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Archive for the tag “surrey”

24 Aug 2015

Mirabilis Jalapa. The Mystery Plant

For the first 6 months this year outside my front door was a large black plant pot with nothing growing. The two previous plants had died a long while ago and I was considering dumping all the soil in the pot in case that was a factor. One day I noticed a few green shoots appearing and presumed them weeds, however over the next few weeks, these “weeds” grew ferociously and looked actually quite charming. So I left the plant alone, watered it sometimes and expected that I was growing some huge weed. A couple of weeks ago some flowers appeared and since then some more. Using an online plant app, seems my plant is Mirabilis Jalapa. Also known as the 4 o’clock flower.A curious aspect of this plant is that flowers with different colors can be found simultaneously on the same plant. The plant hails from tropical South America, but has become naturalised throughout tropical and warm temperate regions. In cooler temperate regions, it will die back with the first frosts, regrowing in the following spring from the tuberous roots. The plant does best in full sun. It grows to approximately 0.9 m in height. The plant will self-seed, often spreading rapidly if left unchecked in a garden.The flowers are used in food colouring.

Seems also that if one gets ill this plant might help or cure most things.

In herbal medicine, parts of the plant may be used as a diuretic, purgative, and for vulnerary (wound healing) purposes. The root is believed an aphrodisiac as well as diuretic and purgative. It is used in the treatment of dropsy.

The leaves are used to reduce inflammation. A decoction of them (mashing and boiling) is used to treat abscesses. Leaf juice may be used to treat wounds.

Mirabilis Jalapa with flowers emerging

Mirabilis Jalapa flowering

Mirabilis Jalapa with no flowers.

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged art, four o'clock flower, homeopathic plant, jalapa, mirabilis, mirabilis jalapa, mystery plant, new malden, perennial plant, photo mirabilis, plant, plant in pot, RHS, RHS Wisley, self seeding plant, surrey, unknown plant, wisley | Leave a comment

28 Jul 2015

The Homemade Clock

Homemade Clock

Homemade clock

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged art, clock, homemade clock, homemade items, surrey | Leave a comment

21 Jul 2015

2 Comments

Dragonfly

This guy just flew in and smiled at my macro lens. I smiled back. Surely the guy is just posing? I mean the folded arms?

Dragonfly
Copyright Chris Bushe 2015

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged art, best dragonfly photo, dragonfly, dragonfly dog, dragonfly face, dragonfly image, dragonfly photo, dragonfly wings, insect, insect photo, macro, minion, minon photo, new malden, new malden minion, new malden wildlife, real minion, surrey, surrey dragonfly, surrey wildlife, surrey wildlife images, UK, UK dragonfly, wildlife, wildlife photo, wings of dragonfly

21 Jul 2015

My Best Photograph of all time? The Dragonfly

This Dragonfly just flew into the house and kind of smiled at my macro lens. He reminds me of a real life Minion.

Dragonfly
Copyright Chris Bushe 2015

Posted in dragonfly, Insects, wildlife and tagged all time low, art, best photo, best photograph all time, best photograph ever, canon eos 5 mark 3, dragonfly, eos photo, insect, insect art, insect photo, inset art, macro, macro lens, minion, new malden, new malden minion, real minion, surrey, surrey minion, wildlife, wildlife photo | Leave a comment

13 Jul 2015

3 Comments

What is this Plant?

I have a pot outside the front of my house and all plants planted there have initially thrived then suddenly died. The soil has remained the same and untouched for maybe almost 12 months. In the last week this plant or weed has begun to grow and seems spectacularly happy. But what is it? Is it a plant or some hideous weed like a triffid?

All help and advice welcome.

What is this plant?

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged art, crazy plant, new malden, new malden plant, plant, plant competition, plant die, plant photo, pot plant, RHS, RHS Wisley, strange plant, surrey, what is this plant, wisley

12 Jul 2015

3 Comments

Redcurrants are still illegal in some USA states. Why and is this reasonable?

The redcurrant (or red currant), Ribes rubrum, is a member of the genus Ribes in the gooseberry family , native to parts of western Europe (Belgium, Great Britain ,France, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Netherlands, northern Italy, northern Spain, Portugal and Poland). They tend to grow best in coll regions with abundant moisture. More importantly right now they grow in my surrey garden. A single plant (like mine) can produce up to 2.5kg. What however many are not aware of, including myself till recently, is that redcurrants are prohibited in many USA states. For example they cannot be shipped to North Carolina, New Hampshire, West Virginia. Other states like Delaware and Massachusetts insist on a permit. Some states prohibit them in certain counties/areas, for example Maine and New Jersey. The federal government had banned the growing of black and red currants in 1911 when the burgeoning logging industry put pressure on lawmakers to eliminate the currants because they were thought to be an intermediate host of white pine blister rust. New disease-resistant varieties of currants were later developed and in 1966 the government left it up to the states to lift the ban. Quinn persuaded New York state to lift the ban in 2003.In 1933, Pennsylvania passed a law that limited growing gooseberries and currants in certain areas; however, the law is not enforced. Therefore, all Ribes can be grown in the state. Many USA citizens are unfamiliar with currants generally including redcurants, although New Yorkers grew 2,700 acres of them in the 1920s.

The reasons are quite historical. In the early 1900s, the federal and state governments outlawed the growing of currants and gooseberries to prevent the spread of white pine blister rust (Cronartium ribicola). This fungal disease attacks both Ribes and white pines, which must live in close proximity for the blister rust fungus to complete its life cycle. Although the federal ban was rescinded in 1966, some northern states as above do still prohibit the planting or cultivation of currants. In 2003 though, New York State passed a law that modified its ban to allow commercial growers and home gardeners to legally grow red currants, gooseberries and immune or resistant cultivars of black currants throughout New York State.

New disease-resistant varieties of currants were later developed and in 1966 the government left it up to the states to lift the ban. Quinn persuaded New York state to lift the ban in 2003.It is good news that production is slowly returning in USA as redcurrants are undoubtedly healthy fruit. After all, red and black currants have four times more vitamin C than oranges and twice the antioxidants of blueberries.

Redcurrants
Copyright Chris Bushe 2015

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged 1911 federal ban, 1966 federal ban, ban redcurrants, blister rust fungus, blister rust fungus lifecycle, buy redcurrants, can i grow currants in usa, currants and usa, disease resistant currants, disease resistant redcurrants, federal ban on currants, indianapolis, new york redcurrant production, new york state currants, photo redcurrants, redcurrants, redcurrants illegal, redcurrants illegal usa, redcurrants usa, redcurrants vitamin c, reducrrants illegal, rescinded federal ban 1966, ribes rubrum, sunday times, surrey, surrey garden, USA, what is illegal usa, what states ban currants, what states ban redcurrants, white pine, white pine blister rust

12 Jul 2015

A Butterfly reading The Sunday Times

One of those opportunistic photos where a butterfly maybe a little tired landed on my newspaper and the I Phone was handy. just a cute image really. Maybe it stopped to watch the tennis?