info@theculinarycatalysts.com
- From Garden to Plate: Fresh Flavors, Naturally Grown
info@theculinarycatalysts.com
Experienced gardeners are well aware of this reality and have even come to enjoy the ephemeral nature of their outdoor spaces.
gardening experts
Banana plants are often seen as wild-looking trees that give off lush jungle vibes in a landscape, but they can also be grown successfully in containers outside or as houseplants inside. The trick is giving them conditions they love (hint: plenty of sun) and choosing the right varieties for your space and climate.The common name “banana plant” is applied to a bunch of different species in the genus Musa, the bananas and plantains. The genus contains some 70 different plants, most of which aren’t edible or just not very pleasant to eat due to their large seeds. A hybrid called Musa × paradisiaca is said to be the parent of most edible banana cultivars.Edible bananas, the result of domestication and selective cultivation by humans, have been around for a long time. Research has indicated that the cultivation of bananas, now one of the most common crops worldwide, began around 7,000 years ago in Southeast Asia. There are now estimated to be well over 1,000 different cultivars out there. Banana plants are often confused with palms (hence their misnomer “banana palm”), but they actually form part of the order Zingiberales, alongside plants like ginger and Strelitzia (bird-of-paradise, another popular houseplant). And while they’re usually referred to as “banana trees,” they are classified botanically as herbaceous perennials because they never form a woody stem (aka a trunk) the way a tree does—the “trunks” are actually succulent stalks (pseudostems).Banana “trees” are characterized by their massive foliage, which are quite fragile. In banana trees kept outdoors, the leaves usually look torn and shredded, but this doesn’t bother the plant itself. Because banana plants die off after blooming but produce plenty of offsets (also known as pups or shoots) before doing so, mature ones that have been left to grow wild will often consist of a bunch of different stems growing together.
Read More
Whether you're going on a cleaning binge or just making lunch, growing luffa gets you what you need. This vine is easy to grow and harvest. Rachel Garcia shares our top growing tips.Back in 2019, Epic Gardening created the Luffa Challenge and saw amazing results from our followers all over the world! So many people grew this intriguing vine with great success that we thought we’d share some tips and tricks with gardeners everywhere. So, if you haven’t grown one already, let’s take a shot at growing luffa, the homegrown shower sponge! Many people think all shower sponges come from the ocean, but most commercially-produced sponges are actually dried fruit. The luffa is a climbing vine that produces cucumber-like gourds. As the gourds mature, their endocarp transforms into a fibrous network that’s mostly made of cellulose. This network forms the soft and absorbent exfoliator we’re all familiar with. Though they’re most commonly used in the shower, luffa sponges are great for scrubbing pots, cleaning shoes, making mats, and painting textures. They’re even used as shock and sound absorbers as well as for filtering water. There isn’t much this vegetable can’t be used for! The same goes for immature fruit. When still green, luffa gourds are just as tasty as the sponges are useful. They can be eaten raw or cooked. They highly resemble cucumbers, zucchini, and winter squash and are often cooked the same. Whether you want to try a new veggie on your plate or a sponge in your shower, luffa is an excellent choice for your garden. It is a bit tricky to grow, so we’ll go into detail on how to succeed with this nifty vine.
Read More
As experienced fruit growers, we know all too well the importance of planning when it comes to avoiding depressing mistakes with your fruit trees. But even the most experienced growers can make mistakes, and we’ve made plenty! We’ve learned much of what we know the hard way. It’s equipped us very well to help home fruit growers (like you) avoid the same depressing mistakes. There’s no point everyone going through the same pain, so we’re very happy to share our mistakes here on the blog. It might help you skate through the rookie stage as painlessly as possible. Some of the worst mistakes we’ve made along the way happened before we had a robust picking calendar. Making the mistake of letting fruit fall to the ground One early occasion was particularly memorable. It was a beautiful summer day near the start of the picking season. We’d been busy with the cherry harvest, and were excited for the apricots to get started. We had a great crop that year, after a disastrous season the year before. One of the first apricots to ripen in our orchard is the delicious Poppicot variety. To be fair, we’d checked a couple of trees at the top of the row, and decided that they were at least a week from being ripe. What we didn’t do was walk to the bottom of the row to check the fruit there. If we had, we would have noticed a few ripe fruit already lying on the ground. A week later we went to pick, and our hearts sank as we saw a sea of ripe fruit lying on the ground, wasted and ruined. A fruit tree plan—what’s that? We realized that we had made two rookie mistakes. The first was that we didn’t have a Fruit Tree Action Plan or an accurate picking diary to remind us of when it was time to harvest. And the second was that we didn’t realise the impact that microclimate can have on fruit ripening (that is, trees can ripen unevenly, even when they are close together). Bottom line? Our lack of planning led to the waste of all the hard work, pruning, thinning, watering, and feeding that we’d done up to that point! Lesson learned: write an Action Plan including a picking calendar, folks! It’s an easy way to make sure you don’t miss out on the fruits of your labour. Learning the hard way why netting your fruit trees is always worth it When we first moved home to the orchard and started growing fruit, we didn’t have any nets at all to protect the fruit trees. We regularly lost fruit to birds and dreamed of being able to protect our precious crops. Then we got a great deal on a job lot of ex-winery netting. We snapped it up and imagined that our bird woes were over. Ah, such innocent, naive thoughts. The thing about bird netting is that it works really well – as long as you put it on early enough! (You also need to regularly care for your nets.)
Read More
The loquat tree (Eriobotrya japonica) is an evergreen tropical tree that produces sweet, delicious fruit. In the right conditions, it's an excellent tree to grow. Grown either as a loquat tree or a shrub, this fruiting plant is an interesting one. A relative of the rose, it makes small fruits that taste like a blend of peaches, citrus, and mango. It has a honey note. But most people have never tasted it and know virtually nothing about this unusual fruit or the lushly-tropical tree it grows on! I will fix that because loquats are delicious, nutritious, and fun to grow if you’re in the right climate to do it. These evergreen trees are a beautiful ornamental species, and with fresh fruit, it’s worth growing!With an average top height of 30 feet, it can become a sizeable evergreen tree. However, it’s more commonly kept in the 10 to 15-foot range by commercial growers for ease of maintenance and harvesting. At the 10-foot height, it is treated more like a dense, tree-like shrub. While as many as 800 cultivars are available, they are all the same base species. Loquats are also called the Japanese plum tree, Chinese plum, or Japanese medlar. In China the tree and its fruit are called Pipa.The loquat tree (Eriobotrya japonica) is native to southeastern China and possibly parts of southern Japan. It thrives in subtropical to mild temperate regions and has been cultivated in its native areas for thousands of years. The tree is particularly well-suited to regions with warm, sunny climates and moderate rainfall. Over time, it has spread to other parts of Asia, the Mediterranean, and subtropical regions worldwide. The loquat is now widely naturalized in many areas.The loquat tree (Eriobotrya japonica) is native to southeastern China and possibly parts of southern Japan. It thrives in subtropical to mild temperate regions and has been cultivated in its native areas for thousands of years. The tree is particularly well-suited to regions with warm, sunny climates and moderate rainfall. Over time, it has spread to other parts of Asia, the Mediterranean, and subtropical regions worldwide. The loquat is now widely naturalized in many areas.The loquat tree (Eriobotrya japonica) is native to southeastern China and possibly parts of southern Japan. It thrives in subtropical to mild temperate regions and has been cultivated in its native areas for thousands of years. The tree is particularly well-suited to regions with warm, sunny climates and moderate rainfall. Over time, it has spread to other parts of Asia, the Mediterranean, and subtropical regions worldwide. The loquat is now widely naturalized in many areas.The tree has a rounded or spreading crown and dense foliage. The leaves are large, leathery, and dark green with a glossy upper surface and a slightly hairy underside. Loquat trees produce fragrant, white to cream-colored flowers in late autumn or early winter, which develop into clusters of golden-yellow to orange fruit. The fruits are small, oval, or pear-shaped, with a sweet and tangy flavor. They contain one to four glossy brown seeds. In traditional Japanese and Chinese medicine, the fruit and the leaves of the loquat plum fruit tree are used for multiple different purposes. The Chinese use the fresh fruit to make a syrup to ease coughs. The leaves are used in Japan to make biwa cha, a beverage which is believed to help with skin conditions and help with bronchitis or other respiratory illnesses. Both the leaves and the seeds have small amounts of cyanogenic glycosides that release cyanide when digested. However, small amounts of these compounds rarely have any effect. It’s still good to avoid eating the seeds or the leaves, and to keep them away from children and pets.
Read MoreFind and share everyday cooking inspiration on Allrecipes. Discover recipes, cooks, and how-tos based on the food you love and the friends you follow.
We’re hot and spicy… literally!
If you haven't made Chicken Parmesan in an air fryer yet, consider this your invitation to get started. This recipe yields crispy, juicy chicken and ultra-melty cheese, which pairs beautifully with the acidity of tomato sauce. Before the final cook in the air fryer, be sure to line the inside of the basket with aluminum foil, and coat the foil with cooking spray to prevent sticking. As for serving? You can pair the chicken with a salad, such as a classic Caesar, or go for garlicky broccoli, Broccolini, or broccoli rabe.
Read More
Chockfull of chicken, white beans, potatoes and kale! Serve with a salad and crusty bread. SO GOOD, so cozy.
Read More
Make your stuffing ahead of time! It’s easy, quick, and flavorful with crumbled sausage, fresh herbs, and apples! SO GOOD!!!
Read MoreOur email newsletter delivers gardening solutions, new recipes and special
The Culinary Catalysts updates. It's always free and you can unsubscribe any time.
We really want to enable home cooks, all things being equal, to plan delightful and exceptional dinners in their own kitchen.
Know More
