Garden City - NZ Christchurch’s Eco Friendly Back Yard Gardens – Herbalists Heaven
Dr.Li’s recipe of pears cooked in the skin with almonds slices, locally gathered chestnuts, orange peel, sweetened with lumps of ‘iced sugar ‘, (sourced from Asian shops stocking food items). Delivered steaming hot. Clears that congested chest!
Dr Li (of Chinese and Korean origin) in the 1970s’ was compulsory conscripted into the Red Army of China after qualifying as an eye surgeon. Dr Li has resided in New Zealand for about ten years.
Outside the professional practice of being an eye surgeon her knowledge of plants in the garden, as she did in China, as her ancestors did before, as ‘barefoot doctors’ using local herbal remedies. During the Cultural Revolution Mao developed training programs for health as the vast rural areas and farming community were without doctors. Simple medicines for common ailments were sourced where possible in the fields or gardens, anything more serious, if one could, see a trained professional like Dr.Li.
Dr Li introduced me to simple remedies that are easily sourced. Most grow in the back-yard, I had previously left unnoticed, costing nothing but energy and awareness. Dr Li suggests for that eye strain from computers, your eyes become dry, you should blink and look away as constant staring at the computer one tends not to blink, I should eat a lot more greens straight from the ground. Yellow, orange fruit and vegetables are all great to maintain eye health. Dr. Li also said to take some honey each day. I often use honey in cooking when I use high note spices, I still get the full impact of flavor but beautifully rounded. Marmalade, with a teaspoon of honey, especially home-made in hot curries takes the bite from the back of the throat yet still delivers the powered taste of a good curry.
I was to learn chrysanthemum (Botanical name: X dendranthems) had been in cultivation in Asia for over 2000 years and originally grown in China as a herb to give power to life.
Boiled roots used as a headache remedy, the young sprouts and petals were eaten in salads. Lightly bringing the leaves to boil brew a delightful ‘tea’ originally served as a festive drink.
Rhubarb stalks were in my family used in a hot pie accompanied with lashings of whipped cream the latter not so good, being concerned about cholesterol rising. Earliest records date back to 2700 BC in China where Rhubarb was cultivated for medicinal purposes (its purgative qualities). An Asian plant with mysterious cathartic powers, medicinal rhubarb spurred European trade expeditions and obsessive scientific inquiry from the Renaissance until the twentieth century.
Rarely, however, had there been a plant that so thoroughly frustrated Europeans' efforts to acquire it and to master its special botanical and chemical properties. An exotic drink for the summer the recipe is as follows: (note the measurements are in the US measure) being Kiwi I just “chuck” it altogether the eye and taste measure.
Ingredients:
8 C. diced rhubarb
5 C. water
5 lumps of ice sugar (buy at Asian shops)
2 C. orange juice
3/4 C. lemon juice
1 Qt. ginger ale or 7-Up -- chilled
1 Qt. fresh or frozen strawberries or excellent canned strawberries from China-- (optional)
2/4
Procedure: In saucepan, simmer rhubarb and water until rhubarb is soft. Cool; strain. Measure 4 cups juice and return to saucepan with the sugar. Heat to dissolve sugar. Chill. Add the orange and lemon juices. Just before serving, add ginger ale and strawberries, if desired. Pour over ice.
Rhubarb is 95% water and contains a fair source of potassium, contributes minor amounts of vitamins, and is low in sodium.
Strolling through the back garden I notice growing in abundance parsley, rich in iron and Vitamin C acts as an excellent breath freshener helps maintain skin collagen structures and stimulates the liver.
Blooming with iron, vitamin C, beta carotene, straggling along the back fence, is Watercress living harmony with neat rows of carrots and spinach.
Freshly picked carrots, spinach, parsley, a spoonful of spirulina “the doctors spoonful” nicknamed the
IRON MAIDEN, try the following power pack recipe:
250 g (8 oz) spinach
25 g (1 oz) parsley
250 g (8 oz) carrot
Juice spinach, parsley, carrot, stir briskly in the teaspoon of spirulina drink a power pack of folic acids, chlorophyll and spirulina properties of vitamin B12.
The wood pigeons love the plum trees scattered around. Remind me of Lancaster Bombers taking off as they finish gorging on the plums. (Painted by L Taylor South Island)
Those bunches of chives were interesting, used to aid stimulating appetite. Dandelions, oozing with copper and iron, in amongst the flowers and roses, good for that high blood
pressure.
Hanging over the back fence Feijoas, (introduced into New Zealand in the 1920`s.)
The New Zealand season runs from late March to June. In some countries the feijoa is called "pineapple guava". Great in the blender with Greek honey yoghurt, soy milk. I realize pondering over my healthy back yard drink looking at my bagful of chestnuts to cook up with the pear recipe, magic gardens, who needs the little pills in a plastic bottle. I have red and green cabbages for kings! Recipes for iron maidens, or Queens, who skip meals in a hurry to “do life.”
Dr Li tells me in New Zealand we have an herbalist’s heaven. I look at her crouched busy weeding, tending plants of the winter garden, I am left amazed at what a wealth of simple goodness that grows in the back yard or around the city I had not realized.
copyright marie hazledine-barber manatthecoalface.
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