2022 - 2023 Meeting Schedule
September 15, 2022 at 9:30 a.m. - COMPLETED
October 20, 2022 at 9:30 a.m. COMPLETED
November 17, 2022 at 9:30 a.m. COMPLETED
December 15, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. COMPLETED
January 19, 2023 at 9:30 a.m. COMPLETED
February 16, 2023 at 9:30 a.m. COMPLETED
March 16, 2023, 9:30 a.m. COMPLETED
April 20, 2023 HERB SALE Greensboro Farmer's Market on Yanceyville Street COMPLETED
May 18, 2023 at 9:30 a.m.
Program: Annual Meeting & Picnic
You are welome to attend one of our meetings. Please use our CONTACT FORM and we will send details. There is no charge to attend, but if you would like to order a lunch, you may do so for $14.00 payable in advance.
Peonies on the door knob on May Day.
Peonies are lovely when brought inside, especially the fragrant ones.
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Spring is HERE!!
Sue H. share photos of her PEONIES, which she has been growing for many years from cuttings of her mothers plants.
WHY DO THEY APPEAR ON A HERB SITE?? "In China, Korea, and Japan, a decoction of the dried root without bark of Paeonia lactiflora Pall. has been used in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, hepatitis, dysmenorrhea, muscle cramping and spasms, and fever for more than 1200 years." (1) The pictured peonies is a different species, and we do not recommend using any herb without consulting first with your physician to be sure it will not interfere with any medications you currently take, or impact other medical issues you may have, or even be toxic. That said, many of the herbs and plants in our garden do have a history of interesting uses, some still in use today. SAVE PEONY BUDS: to keep a few for a later bouquet, snip a stem just above a set of leaves. Gently put it into a ziplock bag - do not not water. Place in a safe spot in the refrigerator (do not freeze). They will keep for several weeks. Just bring them out, set them in a vase of water, and watch them open. (1) He DY, Dai SM. Anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects of paeonia lactiflora pall., a traditional chinese herbal medicine. Frontiers in Pharmacology. 2011 Feb 25;2:10. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2011.00010 Virginia Bluebells, Mertensia virginica From Elaine C.'s garden, who says it "Blooms about this time every year and is really making a showing this year. It likes the shade we have and the deer ignore it, they're too busy eating my pansies." |
An Unusual Winter Visitor...
c. Katherine Schlosser 2023
UPDATE
About 4 days after posting the photo above, deer tracks in the yard led right to the hanging branch with the black (or amber) jelly fungus: they have now been whittled down to black spots on the branch :(
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This is an Exidia species, a fungus that is known as a "jelly fungus," not for it's delicious taste but for it's jelly-like nature. Some have likened it to the same feel as your ear lobe. I agree.
This may be Exidia recisa, which is edible but not especially good. I am not going to try it. Eaten raw or cooked (in soups, stews especially), it absorbs the flavors you are cooking with. It has protein, fats, iron, calcium, Vit. D, B1 and B2. It should be thoroughly washed to be rid of bugs or dirt. Raw, they can be chewy or a bit rubbery. Dried they are crisp and chewy, but soften on contact with soups. They can also be sauteed in a little olive oil and will absorb flavor from added spices. They can be dried and stored, and will reconstitute to original size in a little water. Commonly known as black jelly roll fungus, in strong light or after being reconstituted, you can see more of an amber color. This one was spotted on a branch that had fallen from an oak tree in my yard. What intrigued me was the one at the bottom of the photo, which looks much like a black rose bud. These fungi do not harm a living tree; instead, they grow on dead wood, such as the branch that was weakened and had fallen from our tree in a wind storm. It was growing too high in the tree for me to notice until the branch was closer to the ground. Once at eye level (it was caught in the crook of another tree), the black against the pretty green crustose lichen--which does not harm the tree--made it stand out and I stepped in closer to see what it was. What a delightful surprise! They are often found in cool, moist weather, which we have had in abundance. |
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HERB GARDENERS
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From our members:
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Even winter in North Carolina is beautiful...
Frost edged Hexastylis virginiana, wild ginger. Along the Blue Ridge Parkway, December 3rd. Frost Flowers emerging from Cunila origanoides stems SNOW! January 2017 |
PLANTS WITH A HISTORY:
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Sue has been a member for many years and recently shared photos from her garden of plants that have special meaning to her.
On the left is a Peony, with a Japanese painted fern at its' feet, that she brought from her mothers' house long ago.
In the center is a begonia that was given to her mother by her brother. Sue and her sister have each kept a cutting going since the 1970s - they named it for their brother.
On the right is an azalea, also brought from her mothers' home, still blooming cheerfully. These plants all have a history and bring pleasant memories for Sue when they bloom.
On the left is a Peony, with a Japanese painted fern at its' feet, that she brought from her mothers' house long ago.
In the center is a begonia that was given to her mother by her brother. Sue and her sister have each kept a cutting going since the 1970s - they named it for their brother.
On the right is an azalea, also brought from her mothers' home, still blooming cheerfully. These plants all have a history and bring pleasant memories for Sue when they bloom.
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