Plant of the Month - October 2012

Those of you who are fans of our Archery Lawn will notice a magnificent line of purple and pink flowers stretching from the Green House to the Summer House (or vice versa depending on which direction you are going). 

If you have noticed it, congratulations - you have just had the pleasure of viewing October's Plant of the Month, Salvia Horminum.

 

 

History

Also known as Clary, this annual plant is native to an area extending from the Mediterranean to the Crimea and into Iran. The Latin name Salvia Horminum is synonymous with Salvia Viridis. The plant quickly grows up to 28 inches tall and about 12 inches wide. The brilliant purple-blue flowers last well as cut flowers or dried flowers.

The Clary, like Garden Sage, is not a native of Great Britain, having first been introduced into English cultivation in the year 1562. It is a native of Syria, Italy, southern France and Switzerland, but will thrive well upon almost any soil that is not too wet, though it will frequently rot upon moist ground in the winter.

Gerard describes and figures several varieties of Clary, under the names of Horminum and Gallitricum. He describes it as growing 'in divers barren places almost in every country, especially in the fields of Holborne neare unto Grayes Inne . . . and at the end of Chelsea.' 

Salmon, in 1710, in The English Herbal, gives a number of varieties of the Garden Clary, which he calls Horminum hortense, in distinction to H. Sylvestre, the Wild Clary, subdividing it into the Common Clary (H. commune), the True Garden Clary of Dioscorides (H. sativum verum Dioscorides), the Yellow Clary (Calus Jovis), and the Small or German Clary (H. humile Germanicum or Gallitricum alterum Gerardi). This last variety being termed Gerardi, indicates that Gerard classified this species when it was first brought over from the Continent, evidently taking great pains to trace its history, giving in his Herbal its Greek name and its various Latin ones. That the Clary was known in ancient times is shown by the second variety, the True Garden Clary, being termed Dioscoridis. 

Another variety of Horminum is given in The Treasury of Botany, called H. pyrenaicum, and described as 'a tufted perennial herb, with numerous root-leaves, simple almost leafless stems and purplish-blue flowers which grow in whorls of six, all turned the same way. It is a native of the temperate parts of Europe, on the mountains.' 

Planting / Propagation

The plant is propagated by seed, which should be sown in spring. When fit to move, the seedlings should be transplanted to an open spot of ground, a foot apart each way, if required in large quantities. After the plants have taken root, they will require no further care but to keep them free of weeds. The winter and spring following, the leaves will be in perfection. As the plant is a biennial only, dying off the second summer, after it has ripened seeds, there should be young plants annually raised for use. 

For earlier blooms, sow Salvia flower seeds indoors 10 weeks before last frost. Sow Salvia flower seed in starter trays and press the seed into the soil. Salvia flower seed needs light to germinate. When the frost season has passed, transplant the Salvia seedlings into the garden 12 - 18 inches apart in a sunny location. Or, sow Salvia flower seeds outdoors in spring after frost danger has passed and prepare soil by weeding it and loosening it. Lightly rake Salvia flower seeds into the soil and keep the seeds and young seedlings moist until well-established. Provide plenty of water in dry weather. Salvia plants grow best when provided moist, but well-drained soil in full sun to partial shade.

Medicinal Action and Uses

Salvia Horminum is not edible, but has a rich medicinal history, again we must emphasise that these uses are provided for historical entertainment only, and may actually be harmful. Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens Trust accepts no responsibility for the consequences of any self medication.

Antispasmodic, balsamic, carminative, tonic, aromatic, aperitive, astringent, and pectoral.

The plant has been used, both fresh and dry, either alone or with other herbs, as an infusion or a tincture.

It has mostly been employed in disordered states of the digestion, as a stomachic, and has also proved useful in kidney diseases. 

For violent cases of hysteria or wind colic, a spirituous tincture has been found of use, made by macerating in warm water for 14 days, 2 OZ. of dried Clary leaves and flowers, 1 OZ. of Chamomile flowers, 1/2 ox. bruised Avens root, 2 drachms of bruised Caraway and Coriander seeds, and 3 drachms of bruised Burdock seeds, adding 2 pints of proof spirit, then filtering and diluting with double quantity of water - a wineglassful being the dose.

Culpepper says:

'For tumours, swellings, etc., make a mucilage of the seeds and apply to the spot. This will also draw splinters and thorns out of the flesh.... For hot inflammation and boils before they rupture, use a salve made of the leaves boiled with hot vinegar, honey being added later till the required consistency is obtained.' He recommends a powder of the dry roots taken as snuff to relieve headache, and 'the fresh leaves, fried in butter, first dipped in a batter of flour, egges, and a little milke, serve as a dish to the table that is not unpleasant to any and exceedingly profitable.'

The juice of the herb drunk in ale and beer, as well as the ordinary infusion, has been recommended as very helpful in all women's diseases and ailments. 

In Jamaica, where the plant is found, it was much in use. It was considered it cooling and cleansing for ulcers, and also used it for inflammations of the eyes. A decoction of the leaves boiled in coco-nut oil was used by them to cure the stings of scorpions. Clary and a Jamaican species of Vervain form two of the ingredients of an aromatic warm bath sometimes prescribed there with benefit. 

Folklore

Things are a bit thin on the folklore front with this plant, in face the only thing I could find was an anonymous source that states that the plant flourishes best in household gardens where women are the dominant force. So there.

Come and check out this wonderful plant at the Gardens today!

Thank you:

Wikipedia

Gordon Sammons

Botanical.com

The photographs by Graham High are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 UK: England & Wales License.

Plant of the Month - September 2012

Ah Sunflower, weary of time,
Who countest the steps of the sun;
Seeking after that sweet golden clime
Where the traveller's journey is done;

Where the Youth pined away with desire,
And the pale virgin shrouded in snow,
Arise from their graves, and aspire
Where my Sunflower wishes to go!

William Blake

Have you recently ate chips (fried or oven)? Crisps Maybe? Possibly even one of those grain bars which claim to make you live forever if you eat enough of them? Perhaps you use a vegetable oil spread on your toast, or maybe you fling the odd fish fingers in batter into the oven every so often. Maybe you are interested in bio-fuels and their role in the environment, or maybe even indulged yourself by scribbling on a piece of paper or two. You may even be an admirer of the artistry of Vincent Van Gogh...

If so, you are most certainly interested in September’s plant of the month; the noble Sunflower.

Sunflower (Helianthus annuus) is an annual plant native to the Americas. It possesses a large inflorescence (flowering head). The sunflower is named after its huge, fiery blooms, whose shape and image is often used to depict the sun. It has a rough, hairy stem, broad, coarsely toothed, rough leaves and circular heads of flowers. The heads consist of many individual flowers which mature into seeds, often in the hundreds, on a receptacle base. Sunflower seeds were brought to Europe in the 16th century.

The Sunflower was probably first introduced to Europe through Spain, and spread through Europe as a curiosity until it reached Russia where it was readily adapted.

Here at Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens, we have a collection of very impressive specimens standing erect in the Batty Langley Kitchen Garden. 

Batty appears to be silent on the issue of sunflowers; however in 1881 in the book 'The English Flower Garden' Henry A Bright waxes lyrical about them thus:

'Sunflowers, also in clumps, should stand out here and there, and though the modern sceptics 

may tell us that this American plant cannot be the Clytie of Grecian story, it amply vindicates 

its name by its large discs, surrounded by golden rays.'

To grow best, sunflowers need full sun. They grow best in fertile, moist, well-drained soil with heavy mulch. In commercial planting, seeds are planted 45cm (1.5ft) apart and 2.5cm (1 inch) deep. Sunflower "whole seed" (fruit) are sold as a snack food, raw or after roasting in ovens, with or without salt and/or seasonings added. Sunflowers can be processed into a peanut butter alternative, sunflower butter. In Germany, it is mixed with rye flour to make Sonnenblumenkernbrot (literally: sunflower whole seed bread), which is quite popular in German-speaking Europe. It is also sold as food for birds and can be used directly in cooking and salads. American Indians had multiple uses for sunflowers in the past, such as in bread, medical ointments, dyes and body paints.

Sunflower oil, extracted from the seeds, is used for cooking, as a carrier oil and to produce margarine and biodiesel, as it is cheaper than olive oil. A range of sunflower varieties exist with differing fatty acid compositions; some 'high oleic' types contain a higher level of monounsaturated fats in their oil than even olive oil.

The cake remaining after the seeds have been processed for oil is used as a livestock feed. Some recently developed cultivars have drooping heads. These cultivars are less attractive to gardeners growing the flowers as ornamental plants, but appeal to farmers, because they reduce bird damage and losses from some plant diseases. Sunflowers also produce latex, and are the subject of experiments to improve their suitability as an alternative crop for producing hypoallergenic rubber.

Sunflowers can be used in phytoremediation to extract toxic ingredients from soil, such as lead, arsenic and uranium. They were used to remove caesium-137 and strontium-90 from a nearby pond after the Chernobyl disaster, and a similar campaign was mounted in response to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.

Sunflower seeds are more commonly eaten as a healthy snack than as part of a meal. They can also be used as garnishes or ingredients in various recipes. The seeds may be sold as in-shell seeds or de hulled kernels. The seeds can also be sprouted and eaten in salads. However, eating expired sunflower seeds may cause stomach irritation such as bloating or diarrhoea due to the rotting of the seed.

When in-shell seeds are processed, they are first dried. Afterwards, they may also be roasted or dusted with salt or flour for preservation of flavour. De-hulling is commonly performed by cracking the hull with one's teeth and spitting it out while keeping the kernel in the mouth and eating it.

In-shell sunflower seeds are particularly popular in Mediterranean and Asian countries, including Egypt, Syria, Israel, Turkey, and Malaysia. In Turkey, Syria and Israel they can be bought freshly roasted in shops and markets and are a common stadium food, while in Malaysia they can be bought freshly packed in various roasted flavors. They are also popular in countries worldwide including Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Romania, Spain, China, Morocco, Iran, Canada and the United States.

The arrangement of seeds on a sunflower head has also been the cause of mathematical interest because of the arrangement in both the Fibonacci sequence and the Golden mean. Those who are interested in this aspect should click on http://www.popmath.org.uk/rpamaths/rpampages/sunflower.html where your brain will be suitably entertained.

Folklore

Legend has it….

• that a sunflower planted in your yard will bring you good luck. 
• that a sunflower cut at sunset will bring you good luck the next day. 
• that if you want know the truth in any situation, sleep with a sunflower under your bed. 
• to protect against small pox, wear sunflower seeds around your neck.

The story that a sunflower will track the path of the sun during the day however is sadly without foundation, fun though it is. The story was debunked as early as 1597 by the English botanist John Gerard, but as usual such stories have a lives of their own.

 

The art of Vincent Van Gogh has done more in the 20^th and 21^st Centuries to make the sunflower famous than just about anything else. His series of Sunflower paintings can be viewed by clicking on this link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunflowers_%28Van_Gogh_series%29

National Gallery, London.

So that's our fab plant of the month for September, providing much food for both the body and mind. Pay them a visit in the Batty Langley Kitchen Garden. You can hardly miss them!

Thanks to

Gordon Sammons

Wikipedia

Popmath

The photographs by Graham High are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 UK: England & Wales License.

Plant of the Month – August 2012

Verbena rigida, or Slender vervain

Excellent herbs had our fathers of old -

Excellent herbs to ease their pain -

Alexanders and Marigold,

Eyebright, Orris, and Elecampane -

Basil, Rocket, Valerian, Rue,

(Almost singing themselves they run)

Vervain, Dittany, Call-me-to-you-

Cowslip, Melitot, Rose of the Sun,

Anything green that grew out of the mould

Was an excellent herb to our fathers of old.

Rudyard Kipling.

As the Summer warms things up, frost-tender species reach their full glory. A great example of such a species is Verbena rigida which, in early summer, produces neat, compact perennial bearing heads of pale violet flowers from mid summer onwards. This verbena slowly spreads and intermingles with other plants, where it forms small drifts. It can be used to as a colourful accompaniment amongst other herbaceous perennials or in containers.

Verbena rigida otherwise known as Slender Vervain also has lance shaped, rough, mid green leaves borne on flower stems, grows to a height of 45 to 60 cm and has a spread of 30 cm. This species comes from southern Brazil and Argentina.

As a half-hardy perennial this plant is ideal for providing late summer colour at a medium height in formal and informal garden settings.

Verbena rigida can be located at Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens opposite My Lady’s Border.

Description

Common name - Slender vervain

Family - Verbeneaceae

Height & spread  45-60cm (18-24in) x 40cm (16in)

Form - Tuberous perennial

Soil - Moist but well-drained, moderately fertile soil

Aspect - Full sun

Hardiness - Frost hardy to -5oC (23oF) 

Click on the pictures to enlarge them.

Cultivation

Grow in moist but well-drained. moderately fertile soil in full sun.

Areas that are prone to extended frosts should be mulched in winter for protection.

Slugs, aphids, thrips and leafhoppers may be a problem.

Propagation

Sow seed in autumn or early spring. Alternatively, take stem-tip cuttings in late summer.

Divide perennials in spring.

Old Medicinal Uses

Warning! This information is presented for historical and entertainment purposes only. The remedies presented here are taken from old texts, and folklore and must be treated as dangerous. Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens will not accept any responsibility for any consequences resulting from self-medication by the use of this blog entry.

Verbena has longstanding use in herbalism and folk medicine, usually as an herbal tea. Nicholas Culpeper's 1652 The English Physitian discusses folk uses:-

“This is an herb of Venus, and excellent for the womb to strengthen and remedy all the cold griefs of it, as Plantain doth the hot. Vervain is hot and dry, opening obstructions, cleansing and healing. It helps the yellow jaundice, the dropsy and the gout; it kills and expels worms in the belly, and causes a good colour in the face and body, strengthens as well as corrects the diseases of the stomach, liver, and spleen; helps the cough, wheezings, and shortness of breath, and all the defects of the reins and bladder, expelling the gravel and stone. 

It is held to be good against the biting of serpents, and other venomous beasts, against the plague, and both tertian and quartan agues. It consolidates and heals also all wounds, both inward and outward, stays bleedings, and used with some honey, heals all old ulcers and fistulas in the legs or other parts of the body; as also those ulcers that happen in the mouth; or used with hog's grease, it helps the swellings and pains in the secret parts in man or woman, also for the piles or hæmorrhoids; applied with some oil of roses and vinegar unto the forehead and temples, it eases the inveterate pains and ache of the head, and is good for those that are frantic. 

The leaves bruised, or the juice of them mixed with some vinegar, doth wonderfully cleanse the skin, and takes away morphew, freckles, fistulas, and other such like inflammations and deformities of the skin in any parts of the body. The distilled water of the herb when it is in full strength, dropped into the eyes, cleanses them from films, clouds, or mists, that darken the sight, and wonderfully strengthens the optic nerves. The said water is very powerful in all the diseases aforesaid, either inward or outward, whether they be old corroding sores, or green wounds. The dried root, and peeled, is known to be excellently good against all scrophulous and scorbutic habits of body, by being tied to the pit of the stomach, by a piece of white ribband round the neck.”

Folklore

A sacred herb used to cleanse the table of Zeus before a feast in ancient Greece. In Rome it was also strewn on the altars of Jupiter, and water containing vervain was also sprinkled in houses to cast out evil spirits.

Among the Druids particularly it was employed in connection with many forms of superstition. They gathered it at daybreak, before the sun had risen. Later sorcerers followed the same usage, and demonologists believed that in order to evoke demons it was necessary to be crowned with vervain.

During the Crusades it was believed that when the nails were driven into the hands of Christ, vervain sprang upon Calvary.

The generic name is the Latin term for a plant sacred to the ancient Romans. Pliny the Elder describes verbena presented on Jupiter altars; it is not entirely clear if this referred to a verbena rather than the general term for prime sacrificial herbs.

In the series of young adult novels The Vampire Diaries, author L. J. Smith uses vervain to protect humans from vampires, in an extension of vervain's fabled magic-suppression powers against witches. In The Struggle, Volume II, the vampire Stefan instructs the human Elena that vervain can "protect you against bewitchment, and it can keep your mind clear if vampire or an other supernatural that is using Powers against you." He tells her how it is prepared and used, "Once I've extracted the oil from the seeds, you can rub it into your skin, or add it to a bath. And you can make the dried leaves into a sachet and carry it with you, or put it under your pillow at night", but gives her an unprepared sprig for protection in the meantime.

So yet another small plant with a big history to visit at Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens! Come and visit it today!

Thanks to

Gordon Sammons

Wikipedia

Royal Horticultural Society

The Kipling Society

The photographs taken by Graham High in this work are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 UK: England & Wales License.

Plant of the Month - July 2012

 Tulip Tree ( Liriodendron tulipifera)

O Tulip Tree, O Tulip Tree
What changes time hath wrought!
What scenes have passed beneath thy bough,
That fleeting age hath brought.

 

Tulip Tree Poem - Augustus Post, 1933.

A tall, stately tree with uniquely-shaped leaves four lobed with a flattened tip. These large leaves flutter in the breeze and at the end of the season turn bright gold. The tulip like flowers do not begin to appear for about 25 years, and are never really conspicuous. 

Liriodendron tulipifera — known as the tulip tree, American tulip tree, tuliptree, tulip poplar and yellow poplar — is the Western Hemisphere representative of the two-species genus Liriodendron, and the tallest eastern hardwood. It is native to eastern North America from Southern Ontario and Illinois eastward across southern New England and south to central Florida and Louisiana. It can grow to more than 50 m (165 feet) in virgin cove forests of the Appalachian Mountains, often with no limbs until it reaches 25–30 m (80–100 feet) in height, making it a very valuable timber tree. 

It is fast-growing, without the common problems of weak wood strength and short lifespan often seen in fast-growing species. The flowers are pale green or yellow (rarely white), with an orange band on the tepals; they yield large quantities of nectar. The tulip tree is the state tree of Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee. 

"Tulip tree" is certainly a misleading name for a tree that is actually a member of the magnolia family. Nevertheless, that is the name by which this handsome tree is called worldwide, due to its colorful, tuliplike orange and yellow flowers. Although no 200-foot tulip trees are known to exist today, some reports say that they did once upon a time. 

The Tulip Tree can be found in the Lower Wildeness of Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens.

How to Grow

Growing Tulip tree seedlings at home is fairly easy: Young trees can be purchased from the local nursery or garden centre. To grow your own seedlings, seeds can be gathered from mature trees, which develop seed bearing fruit during the fall season. Simply allow the seed pods to dry on the tree, then break them open to harvest the seeds inside. Of course, seeds can be purchased also, from any number of commercial sources.

Sowing Tulip trees outdoors should be done in the Autumn, either directly in the ground or in buried pots. Fall planting allows the seeds to have a period of cold dormancy over the winter that prepares them for spring germination. Soil should be loose and well drained to avoid soggy conditions that could rot the seeds or cause them to mould. If planting in containers, be sure there are large drainage holes in the bottom to prevent them from flooding during rainy conditions or when snow melts in the spring.

Starting seeds indoors is best done in the late winter or early spring. Seeds kept over the winter should be placed in a plastic bag or container, either wrapped in moist paper towelling or submerged in moist peat moss, and refrigerated to simulate the natural period of cold they would experience if planted outdoors.

Planting is best done in a sunny location, although tulip trees will tolerate light shade. Rich, well drained loam is the ideal soil for planting, but tulip trees are fairly adaptable, often thriving in less than ideal conditions. Whether transplanting purchased seedlings or ones started at home, be sure that soil is loosened well around the area for easy root growth, enhanced with a bit of compost.

Place the young tree in a planting hole that is three times the width of its root-ball, and backfill the hole, being sure to tap the soil gently around the roots to avoid leaving air pockets.

Keep the soil moist around your young Tulip trees during the first few seasons of growth, but be sure to avoid over watering, as soil that is too wet can be worse than overly dry conditions for your seedlings. Adding some support is a good measure to take, either staking or caging new trees until strong roots develop. Mulching often helps young tulip trees grow more quickly, helping to maintain moisture in the soil and discourage weeds that would otherwise compete for soil nutrients.

Pruning of this lovely tree is not usually necessary. If you wish to do any propagation from this tree, you may do so by layering shoots in spring- wait two years before severing from the parent plant.

History

Because of its great beauty and size, the tulip tree has a valued place in American history, as well as an honoured one in the gardens of Europe. This tree’s many folk and informal names attest to its popularity and extensive range. To many in the lumber industry it is known as the yellow-poplar. 

In Tennessee it is sometimes called canoe wood because Native Americans and early settlers carved canoes from its light, buoyant trunks. No less of a woodsman than Daniel Boone chose such a canoe to carry his own family from Kentucky to the western frontier. Tuliptree also had a wide range of medicinal uses, with many teas, ointments, and solutions being made from it. George Washington admired this tree as well, with a giant he planted in 1785 being selected as Mount Vernon’s official Bicentennial Tree. 

 

The flowers are very popular with honey bees, since a single tulip poplar flower has enough nectar to fill a bee’s honey stomach.  (Most other types of flowers require a honey bee to visit as many as 100 blooms to fill her stomach with nectar.) 

The honey produced from the flowers is a dark honey, amber in colour with a rich, complex flavor.  Honey has lots of health benefits, and research suggests that dark honey like tulip poplar is particularly high in antioxidants.

Be sure to find this lovely plant next time you visit the Gardens!

Thanks to:

http://viewfromthehive.wordpress.com

Wikipedia

Wikimedia Commons
ehow.com
Gordon Sammons 

All pictures are Public Domain.

Plant of the Month - June 2012

Laburnum anagyroides 

Mark yonder, 

how the long laburnum drips 

Its jocund spilth of fire, its honey of wild flame!

 —Francis Thompson, Sister Songs (1895) 

 Laburnum Anagyroides - Public Domain

Laburnum anagyroides (Common Laburnum, Golden Chain or Golden Rain) is a species of small deciduous trees or large shrubs up to 7 m tall in the genus Laburnum, native to Central and Southern Europe. It is a popular ornamental plant, along with the other species in the genus, L. alpinum, and especially the hybrid between them, L. × watereri. L. anagyroides blooms in late spring with pea-like, yellow flowers densely packed in pendulous racemes 10-20 cm (4-8 in) long. 

The yellow flowers are responsible for the old poetic name 'golden chain tree' (also spelled golden chaintree or goldenchain tree). The plants can be found in the Upper Wilderness of the gardens, and as usual are stunning examples. 

 

Most garden specimens are of the hybrid between the two species, Laburnum × watereri (Voss's laburnum), which combines the longer racemes of L. alpinum with the denser flowers of L. anagyroides; it also has the benefit of low seed production. The Laburnum plant will poison anyone who consumes the seeds for mistaking them for peas. Consequently this beautiful brightly coloured plant has a somewhat dark reputation. 

All parts of the plant contain Cytisine. Cytisine was discovered in 1863 by Husemann and Marme. It is a white, crystalline solid, of a bitter, somewhat caustic taste, with a very poisonous action. All parts of the laburnum plant are poisonous, and can be lethal if consumed in excess. Symptoms of laburnum poisoning may include intense sleepiness, vomiting, convulsive movements, coma, slight frothing at the mouth and unequally dilated pupils. In some cases, diarrhea is very severe, and at times the convulsions are markedly tetanic. 

As with most other plants of this type though if sensible precautions are observed (don’t eat it, keep children away from it, wash hands after handling etc.) risks are minimised. Cytisine is also an ingredient in some insecticides. Detail of the flowers A shrub with smooth bark, dark green spreading branches and pendulous and pubescent twigs. The leaves (made of three leaflets) have a long pedunculus, are smooth on the upperside and hairy on the underside. The flowers are golden yellow and sweet scented, are grouped in pendulous racemes up to 25 cm long, and typically bloom in May. 

The seeds are legumes with large numbers of black seeds that contain cytisine, which is an alkaloid poisonous not only to humans but also to goats and horses, especially when not ripe. However, some wild animals such as hares and deer can feed on them without any ill-effects, and because of this the plant is believed to have magic properties in some regions. 

Growth 

Laburnum trees are not too fussy as to which type of soil they live in, as they can thrive in well drained light soil, heavy clay soil, acidic soil or a chalky alkaline soil. Make sure that your plant is situated in full sun, as laburnums are sun worshippers. The best time to plant laburnum seeds is from September to November. The best time to take a laburnum cutting is from December to February. As long as you plant your laburnum tree in full sun, then there shouldn't really be much to do thereafter. 

Laburnums are notorious for being short-lived, but they offer copious amounts of seeds every year, so they tend to regenerate themselves. Many gardeners try to remove the drying seed pods from laburnum trees as this encourages a good show of flowers the following year. Uses Despite its poisonous nature, Laburnum wood does have some use. The heart-wood of the Laburnum was often used as an Ebony substitute as it is very hard and coloured a dark chocolate brown. The sapwood surrounding the heart-wood is in contrast a bright yellow. The wood has been used for making the handles of tools and for use in various crafts. It is also ideal for making posts, for woodturning and as fuel. 

In the past (and today on historic re-enactments) it was used for making bows. Laburnum has historically been used for cabinetmaking and inlay, as well as for musical instruments. In addition to such wind instruments as recorders and flutes, it was a popular wood for Great Highland bagpipes before taste turned to imported dense tropical hardwoods such as cocuswood, ebony, and African blackwood.

Folklore

I’m afraid quaint folklore tales regarding the Laburnum are rather thin on the ground, generally focusing on the ‘unlucky’ side of things (which considering the toxic properties of the plant is hardly surprising) and making very boring reading, truth be told. 

Laburnums have a much more colourful CV in fiction however; In the TV mystery series Mother Love, Helena (Diana Rigg) muses over what plant she should use to poison a pair of children and chooses the laburnum, saying, "Laburnum! Such a pretty tree – and so many of them!" 

In the Doctor Who serial The Mark of the Rani, the Sixth Doctor suggests that if the Master turned into a tree, it would be a laburnum, because they have poisonous pods. 

The novel A Melon for Ecstasy by John Fortune and John Wells is, in part, about the main character's forbidden love affair with the laburnum in his back yard. Laburnum seeds are the agent of suspected poisoning in the Daphne du Maurier novel My Cousin Rachel. 

In Wizardborn, the third book in Dave Wolverton's (David Farland) The Runelords series, Averan, the Earth Warden, chooses her staff of power from the wood of the laburnum tree. It has also been stated that The writer J. R. R. Tolkien was inspired by the laburnum for his creation of Laurelin, one of the two mythological trees in The Silmarillion, and Tolkien's description of it is strongly influenced by Thompson's verses. 

So that’s the laburnum. Enjoy, but handle with care! Check out this beautiful plant at your next visit. 

Thank you: 

Gordon Sammons

http://www.thepoisongarden.co.uk/atoz/laburnum_anagyroides.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laburnum

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laburnum_anagyroides

http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/l/labrun02.html

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Laburnum_anagyroides

The photographs taken by Graham High in this work are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 UK: England & Wales License.

Plant of the Month - May 2012.

Syringa vulgaris (Common Lilac)

Click on pictures to view them full size


In the dooryard fronting an old farm-house near the white-washed palings,
Stands the lilac-bush tall-growing with heart-shaped leaves of rich green,
With many a pointed blossom rising delicate, with the perfume strong I love,
With every leaf a miracle -and from this bush in the dooryard,
With delicate-coloured blossoms and heart-shaped leaves of rich green,
A sprig with its flower I break.

When Lilacs in the Dooryard Bloomed (Third Verse) by Walt Whitman 

Our plant of the month for May 2012 is Syringa vulgaris, otherwise known as the Common Lilac. It is a member of the Olive family (Oleaceae).

Common Lilac. "Published by W. Curtis St. George: Crescent Feb. 1. 1792". Published in Curtis Botanical Magazine. 

The name of this genus is from the same root as syringe, derived from the Greek word for “pipe.” This name was first given to the mock orange, of the genus Philadelphus from the Saxifrage family. Its stems were frequently used to make pipes of the musical, rather than smoking, variety. To add to the taxonomical confusion, the mock orange today in some parts of the world is known by the common name, “Syringa.”

Enough of this. The true Syringa is the Lilac. In case you’ve ever wondered which came first, the naming of the colour or of the plant, we can at least solve that mystery: the plant acquired the common name, lilac, because of its purple flowers. Lilac can be traced to the Sanskrit word for purple. The sweet scent is one of the most familiar in any garden. 

A lilac bush (Syringa vulgaris) showing a panicle with multiple flowers in bloom and leaves. Taken by John O'Neill, 2007. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported licence.

This shrub is 8-20 inches tall, and sends up multiple branching stems that form a vase-shaped crown. Stems at the base of this shrub are up to 8 inches across. The bark of large old stems is gray to gray-brown, somewhat rough-textured, slightly shredded, and sometimes shallowly furrowed. The bark of young stems is gray to brown and smooth, while new shoots are green and glabrous. Pairs of opposite leaves occur along the young stems and shoots.

Individual leaves are 2-5" long and 1½-3½" across. The upper leaf surface is yellowish green to dark green and hairless, while the lower surface is pale green and hairless.

Syringa vulgaris can be located in various beds in the Upper Wilderness, and is unmissable.

Brief History:

Both Syringa vulgaris and the finer, smaller "Persian Lilac" (now considered a natural hybrid) were introduced into European gardens at the end of the sixteenth century, from Ottoman gardens. The Holy Roman Emperor's ambassador, Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq, is generally credited with supplying lilac slips to Carolus Clusius, about 1562.

Well-connected botanists, like the great herbalist John Gerard, soon had this rarity in their gardens: Gerard notes that he had lilacs growing “in very great plenty” in 1597, but John Loudon was of the opinion that the Persian lilac had been introduced into English gardens by John Tradescant the elder.

In the American colonies lilacs were introduced in the eighteenth century. Peter Collinson, F.R.S., wrote to the Pennsylvania gardener and botanist John Bartram, proposing to send him some, and remarked that John Custis of Virginia had a fine "collection", which Ann Leighton interpreted as signifying Common and Persian Lilacs, in both purple and white, "the entire range of lilacs possible" at the time.

Common lilac tends to flower profusely in alternate years, a habit that can be improved by deadheading the flower clusters after the colour has faded and before seeds, few of which are fertile, form. At the same time twiggy growth on shoots that have flowered more than once or twice can be cut to a strong, outward-growing side shoot.

Care:

Young lilacs tend to flower sparingly and variously until they are established. Lilacs enjoy full sunshine, an opportunity to spread its branches and still have plenty of air circulation, and a well-drained soil that is not acidic.

Lilacs appreciate an alkaline soil; and many sources recommend adding lime out to the drip line in the fall. Feed your lilac twice a year, once in late winter or very early spring, and again after bloom.

In late summer, lilacs can be attacked by powdery mildew, specifically Erysiphe syringae, one of the Erysiphaceae.

Pinch back your young lilac to establish its shape, and remove old blossoms as promptly as you can. Remember that next year’s flower buds form in pairs where the leaves join the stems; severe pruning will mean fewer blossoms in the following year. As with other flowering shrubs, pruning is best done right after flowering, to preserve as many of next year’s flowers as possible. If you need to completely renovate an older lilac, do the severe cutting back during the winter, while the plant is fully dormant. Suckers are often a problem, particularly if you’ve purchased a lilac that’s grafted onto root stock. They are tough plants and they will provide you with beauty most every spring for many years, in return for regular, routine care. 

Medicinal Action and Uses:

(Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens Trust cannot take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally).

Lilics were used as a vermifuge (a drug or other substance that causes worms or other parasites to be expelled from the intestines) in America, and as a tonic, an anti-periodic (a remedy used to prevent the recurrence of certain illnesses) and as a febrifuge (a drug that reduces fever). Lilacs may also be used as a substitute for aloes and in the treatment of malaria.

Superstitions and stuff...

A Old English superstition is that Lilacs are harbingers of death, doom, and / or misfortune, so therefore should not be brought indoors. The origin of this superstition is unknown, although there are plenty of websites our there willing to take a crack at an explanation, usually with contradictory results.

Fans of the Adam West / Burt Ward ‘Batman’ series will no doubt be disappointed to learn that there is no such variety as the man-eating lilac (as employed by super-villain ‘Louis the Lilac’) outside the magic of television. There is also no evidence that consuming ‘sweet and heady’ Lilac Wine (as in the James Shelton song covered by Elkie Brooks, Jeff Buckley, and others) will bring back any lost lovers whatsoever.

The Lilacs at the gardens are at their best right now, so drop in soon and visit them!

Thank you:

Wikipedia -  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Lilac

Ilinois Wild Flowers - http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/trees/plants/lilac.html

Washington State University - http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/homehort/plant/lilac.htm

Botanical.com - http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/l/lilacs20.html

The photographs taken by Graham and Christopher High in this work are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 UK: England & Wales License.