The Tropical Fruit Forum

I grow bitter leaf in my greenhouse, and I make lamb curry sometimes with it -
First, wash the bitter leaf leaves at least 10 times by soaking in warm water, swishing around, squeezing it, draining water, etc.
Chop coarsely and simmer in salted water for about 30 minutes. Drain well.
Then I put the lamb curry on top of the cooked leaves.
For my lamb curry I use grated tomatoes (I just grate halved tomatoes on a cheese grater as a fast way to get rid of the skins), a can of coconut milk, red or yellow curry paste, depending on my mood, and a chopped yellow onion and a cube of the plain Maggi seasoning. Then I simmer the chopped lamb in that.  If I am in a hurry I put the lamb in the pressure cooker first.

That is about all I can think of that doesn't have weird stuff in it.  I am not a fan of dried prawns or dried fish - REALLY salty.

You can also use the above recipe for the cooked bitter leaf as a substitute for cooked spinach in just about any recipe.  I have tossed the cooked bitter leaf with a bit of vinegar and cooked bacon and just treated them like cooked collard greens.

The big thing is that if you treat it right ahead of time, they should not be very bitter. No more than spinach.

Cheers,
Carolyn

I had one that went all across the floor of my greenhouse. The only problem I had was that the aerial roots, once they touch the ground, tunnel and spread like crazy.  Ripping it up was a challenge.  Then I trained it up some 2x4s to keep it out of the way.
So yeah, does fine as a ground cover but can be hard to remove once it takes hold.  And it is probably deliciosa, don't know of anything else commonly available with leaves that big.

Carolyn

Ok, FloridaManDan, I think you nailed it.  The leaves and the fruit look the same and the range is right. Description of the ripe fruit matches also, after spending a bit of time looking at different sites.  I am telling him it is probably philodendron jaquinii.

Thanks!!!

Carolyn

Hi All,
My son just sent me these picks from their farm in Belize. Any idea what this is and whether it is edible, poisonous, or an innocent vine of no harm. They are growing up some of their cashew trees.
He said they smell slightly of sweet corn.
No ID from the local yet either.

Thanks! Carolyn

I am in Boise, so probably have access to the same stuff as you, and I shop at Home Depot also.
Here is my recipe, which I use for everything.  If I am planting seeds, I just use a cheap plastic colander to sift it. For things that need LOTS of drainage I mix in more perlite on a pot-by-pot basis.
Even without the extra perlite, it drains really well and never gets mushy at the bottom of the pot.
I just recently started using the Turface based on reviews on this forum, and really like it.

Two 2 cu.ft. bags of Kellogg Raised Bed and Potting mix ($10 each)
One 2 cu. ft bag of perlite ($26). It is cheaper at the farm store but I burn more gas going out there...
One 50 lb bag of Turface MVP ($21) at many turf supply places or nurseries
One five gallon bucket of our free city compost

Carolyn

Ok, that's my "learned something new" for today!

Carolyn

So, a couple of thoughts, from the "been there done that" department -
Get a 12 gauge extension cord, and get it as short as possible, so you don't leak amperage along the way. Putting it through foam pipe insulation helps also.
 
A heat pump may work as long as you are over about 30 degrees F, but after that you are just paying for normal heat anyway. And in the US most areas they have to be installed by a pro, permitted, etc.

What IS pretty cheap is a ventless wall furnace.  20,000 BTU ones, and a 5 gallon propane tank, will set you back less than $200.  Only drawback is that they produce water vapor.  I am in the high desert so that is great, but where you are, it may drive the humidity too high.

Good luck, and have fun with your new plant haven!

Carolyn

I germinate in peat moss, perlite and composted manure and worm castings.
Don't have to worry about the high pH. Plus, I find that if I forget to water the coco coir it dries out very quickly. Peat holds water much better and the perlite lets it all breathe.

Carolyn

My ripe ones I just rubbed on my shirt and the hairs came right off.

Love the hummingbird eggs!

Carolyn

Thanks!
Got the fruit cooked slightly in brown sugar syrup with spices for ice cream, the cut seeds for hummus, the scraps for my composting worms, then the plantable seeds later this week.

Carolyn

So, you take your standard drip irrigation system, and for some/all pots, you substitute a little clay cone for the drip emitter?
I am not sure what the advantage would be, and more parts to clog.
But, I only use my drip system when I am on vacation so my "sitter" can water without needing to know the complexities of who gets what. Other than that I water by hand, and check out each plant as I go.
Maybe a system like this would be handy for things that need their water very, very slowly?

Carolyn

Ok, here is a weird question involving ethics, I guess.  Or maybe I am just over-thinking it.
A couple of years ago, I brought some olive seeds back from Jerusalem from olives I picked up off the ground at a location that has great meaning in Jewish culture.

Of a couple dozen seeds, three sprouted and grew.  One had a setback and is tiny, but two others are 18 inches tall now.  I pruned them and rooted the cuttings.  They took very well.

I want to give one of the cutting plants to a friend because it would have incredible importance to her, coming from Jerusalem.

QUESTION TO ANSWER - Being a cutting of the one I grew from seed collected in the Holy Land, can I truthfully say "this tree came from Jerusalem"?

She knows it is a cutting from the original, but I am writing up a little "baby book" for it, with pictures of me cleaning the seeds on the cruise ship, the mother tree as a sprout, the cutting, etc.

I guess I am selfish and don't want to part with one of the originals, but they are doing really well, and there is a fair chance that the one I give her will die.

I know, weird question.  Thoughts?

Carolyn