BEAR'S BREECHES OR OYSTER PLANT: HISTORY AND HEALTH BENEFITS OF ACANTHUS MOLLIS

BEAR’S BREECHES, OYSTER PLANT, ACANTHUS MOLLIS 

Bear’s breeches is a fanciful name given to this plant which has flowers rather like those of snapdragons. They are pollinated by bees which have to force their way between the top and bottom parts of the flower. They are not relations of snapdragons however, as these are in the Acanthaceae family of plants, so are related to the Marsh Barbel among others.

   Bear’s breeches are native to the Mediterranean region and are cultivated in Britain, although some appear to have naturalized in Cornwall. In the 17^th century, these were called Brank-ursine, meaning bear’s claws, which referred, possibly, to the shape of the flowers. They contain mucilage and tannin, which makes or rather made them useful in traditional medicine systems in Europe.                                                                           

  The plant has been used as a wound healer and internally taken to soothe the mucous membranes in the digestive and urinary tracts. The crushed leaves have been used in poultices and placed on burns or scalds to relieve the pain. The plant has astringent qualities and has been used to treat diarrhea and to heal wounds, as well as being used to clean wounds. It has been taken internally to purify the blood and to calm the stomach. It is also said to have expectorant properties.

  The 17^th century herbalist, Nicholas Culpeper has this to say of the plant he called Brank-ursine: -

“Government and virtues. It is an excellent plant under the dominion of the Moon; I could wish such as are studious would labour to keep it in their gardens. Its leaves being boiled, and used in clysters, is excellent good to mollify the belly, and make the passage slippery; the decoction, drunk, is excellent good for the bloody flux: the leaves being bruised, or rather boiled and applied like a poultice, are exceeding good to unite broken bones, and strengthen joints that have been put out; the decoction of either the leaves or roots being drunk, and the decocted leaves applied to the place, is excellent good for the king's evil that is broken and runneth, for by the influence of the Moon it reviveth the ends of the veins which are relaxed; there is scarcely a better remedy to be applied to such places as are burnt with fire than this is; for it fetcheth out the fire, and healeth it without a scar; it is also an excellent remedy for such as are bursten, being either taken inwardly, or applied to the place; in like manner used, it helps the cramp and the gout; it is excellent good in hectic fevers, and restores radical moisture to such as are in consumptions.“

  Perhaps this plant’s claim to fame is as a motif at the top of Corinthian columns. Vitruvius write in his treatise “On Architecture” that there was a maiden from Corinth who died of a disease. Her grieving family had a monument made to her and her nurse took a basket, filled with the goblets she had loved in life to her grave. She inadvertently placed the basket with a tile covering it to protect the goblets from the ravages of the weather, on a root of Acanthus (mollis or spinosis), so in spring, the plants put forth its leaves and twined them around the basket. The people who passed remarked on the beauty of this and praise the architect who was thus inspired to make other columns for the Corinthians and so the fashion for such columns and their distinctive motif was begun.

  Inspired by these columns the artists of the Renaissance incorporated the leaf from the columns into some of their sculptures and architecture too. Bear’s Breeches thus is important in the history of architecture.

SHIITAKE MUSHROOM - ONE OF THE HEALTHIEST: HEALTH BENEFITS OF SHIITAKE

SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS, LENTINULA EDODES

Shiitake mushrooms have been used in Chinese traditional medicine for thousands of years, and so are classed as medicinal mushrooms rather than culinary ones. They have become a symbol of longevity in Asia because of their health-giving properties.

  They can be used in much the same way as the ubiquitous white mushroom you find on every supermarket shelf, but they have a meaty texture, somewhat like chanterelles and oyster mushrooms but they are highly-prized in Asia, much as we prize truffles and morels in the West. They are relatively small when compared to the Giant puffball.

  Shiitake means wood mushroom, or rather Shii refers to the tree in Japan on which these mushrooms grow naturally, and take means mushroom in Japanese. These mushrooms are also known as “Black Forest mushrooms” as they also grow there in Europe. You can now buy logs impregnated with shiitake spores and grow your own. If you buy fried shiitake you should soak them in hot water to reconstitute them before cooking them or putting them in salads - you can eat them raw.                                                                                     

  Shiitake contain several B-complex vitamins- B2, B3, B5 and B6, and the minerals, magnesium, manganese, phosphorous, selenium, copper and zinc, along with all the 8 essential amino acids, protein and dietary fibre.

  Perhaps the best way of eating these meaty mushrooms is to sauté them for 7 minutes in olive oil to bring out their best flavour and maximize the health-giving nutrients. You can try the side dish recipe below.

  The American Cancer Society has said that lentinam, which is found in shiitake mushrooms, can reduce and slow the growth of some cancer cells and at the same time it boosts the immune system to combat these unwelcome cells too. More trials on humans are needed for us to discover if shiitake mushrooms and their constituents can help in our fight against cancer.

  Selenium, zinc and manganese all have antioxidant properties as do some of the other constituents of these mushrooms, and these combat the scavenging free radicals which can turn cells cancerous. These mushrooms may offer protection from breast, prostate and colon cancers.

  Extracts from the mushrooms have been found to possess antifungal, antibacterial and anti-virus (including HIV-1) properties.

  Shiitake mushrooms can also help prevent rheumatoid arthritis according to one study, and others have shown that they might help with lowering blood cholesterol levels and cardio-vascular diseases, perhaps helping to prevent atherosclerosis.

  Lentin, a protein found in these mushrooms has anti-fungal properties and helps to inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells. L-ergothioneine found in these has potent antioxidant properties.

  If you have gout or kidney problems, be careful - these mushrooms contain purines - you should not eat very many of them in your diet.

SHIITAKE SIDE DISH                                                      

Ingredients

250 gr fresh shiitake sliced,

1 large onion thinly sliced,

3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped,

freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste

Chilli powder and 150 gr fresh tomatoes, chopped, handful of fresh parsley optional

Olive oil or sunflower oil for frying (or a mixture of both)

Method

Heat the oil(s) in a pan and then add the onions (with the chilli powder if using). Cook over a high heat for 2 minutes then lower the heat, stir and let them sweat, covered for 5-10 minutes.

Add the garlic and mushrooms and fry for a further 2 minutes or until the onions are soft. Season to taste.

(If using the other optional ingredients add them after 2 minutes of putting the garlic and mushrooms in the pan.)

Serve as a side dish with any meat or game.

This has Taste and is a Treat.

FICUS NOTA, TIBIG: USES AND HEALTH BENEFITS OF FICUS NOTA

TIBIG, WILD PHILIPPINO FIG TREE, FICUS NOTA 

Tibig is the name of this tree in the Philippines, to which it is native; it is also a native of Borneo. It has been introduced to the Hawaiian Islands where it has been cultivated, but it is now seen as an invasive species on some islands. In the Philippines Tibig trees are being planted so that they do not become threatened.

  Tibig is a member of the Ficus genus making it a close relation of the European fig, the tropical fig (Ficus septica), and of course the wild Punjabi fig. It is also related to the peepal tree and the bohar or banyan.As a member of the Moraceae family of plants it is related more distantly to the mulberry and Shahtoot mulberry, the toothbrush or sandpaper tree and to jackfruit.                                                                             

  It is a useful tree as it can be used as hedging as a living fence and because it is a fast-growing evergreen, it is a useful nurse tree for saplings. This tree can grow to 20 metres tall in its native habitat, although they usually grow to around half this size, and is a pioneer species used for reforestation.

  The fruit grows on short stems from the branches and stem of the tree, and is edible, although reportedly the figs are eaten with sugar. The tree is used for firewood and for making charcoal and is also used medicinally in the Philippines. Its white flowers are very small and hard to see.

  When the stem or trunk is cut watery sap exudes from it which is potable, and this is drunk three times a day for fevers, or applied to relieve muscle pains. It would seem that the fruit is not used medicinally, although, no doubt it has laxative properties as do other figs.

THREE OF THE MEADOW RUES: THALICTRUM FLAVUM, T. AQUILEGIFOLIUM AND T.MINUS: INFORMATION

small meadow rue

SMALL MEADOW RUE, GREATER MEADOW RUE AND YELLOW OR COMMON MEADOW RUE

The three meadow rues which are native to the British Isles are Thalictrum flavum, Common meadow rue, or Yellow meadow rue, Thalictrum aquilegifolium, Columbine or Greater meadow rue and Thalictrum minus the small meadow rue. They are not related to the herb rue which is a member of the Rutaceae family, but these are in the Ranunculaceae or buttercup family which makes them relatives of the lesser celandine, stinking hellebore, the Christmas rose, wood anemone, stavesacre, wolfsbane, monkshood, goldenseal and black cohosh.

small meadow rue

   Thalictrum minus is native to Europe, south west Asia and parts of north west Africa and South Africa. Unlike the other two meadow rues it has yellow, plum-brown flowers, rather like the figwort in colour and its foliage is similar to the Maidenhair fern.                                        

   The young leaves of this meadow rue can be cooked and eaten like spinach, although some of the Ranunculaceae family members have some toxicity so caution is recommended. Some research has been done on this plant and some new alkaloids and other compounds have been discovered in it. An infusion of the leaves or a decoction of the root has been used in traditional medicine in the past to help reduce fevers

common meadow rue

  The Common meadow rue has tufty yellow flowers and tends to grow in moist places, such as water meadows, fens and ditches. This is Thalictrum flavum which can grow to over a metre high. It is this one that Nicholas Culpeper the English herbalist who wrote his Herball in the 17^th century mentions thus:-

“Government and virtues. Dioscorides saith, That this herb bruised and applied, perfectly heals old sores, and the distilled water of the herb and flowers doth the like. It is used by some among other pot-herbs to open the body, and make it soluble; but the roots washed clean, and boiled in ale and drank, provokes to stool more than the leaves, but yet very gently. The root boiled in water, and the places of the body most troubled with vermin and lice washed therewith while it is warm, destroys them utterly. In Italy it is used against the plague, and in Saxony against the jaundice, as Camerarius says. A poultice made of the leaves has been known to give ease in the sciatica; and the country people in Buckinghamshire boil the roots and young leaves in ale, and take it as a purge. In smaller doses it works by urine, and removes obstructions of the viscera.”                                                                               

greater meadow rue

  The third meadow rue is Thalictrum aquilegifolium, or Greater Meadow rue, or Columbine meadow rue, the latter name being given to it because of the similarity of its leaves to columbines. This one in also native to North America, where it was used in the 19^th century to flavour spruce beer which was taken as a digestive tonic. It was also used as a purgative and diuretic, so one wonders what happened to those who drank the beer!

  As you can see from the pictures, these three meadow rues are quite distinctive, although all are in the same genus.This last has been used in Chinese medicine for the treatment of respiratory problems such as asthma, in combination with other herbs.