Month: February 2020

Flavorful dill (Anethum graveolens) produces edible seeds and leaves, which are used to season salad dressings, pickles and cooked meats and vegetables. Two popular types,”Bouquet” and”Mammoth,” also called”Long Island Mammoth,” have similar growing standards and do well in home gardens. Though both varieties produce flavorful seeds and leaves, they look slightly different and therefore are best-suited for different uses.

Size Replies

“Bouquet” dill generally grows to approximately 36 inches tall, even though it might reach up to 5 feet tall in optimum conditions. “Mammoth” increases to a minimum of 30 inches, but it typically tops out at 4 to 6 ft tall. Though”Mammoth” is generally the taller variety,”Bouquet” often produces larger seeds, but”Mammoth” has bigger flower umbels, or blossom clusters. The foliage of both varieties is comparable, including the thin, lacy leaves frequent to dill.

Seed Flavor

The large seed heads of the”Mammoth” variety dwarf the bigger”Bouquet” seed heads, but both are equally productive. Each of those varieties is prized because of its new use and utilize as a spice. “Bouquet” is normally grown for its use in pickling, although it can also be used as a cooking herb. The later-developing”Mammoth” is used for pickling, refreshing use and as a dried herb. “Mammoth” can create up to 1 cup of seeds per flower head, making it more productive than”Bouquet.”

Foliage Characteristics

Both”Mammoth” and”Bouquet” create ample foliage, but the leaves of”Mammoth” have a stronger taste that makes them suitable for kitchen use. Most of the taste in”Bouquet” is focused on the seeds; its leaves are not as strongly flavored but are still edible. “Huge” leaves are bright green while”Bouquet” foliage includes a blue-green cast.

Early Birds

“Mammoth” is a late bloomer in contrast to”Bouquet.” “Mammoth” requires 70 days in prime growing conditions until its very first crop while”Bouquet” seeds might be ready for harvest in as few as 55 days. Both varieties are put into the backyard in precisely the same period in late spring after the danger of frost has passed, or in late summer to get a winter crop in mild areas. Even though”Bouquet” flowers and sets seed sooner, you can begin harvesting a few leaves from”Mammoth” even before it begins to blossom.

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Baby bella and white button are strains of Agaricus bisporus mushrooms which look and taste otherwise. The flavor of the two is also influenced by the growing conditions and the duration of cultivation. White buttons have been harvested at an immature phase, while baby bellas are harvested an intermediate stage of adulthood. Portabella mushrooms are fully adult baby bellas.

Miniature Mushrooms

Despite their title, white buttons vary in color from white to light brown, depending on when they’re harvested. They’re tiny — less than 1/2 inch — and resemble rounded buttons with short stems. White buttons have a light flavor that becomes stronger when they’re cooked. They’re eaten raw in salads, sauteed on pizza or burgers, or cooked in chili, soups and other dishes. Approximately 90 percent of the mushrooms sold in the United States are white buttons. They’re also known as Paris mushrooms since they once were grown from the caves under the city of Paris, France.

Bigger and Browner

Baby bellas are harvested when they’ve been growing about 40 days. They’re bigger and heavier than white buttons, and vary in color from light tan to rich brown. Baby bellas possess an earthier, meatier flavorthat complements beef, wild game, vegetables and rich sauces. They could withstand high temperatures, so are suitable for roasting and baking. They’re known by a number of different names, including cremini, mini bella, baby portabella, portabellini and brown mushrooms.

Great for You

Mushrooms are 90 percent water and contain no fat. A serving of five or four white buttons contains 18 calories and 3 grams of carbohydrates, while a serving of baby bellas has 23 calories and 4 grams of carbohydrates. Mushrooms contain 18 vitamins, minerals, and antioxidant phytonutrients, including vitamin D and four distinct B vitamins. They’re high in potassium and selenium. Mushrooms may benefit your cardiovascular and immune systems, as well as fight cancer and inflammation.

Choosing and Storing

To choose the freshest mushrooms, then start looking for ones which are firm and smooth. They ought to be plump and dry, but not dried out, wrinkled or slimy. Mushrooms can be stored in a brown paper bag for a day or two. For more storage, then spread them in a glass bowl or paper sack so that they do not touch each other and cover with a moist cloth. Brush peat moss, dirt and other debris away with your fingers or a wet paper towel. They may be rinsed briefly but should not be submerged in water as they absorb water readily. Don’t freeze fresh mushrooms; rather, saute and freeze them for around a month.

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Several fruit trees, such as various kinds of citrus fruit which flourish in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9 through 11, have thorns on their divisions. The thorns will be the tree’s way of protecting itself against starving animals that are looking to nibble on the leaves and fruit of the tree, that may heavily damage or even destroy a young tree. With the years, as the tree grows older and stronger — and much better able to take care of creature damage — the thorns generally diminish.

Lemon

Lemon (Citrus limon) is the top acidic citrus fruit, according to Purdue University Agriculture. Desirable for its distinctive odor and taste, it is cultivated in tropical and subtropical climates around the world. Most accurate, or species, lemon trees possess sharp thorns lining the invading. Several hybrid varieties, however, are almost thornless, like “Eureka,” that is a top cultivar in California.

Orange

Oranges (Citrus sinensis) are loved around the world for their attractive package and sweet taste, though some are much sweeter than others. With the years, growers have bred oranges to be less thorny. Today, most varieties are thornless or possess thin, dull, elastic thorns found just at the base of their leaves. Oranges which are bitter and never commonly consumed, however, may have big thorns. The hardy or trifoliate orange tree, as an instance, features sharp, 2-inch extended thorns and sour fruit.

Lime

Limes (Citrus aurantifolia) are used in everything from cooking to adding fragrance to cleansers and other industrial products. They’re the 2nd most popular acidic citrus fruit — secondly to lemons — and will also be less cold-hardy than lemons. Although lime trees, using their small, stocky profile along with thorny branches, look somewhat tough, the fruit is in fact sensitive to coldtemperatures. Most commercially valuable lime trees do possess small thorns, and even though thornless varieties are more desirable, they are less productive, according to Texas A&M; Aggie Horticulture. The Mexican lime, or the important lime, is probably the most well-known of the varieties.

Grapefruit

Grapefruit (Citrus X paradisi) trees, such as other citrus trees, have thorns, but they’re short and flexible, and they’re only found on the twigs. “Marsh” is the most popular variety grown in the United States and is desirable for its sweet, juicy flesh and small amount of seeds.

Kumquats

Kumquats (Fortunella spp.) , included in the Citrus genus until 1915 when they were reclassified to the Fortunella genus, are prized for their sweet and tart flavor — the thin, creamy skin is sweet, but the pulp is tart. Kumquats are all about the size of plums, with skin which range from bright orange to ruby red, and are generally eaten whole. The trees are small, compact and slow-growing. Many, like “Hong Kong,” are liberally covered with thorns. A few others, like the popular “Meiwa,” are thornless or feature small — but still sturdy — spines.

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