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watermelon
Watermelon, great for the body Watermelon is a great fruit, but did you know its made up of 92% water. Turns out watermelon isn’t just refreshing and tasty… it also does your body a world of good. It is a tropical fruit that originated in Africa, there is proof of cultivation dating back to Ancient Egyptian times. In 2016 alone 117 million tones of watermelons were produced… China accounting for 68% of them. Watermelons were used as a source of hydration instead of pure water by early explorers. Watermelon has excellent benefits to the body, since one a cup serving...
Deadly plants
Not all plants are herbivores So, you’ve probably heard of a Venus fly trap, a carnivorous plant that waits for its prey (flies and small insects) to land on them, they then close on the insect like a mouth, the plant then digests the insect and takes the necessary nutrients from them. However unknown to many people there are lots of carnivorous plants. The largest and most deadly of these is the Nepenthes Rajah. Nepenthes Rajah is part of the pitcher plant family, these plants live deep in the jungle and are shaped like a large beaker with a lid...
A Whole Universe Beneath Our Feet
A Whole Universe Beneath Our Feet Plants nurture a whole world of creatures in the soil that in return feed and protect the plants, including and especially trees. It is a subterranean community that includes worms, insects, mites, other arthropods you’ve never heard of, amoebas, and fellow protozoa. The dominant organisms are bacteria and fungi. All these players work together, sometimes by eating one another. This cosmos is only now revealing itself as a result of scientific discoveries based on better microscopic imaging and DNA analysis. There is much still to learn, but it boils down to this: Plants nurture...
Pineberry
White strawberry...and you'd thought you've seen it all A Pineberry is a hybrid fruit which means it has been genetically breaded from two other fruits. It has been made up of a Fragaria chiloensis, (the beach strawberry) which originates from South America and the Virginia strawberry which originates from North America. Both are part of the strawberry family. However it is said that they taste closer to a pineapple than a strawberry. The pineberry is best known for its peculiar colour as it is white and part of the strawberry family making it a white strawberry. A pineberry is smaller...
Himalayan Balsam
Britain's worst nightmare Introduced to the UK in 1839, Himalayan balsam is now a naturalised plant, found especially on riverbanks and in waste places where it has become a problem weed. Himalayan balsam tolerates low light levels and shades out other vegetation, so gradually impoverishing habitats by killing off other plants. It is sometimes seen in gardens, either uninvited or grown deliberately, but care must be taken to ensure that it does not escape into the wild. Himalayan balsam is a tall growing annual, 2-3m (6-10ft) in height. Between June and October, it produces clusters of purplish pink (or rarely...
Shallots
Guide to growing shallots Like onions, shallots like a firm soil with a fine tilth. If you’ve rotovated or dug over, ‘heel and toe’ tread the soil firm prior to planting. They will tolerate acidic soil to about pH 5.5 but prefer neutral soils, pH 7.0 so lime if needed to reduce acidity. Prepare the soil by raking in 60 grams per square metre of general purpose fertiliser like fish, blood & bone or Growmore a week before planting out. https://www.crocodiletrading.co.uk/polytunnels/