Fort Liberty Series - Carolina Rosinweed

 Note from the Author: New wild plant!

 

Foliage like this is sure to catch one's eye.

 

Common Name: Carolina Rosinweed

 

Other Common Names: Kidneyleaf Rosinweed

 

Botanical Family: Asteraeae (The Aster Family)

 

Botanical Latin Name: Silphium compositum

 

Description & Habitat:

          Carolina Rosinweed is a native herbaceous perennial wildflower that is found across North Carolina. It is generally found in the Longleaf Pine Sandhills and other xeric forests woodlands and by the roadside. It is biologically adapted to handle exceptionally dry soils with poor nutrient content and has a very long taproot making it difficult to transplant. In smaller specimens the taproot can go down a foot, while several feet are the norm for mature specimens. The botanical Latin name has two references in play, ‘Silphium’ is the name given to the plant by Carl Linnaeus as a reference to the legendary but now extinct Giant Fennel plant of Ancient Greece and Rome. Back then the original Silphium was used as a seasoning, medicine, aphrodisiac and as a perfume however much like Sea snails used for Tyrian Purple this plant was likely harvested to extinction. The specific ephithet ‘compostium’ refers to the compound leaves.

 

          The Rosinweeds are in the Aster family and are under the Sunflower tribe meaning they support Pollinators and wild birds with their flowers and foliage. In terms of appearance the specimen found of Fort Liberty had deeply lobed leaves with bright red leaf veins. The shapes of the leaves on the specimen were almost Oak-like and at first I thought it might be a member of the Bears Breeches family out in the wild. This plant’s flower stalks from last year remained and it appeared that this plant might naturally form something close to a basal rosette. The specimen was found in soil that was almost pure sand with a little bit of clay in full sun growing out of the side of a embankment.

 

Special Toxicity Note:  

          It is unknown if any parts of this plant are poisonous or toxic.

 

When & What to Harvest:

          It is unclear if this specific Rosinweed is edible, but multiple sources suggest it’s resin was extracted somehow and chewed like gum. I have no idea what part of the plant this would come from if it’s true, but chances are it’s the taproot.

 

Related Plants:

          Cup Plant (S. perfoliatum), Prairie Dock (S. terebinthinaceum), Whorled Rosinweed (S. trifoliatum) and, Compass Plant (S. laciniatum).

 

Recipe:

          Unfortunately, there are no recipes for this one, just for its cousin the Cup Plant and others that are related.

 

 

Additional Information: (If applicable)

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/silphium-compositum/

 

Where to get Seed or Bare Root Plants:

https://www.prairiemoon.com/search-results.html?Search=silphium#/?resultsPerPage=24

 

 

With all that garden goodness covered this is the part of the blog where I have to advertise for the Fayetteville City Market. Now I know you readers probably don’t much like advertisements, but my booth at the City Market helps to cover the costs of running the test garden and literally maintains the Research & Development budget that is used to bring you the information that has made up the backbone of this blog.  In addition to being able to process card payments we now take CashApp payments so your payment options for my product have tripled. With that said; if you want to get some GMO-free, Organic fruit, herbs, flowers and perennials, come on down to the Fayetteville City Market on 325 Maxwell Street in downtown Fayetteville between the hours of 9:00 am and 1:00 pm on Saturdays. Even in bad weather the market goes on though you might have to look for me under the ‘arches’ of the Transportation Museum’s front entryway.

 

Spring Plants

Basil, Sweet Genovese

Chicory, Italian

Chicory, Garnet Stem

Lily, Formosa

Okra, Iraqi Bamia

Onion, Yellow Salad

Pepper, Lesya (bell type, mild)

Pepper, Bull’s Horn (mild)

Pepper, Carolina Wonder Bell (mild)

Pepper, Ancho/Poblano (spicy 1-2k SHU)

Pepper, Jalafuego (spicy, 4-6k SHU)

Pepper, Extra Long Cayenne (spicy, 30-50k SHU)

Pepper, Ghost (hot!!, 1-1.2 million SHU)

Pepper, Carolina Reaper (hot!!! 1.5-2.2 million SHU)

Potato, Sweet ‘Covington’

Tomato, Lemon Cherry

Tomato, Chocolate Cherry

Tomato, Midnight Snack

Tomato, Black Krim

Tomato, Purple Cherokee

 

Plants Coming Soon:

Spineless Prickly Pear

-Others TBA-

 

 

How to stay in Contact with Us!

All you need to keep up with all our activities is to have a Nextdoor account and to look for the ‘Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville’ group and ask to join! You don’t have to live in Fayetteville to join us! Feel free to ask all your garden questions of our knowledgeable membership and post your cool garden pictures.

 

Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville

 

Also please take a gander at the YouTube version of this blog:

The Videos: Look Here

>Newest videos (1): Marsh Pennywort

 

Meetings are still going on! Our next (unofficial) meeting is May 2^nd at the Fayetteville City Market at 325 Franklin Street between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm. If you can’t make it to the City Market come on down to the North South Brewery Market which is at 304 Williams Street (Right off West Russel Street), between 1pm and 5pm every Saturday.

Rhomboid Mercury; Weed or Rockstar?

 Note from the Author: This plant has never been covered on the blog before.

I bet looking at this photo you're probably thinking 'wait I've seen that!' It's pretty common in the southeast and not exactly the worst of the weeds you deal with.

Note the flower calyxes near where the leaf petioles attach to the main stem. That's about as showy as this one gets.

Because this plant drops seeds in threes they tend to come up in clusters as seen here.

 

Common Name: Rhomboid Mercury

 

Other Common Names: Three-Seeded Mercury, Copperleaf, Virginia Three-seed Mercury

 

Botanical Family: Euphorbiaceae (The Poinsettia Family)

 

Botanical Latin Name: Acalypha rhomboidea

 

Description & Habitat:  This plant is often seen in the urban landscape appearing in potted plants, garden beds and other sites with disturbed soil. It is an annual and tends to come up enmasse in groups  The references to three seeds in its common names are because it’s seeds have a capsule with three lobes each containing a single seed. Rhomboid Mercury is native to North America, and its seeds are eaten by wild birds such as Mourning Doves and Greater Prairie Chickens, Deer are also known to eat this plant. The Rhomboid part of its name comes from the shape of its leaves which are borne in alternate arrangement and have a lanceolate to ovate shape which resembles a rhomboid shape. Its flowers are inconspicuous but the Calyxes around them have a deeply serrated margin making them showier than the flowers despite being the same color green as the rest of the plant. It is noted that in areas where group 2 herbicides have been used regularly this plant due to its resistance can become a problem.

 

Special Toxicity Note:  This is not a plant you want to try and eat, it is mildly poisonous and can cause vomiting and diarrhea.

 

When & What to Harvest: This plant is not edible.

 

Related Plants: Virginia Copper Leaf (Acalypha virginica), Jacob’s Coat/ Copperleaf (A. wilkesiana), the former is a very similar plant common next door in Virginia, the latter is a plant often sold in nurseries and is the colorful cultivated cousin.

 

Recipe:  This plant is not edible.

 

Additional Information: (If applicable)

https://extension.psu.edu/virginia-three-seed-mercury-are-they-a-weed-or-a-wildflower

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/acalypha-rhomboidea/

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/acalypha-wilkesiana/

 

 

Where to get Seed or Bare Root Plants:

Not applicable.

 

With all that garden goodness covered this is the part of the blog where I have to advertise for the Fayetteville City Market. Now I know you readers probably don’t much like advertisements, but my booth at the City Market helps to cover the costs of running the test garden and literally maintains the Research & Development budget that is used to bring you the information that has made up the backbone of this blog.  In addition to being able to process card payments we now take CashApp payments so your payment options for my product have tripled. With that said; if you want to get some GMO-free, Organic fruit, herbs, flowers and perennials, come on down to the Fayetteville City Market on 325 Maxwell Street in downtown Fayetteville between the hours of 9:00 am and 1:00 pm on Saturdays. Even in bad weather the market goes on though you might have to look for me under the ‘arches’ of the Transportation Museum’s front entryway.

 

 

Fresh Produce:

Figs, Magnolia

Peppers, Banana Drop Hybrid

 

Summer Vegetables:

Nightshade Greens, Gbognome

Nightshade Greens, West African Njama

 

Autumn Vegetables:

Collards ‘Green Glaze’

 

Herbs:

Chives

Egyptian Onions

 

Flowers:

Flowering Tobacco

 

Plants Coming Soon:

TBA

 

How to stay in Contact with Us!

All you need to keep up with all our activities is to have a Nextdoor account and to look for the ‘Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville’ group and ask to join! You don’t have to live in Fayetteville to join us! Feel free to ask all your garden questions of our knowledgeable membership and post your cool garden pictures.

 

Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville

 

Also please take a gander at the YouTube version of this blog:

The Videos: Look Here

>Newest videos (2): Nasturtiums, Hyssop Blooper (short outtake vid)

 

Meetings are still going on! Our next (unofficial) meeting is August 23^rd at the Fayetteville City Market at 325 Franklin Street between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.

 

Queen of the Meadow

This specimen was seen on the hill beside a river bank, it was about six feet tall and stood out amongst the other wild foliage.

 

 

Common Name: Queen of the Meadow

 

Other Common Names: Trumpetweed, Hollow-stemmed Joe Pye Weed, Purple Thoroughwort, Hollow Joe Pye Weed.

 

Botanical Family: Asteraeae (The Aster Family)

 

Botanical Latin Name: Eutrochium fistulosum

 

Description & Habitat:  Queen of the Meadow or QotM for short is aherbaceous perennial plant that is native to North America. It is known for its radial arrangement of leaves and the variability of the number of leaves it can bear per stem node. On some plants there are only three elliptical shaped leaves but there can be four, five or a maximum of six. Typically the leaves also have a finely serrated margin and are a rich green color while the petioles and main stems may be dark green or a purple-green color. This plant bears clusters of purple to pink colored flower clusters that are very attractive to pollinators. You will typically find this plant in areas with moist soil like meadows, the woods and in fields but you can cultivate it easily if you keep up with its irrigation needs.

 

A botanical Latin synonym for this plant is Eupatorium fistulosum.

 

When & What to Harvest: Presumably one would harvest the leaves for herbal medicine purposes however when and how much to harvest as well as specifically what is unclear.

 

Dangerous Lookalikes: None that I know of.

 

Related Useful Species:  Most of the plants that were formerly in the Eupatorium genus as well as those that still are in the Eupatorium genus have uses for both supporting wildlife and herbal/medicinal uses.

 

Recipe:  I did not find any recipes or methods to prepare the foliage and flowers of this plant for tinctures, teas or other uses.

 

 

Additional Information: (If applicable)

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/eutrochium-fistulosum/

 

With all that garden goodness covered this is the part of the blog where I have to advertise for the Fayetteville City Market. Now I know you readers probably don’t much like advertisements, but my booth at the City Market helps to cover the costs of running the test garden and literally maintains the Research & Development budget that is used to bring you the information that has made up the backbone of this blog.  In addition to being able to process card payments we now take CashApp payments so your payment options for my product have tripled. With that said; if you want to get some GMO-free, Organic fruit, herbs, flowers and perennials, come on down to the Fayetteville City Market on 325 Maxwell Street in downtown Fayetteville between the hours of 9:00 am and 1:00 pm on Saturdays. Even in bad weather the market goes on though you might have to look for me under the ‘arches’ of the Transportation Museum’s front entryway.

 

For those of you wondering what plants are going to be at the market this weekend here is the list.

 

Fresh Foods:

Soup Kit – Parsnip

Soup Kit – Turnip

Garlic Bulbs

Blue Oyster Mushrooms, 4 ounces (New!)

Blue Oyster Mushrooms, 8 ounces (New!)

Blue Oyster Mushrooms, 16 ounces (New!)

 

 

Soil Amendment Products:

Live Mushroom Compost – 18 Gallon Tote*

Live Mushroom Compost – 3 Gallon Bag

Live Mushroom Compost – 1 Gallon Bag

 

Sandhills Mushroom Farms – Lion’s Mane Tincture Sample size

Sandhills Mushroom Farms – Lion’s Mane Tincture

Sandhills Mushroom Farms – Turkey Tail Tincture

Sandhills Mushroom Farms – Blue Oyster Mushroom Grow Kit

 

Garden Plants, Fall Foods:

Arugula, Astro

Cabbage, Pac Choi ‘Rosie’

Collards, Green Glaze

Kale, Prizm

Kale, Redbor

Sorrel, Raspberry Dressing

 

Coming Soon:

Houseplants for the holidays

 

*The 18 gallon tote is by special order only and is delivered to any address within the Fayetteville city area.

 

 

How to stay in Contact with Us!

Our group’s online presence has migrated to Nextdoor.com. All you need to keep up with all our activities is to have a Nextdoor account and to look for the ‘Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville’ group and ask to join! You don’t have to live in Fayetteville to join us! Feel free to ask all your garden questions of our knowledgeable membership and post your cool garden pictures.

 

Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville

 

Also please take a gander at the YouTube version of this blog:

The Videos: Look Here

>Newest videos (1): Hardy Tapioca

 

Meetings are still going on! Our next (unofficial) meeting is October 26^th at the Fayetteville City Market at 325 Franklin Street between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.