Japanese Berber – Berberis Thunbergii

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Him French chives (Allium Schoenoprasum), also known as common chives or chivesIt is a perennial plant that belongs to the family Amaryllidaceae. This plant is highly appreciated both for its flavor and for its ornamental and culinary properties. Although its scientific name corresponds to a sort of GarlicIt is a plant different from the onion or common onion.

Features of French chives (ALLIUM SCHOENOPRASUM):

• Plant type: It is a perennial herbaceous plant, which means that it lives for several years and does not need to be sown every season.
• Measure: The onion grows in compact groups that usually reach a maximum of 30 and 45 cm.
• Leaves: Its leaves are long, thin and bright, with a soft onion flavor, but less strong. I am the main component used in the kitchen.
• Flores: In spring and summer, chives produce small purple or pink flowers in the form of closer (in rounded clusters), which are also edible and can be used as an ornament in salads or gourmet dishes.
• Root: The onion has small and shallow roots, which allows it to grow well in light and well drained soils.

Cultivation and treatment of French chives:

• Flooring: Prefers loose, well -ventilated and well drained soils. It is tolerant of a wide range of land, but they proser better in slightly acidic land for neutral.
• Luz: The onion grows well both in full sun and in partial shadow. However, a sunny position promotes its growth and flavor.
• Irrigation: You need regular irrigation to keep the soil slightly humid, but you shouldn't flood. Make sure the area in which it is grown has a good unloading.
• Temperature: It is a resistant plant at low temperatures and can support light frosts. However, it develops better in fresh temperate climates.
• Pruning and harvest: Chives can be collected by cutting the leaves near the base. It is recommended to cut only the longest leaves and let the plant continue to grow. Pod the flowers if you do not want them to develop, since they can alter the taste of the leaves.
• Fertilization: Fertilize with organic fertilizers or compost to stimulate growth. However, excessive fertilizer is not necessary, since this plant prefers moderately fertilized soils.

Culinary and medicinal uses:

• Culinary: The onion leaves are highly appreciated for its soft flavor, similar to onion, but more delicate. The fresh ones are used to dress salads, soups, sauces, omelettes and many other preparations. The flowers are also edible and can be used to decorate dishes or salads.
• Medicine: Although it is not so known for its medicinal properties such as other herbs, onion has some digestive and antioxidant properties. In some cultures, it is used to stimulate appetite and improve digestion.

Additional considerations:

• Spread: Chives can spread by division of roots in spring or seeds, although the division is the most common way to obtain new plants.
• Parasites and diseases: It is usually resistant to parasites and diseases. However, it can be influenced by insects such as aphids or mites if you are not paid attention. It can also be susceptible to fungal diseases in scarcely drained soils.

Benefits of the cultivation of French chives:

1. Easy cultivation: It is easy to cultivate in urban orchards, gardens or even in pots, which makes it an excellent option for beginner gardeners.
2. Edible: In addition to being ornamental, all parts of the plant are edible, from its leaves to its flowers.
3. Attractive: Its purple flowers can add a touch of color to the gardens and their fine and green leaves are very attractive in the garden.

In short, the French chives It is easy to cultivate and maintain a perennial plant, which offers many culinary and decorative benefits. Its soft onion flavor makes it a versatile ingredient, ideal for those who try to incorporate fresh and natural flavors into their meals.

Japanese Berber – Berberis Thunbergii | Blog on Flores

Scientific name: Berberis Thunbergii
Popular names: Japanese Berber, Japanese Berber, Japanese Curishing Espinosa
Family: Berberidáceas
Category: Bush, bonsais, hedges
Origen: Asia, Japan
Height: From 0.4 to 1.80 meters
Incandescent: Half shadow, sun.
Vital cycle: Perennial plants

On the Japanese Berber

Him Japanese Berber It is a small wood bush that can reach up to 1.5 meters high.

Its minimum size is only one meter. Its branches are branched, develop in zigzag, being very thin.

His bark is brown and yellow forest. It is in these places where acute thorns begin to appear, which have caused the use of general ornaments of the species.

There are many varieties Berber-Japonés. One of the most famous is natural atropurpure, which has reddish leaves that become orange in autumn.

Other remarkable cultivars include: «Aurea», «Bagatelle», «Bonanza Gold», «Crimson Pygmy», «Kobold», «Rose Glow» and «Variata», among others.

The differences between the cultivars are generally related to the color of the leaves, which may vary from yellow to intense purple lemon, through heterosexual shapes.

There are also more or less compact plants and different sizes.

How to plant Japanese Berbére

• The Japanese Berbére can be planted alone, even if it is going well in groups and files.
• It is an excellent option to make the popular fences, very useful for large and open gardens. These hedges can be formal and informal, since the species is quite tolerant of pruning.
• Due to their thorns, trained deer trained can be very effective against some invaders.
• Therefore, the species is recently used as a protective factor in the gardens and not simply as a decorative plant.
• By decorating terraces and balconies, the species can also be grown in vessels or gardeners without important problems.
• It is also very appropriate to use the species to form a nice bonsais.
• It should be cultivated in full sun or in partial shadow, on fertile and drainage soil, enriched with organic substance and watered regularly.
• He likes the cold of temperate and subtropical climates.
• You have to manipulate it with thick gloves, due to the thorns. It has slow growth and therefore low maintenance.
• Tolerates pollution and drought, but cannot resist the stagnation of water for prolonged periods.
• It is multiplied by seeds, cuttings and division of the rooted branch.

Flores

It is in spring when the species begins to produce flowers. The bush in bloom is considered by an exotic beauty, even by the shadow in which it can grow.

The flowers are of the UMBELA type, with small petals that appear yellow as a whole. Even so, sepals can be reddish yellow.

Due to this fantastic mixture of shades that the flowers of this species have, the bees end up being attracted, starting a long pollination process.