Carambola" (Averrhoa carambola), a member of the Oxalidaceae family originating from...
52
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
May 25, 2003 2:20 pm
Not as well known as its close relatives in the Myrtaceae family, the Java Plum, Rose Apple, Malay Apple and others, it is also known as the Java Apple...
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The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
Mar 7, 2003 11:48 am
Guava (Psidium guajava) is present as a weed in 27 countries in the world and a common to serious pest in 9 of these countries. In the United States, nowhere...
50
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
Mar 7, 2003 11:48 am
The Fab 4. Tommy Atkins, Haden, Kent and Keitt. The top 4 varieties of Mango that are preferred by the commercial growers in Florida and in Mexico. Taste being...
49
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
Mar 7, 2003 11:48 am
No, it is NOT about the Billy Wilder movie starring Marilyn Monroe. It is about HOT food. Fans of hot, spicy cuisine can thank nasty Bacteria and other ...
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The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
Mar 7, 2003 11:48 am
The word Neem had been derived from the Sanskrit word "Neemba" meaning "curer of all ailments". The healing characteristics of the ancient Neem, a native of...
47
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
Mar 7, 2003 11:48 am
Here is another Mango developed by the famous Mango breeder, Lawrence Zill of Florida. Beverly is not a very well known Mango but it appears that it is getting...
46
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
Mar 7, 2003 11:48 am
Sweet Cliff is a relative newcomer to the Lychee scene, already crowded with well established and quality names like Brewster, Mauritius, Calcutta, Emperor,...
45
The Thaumaturgist
asitkghosh
Mar 7, 2003 11:48 am
They are not ready for eating but they are certainly getting bigger. Here are 6 photos of 6 different Sugar Apples(Annona squamosa) of 6 different shapes from...
