Wild edible vegetables

Wild edible plants and vegetables were our ancestors' food during the ancient times to survive.

They discovered food growing in the wild or forest.

 

Wild edible vegetables grow naturally strong, pest-resistant, fertilizer free and naturally rich!

Usually they have thick fiber and some taste quite bitter.

 

Some wild edible vegetables still strive even to this day, and they are grow or grow abundantly at Toucheng Leisure Farm.

 

I give you some of the wild vegetables at the Farm's vegetable garden:

 

Denseflower loosestrife herb: (photos 1 and 2)

 

 

 

 

Sweet potato leaves: (photo and 2) 

 

 

 

Wild edible vegetables has unique characteristics, for example purslane (photo below)

has sour taste.

 

 

Others are sticky, has bitter taste and rich in fiber.

 

Wild edible vegetables can save us economically with the rising cost of food, besides it free and

 grows 

around us abundantly. It can also add nutrition to our diet. Wild food can help treat various medical condition. (Ask  professional aid for safety use).

 

Most importantly we can save the earth by consuming more wild vegetables.

 

 

 

 

 

Rice paddies and our environment

Traditional rice paddies are a great help to our ecosystem.

Their presence there also attracted various species of tadpoles, dragonflies and damselflies. Other organism like water bugs, cranes, egrets thus keep coming.

 

Rice paddies also store water and help prevent floods.

 

 

The International Year of rice 2004, provided an opportunity to raise awareness about the valuable contribution of wild aquatic plants and animals species to rural livelihood.

 

Aquatic animals in the rice fields provided an important share of protein, essential fatty acid and micronutrient intake of rural poor people and thus enhance food security.

 

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, young and some not-so-young people nowadays are decreasing their rice-consumption, thus rice production is also diminished.  The mushrooming of colorful country houses at the once- rice-field areas is another reason for rice paddies disappearance.

 

 

                                                                  
                                            How do we solve this problem to save our environment?
                                            Tell us how?

Plant in TLF (Mandarin and English Version) V

觀音棕竹 –  Rhapis excelsa

葉子像觀音蓮座形狀，樹幹可作拐杖用的觀音棕竹。是頭城農場常見用來作圍籬的植物。
Leaves shape like the rosette of Guanyin, the trunk can be as a crutch. Is commonly used in Toucheng Leisure Farm as plant fence.

別名：觀音竹、棕櫚竹、筋頭竹、琉球竹、虎散竹
Common Name: Broadleaf lady palm

因其樹幹可做手杖或雨傘柄，所以更常被稱作拐仔棕。
Its trunk can used to make cane or umbrella handle, therefore more often called as Po Tsai Palm.

棕櫚科棕竹屬

Arecaceae – Rhapis genus

多年生草本，單葉叢生呈矮灌木狀。
長枝幹上密生覆蓋著交 錯的黑色長絲狀物，易剝落下來而露出如竹節般翠綠的 莖節。
葉為掌狀裂葉形，叢生於枝條上，葉端呈咬切狀，葉面摺襞具光澤。
雌雄異株，其花序自葉腋抽出，淡黃色的花朵甚小，花期約在六、七月間。
漿果為闊橢圓 狀，表面生有鱗片。
用途：盆栽，庭園景觀植物。

Perennial herbs, leaves were clustered as dwarf shrubby.
On long stems covered with dense black filaments interlaced substances, easily to come off and show out like green bamboo stem node.
Palmate lobed leaves, clusters on the branches, the end of leaves like biting cut, foliage plication and glossy.
Dioeciously plant, its inflorescence grown out from leaf axils, the pale yellow flower is small, flowering period is between Jun and July.
Wide oval berries with the scaly surface.
Uses: Potted plant, garden landscape plants.

艷紫荊– Bauhinia blakeana

秋冬季節，很多樹的葉子紛紛飄落，我卻以粉紫色的花朵盛開，迎接寒冬的到來。
When autumn and winter seasons, many trees’ leaves have falling, whereas I was blooming with pink-purplish flowers, to greet the arrival of winter.

科名：蘇木科
特徵：
1. 常綠小喬木
2. 葉互生，先端分叉
3. 花自頂生或液生，瓣五個，豔紫色，龍骨瓣有紫紅條紋

 Genus: Fabaceae

Characteristics:

1. Small evergreen tree
2. Leaves were alternate and forked at the apex
3. Flowers grow on the apical or liquid, five petals, bright purple colour; the keel of petal has red-purplish striped

原產地香港，九七之後，香港特區的旗幟上代表香港的花就是艷紫荊。
艷紫荊有人也叫洋紫荊，其實和普通洋紫荊不同，是雜交的新品種，花大而呈豔紫色，因而得名。
Origin to Hong Kong, after 1997, flower that represents Hong Kong on the flag of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is Bauhinia.
Bauhinia blakeana actually different from normal Bauhinia, is a hybrid between Bauhinia variegata and Bauhinia purpurea, big flower with bright purple colour, this was it name com from. 

豔紫荊的外形乍看之下很像洋紫荊或羊蹄甲，
其最大的差別是：
羊蹄甲在春天開花；
洋紫荊和豔紫荊在秋冬開花，
但洋紫荊有3個雄蕊，豔紫荊則有5個雄蕊。
The appearance of Bauhinia blakeana looks like Bauhinia purpurea or Bauhinia variegate,

the biggest difference is:

Bauhinia variegate blooms on spring;
Bauhinia blakeana and Bauhinia purpurea bloom on spring and winter,
but Bauhinia purpurea has 3 stamens, while Bauhinia blakeana has 5 stamens.

豔紫荊的花形花色像洋蘭般雍容瑰麗，花期極長，適宜作觀花樹、庭園木或行道樹。

Bauhinia blakeana’s flower-shaped and colour like Bauhinia purpurea that grace, long flowering period, suitable as ornamental plants, garden plant or street way plant.

羊蹄甲、洋紫荊及豔紫荊是其中最普遍的3種，它們葉子的前端分叉開裂，猶如草食偶蹄類動物的蹄，因而以羊蹄甲為代表。她們的外觀類似、名稱也容易混亂，以下用表格來做介紹與比較。
Bauhinia variegate, Bauhinia purpurea and Bauhinia blakeana are the most common species, which the apex of the leaves is forked cracking, like herbivorous animal’s hooves, therefore the goat’s hooves as represents. They look similar, the name is also easily leading to confusion, therefore use the table to identify and compare.

羊蹄甲、洋紫荊、豔紫荊比較表

Table of comparison of Bauhinia variegate, Bauhinia purpurea and Bauhinia blakeana

	羊蹄甲 Bauhinia variegate	洋紫荊  Bauhinia purpurea	豔紫荊 Bauhinia blakeana
生長狀況 Growth Condition	大灌木至小喬木 Large shrub to small tree	中喬木，植株強健，常當豔紫荊的占木  Mesophanerophyte, strong, always as stock plant for Bauhinia blakeana	嫁接洋紫荊上 Grafted on Bauhinia blakeana stock plant
主要花期 Main Flowering Period	春天（3月前後） Spring (Before and after March)	秋天（11月前後） Autumn(Before and after November)	冬半年（10月至3月前後） Autumn-half year (October until before and after March)
開花時葉的狀況 Status of Leaves During Flowering	幾無葉 Almost no leaf	葉茂盛 Leafy	葉茂盛 Leafy
花著生狀況 Status of Axillary Buds Grow	分散腋生 In scattered	集中頂生 Centralized on top	集中頂生 Centralized on top
花色 Flower Colour	粉紅至紫 Pink to purple-pink	粉白 Whitish pink	豔紫 Bright purple
花瓣形態 Petal Shape	寬而相互重疊 Wide and overlapping	窄而相互分離Narrow and separated from each other	稍寬而分離 Slightly wider and separated
雄蕊數 Number of Stamen	5（7） 5(7)	3 3	5（7） 5(7)
結果 Fruiting	短而寬 Short and Wide	長而狹 Long and Narrow	不結果 Fruitless

 月桃 – Alpinia zerumbet

月桃啊！月桃！渾身上下都是寶！

頭城農場今年的月桃年輕化了！往上翹耶！！！

Alpinia ah!  Alpinia! Whole body is a treasure!

This year Alpinia at Toucheng Leisure Farm is rejuvenating! Yeah, To the upturned!!!

科別：薑科月桃屬多年生大型草本

別名：豔山薑、玉桃、良姜、虎子花

多年生草本植物，高度約在1－3公尺之間。葉片呈長披針形，花成串地懸掛在下垂的花序上。果實球形，表面有許多縱稜，未成熟時鮮綠色，成熟時艷紅色，非常玲瓏可愛。月桃分布在全島各地亞熱帶低海拔山區，非常普遍。它具有極高的藥用、食用、觀賞價值。

Family: Zingiberaceae - Alpinia genus is a large perennial herb

Common Name: Shell ginger flower, pink porcelain lily, variegated ginger or butterfly ginger.

Perennial herb, height about 1 to 3 meters. Elongated lanceolate leaves, cluster of flower hanging on the drooping inflorescences. Fruit in spherical shape, the surface has many vertical edges, bright green colour when still immature, bright red when ripe, very exquisitely and lovely. Shell ginger flower is very common and distributed across the subtropical low altitude mountain in the island. It has high usage in medicinal use, edible and high ornamental value.

自古月桃就深具民俗味：葉鞘曬乾編成草蓆，月桃葉可枕墊糕粿、包粽子、種子可做「仁丹」。葉鞘甚長，相互緊抱排列成桿狀，可為繩索之代用品。月桃分布：亞熱帶地區。

Since ancient this plant is full of folk flavor: dry leaves sheath can braid into mat, leaves can use for put the traditional cakes, rice dumplings (Zong Zi), seeds can use to make jintan mouth refresher lozenge. Leaves sheath very long, hug each other and arranged in rod shape, as the substitutes of ropes. Alpinia’s distribution: Subtropical regions.

有三種蝴蝶以月桃維生，其中黑弄蝶及大白紋弄蝶食用它的葉片，而白波紋小灰蝶則取食它的花序。

There are three kinds of butterflies that living in Alpinia, Notocrypta curvifascia andUdaspes folus feeding on its leaves, while Jamides alecto dromicus feeding on its inflorescence.

Angelia

Plant in TLF (Mandarin and English Version) IV

 黃金串錢柳– Melaleuca bracteata

黃金串錢柳名字討喜，所以種黃金串錢柳可以財運旺旺來。
Golden string coins willow name is luck, therefore planting it can gain wealth or attract wealth coming for Chinese.

頭城農場在打銅鑼區的溪岸邊就種了一排呢！！！
It were planted a row on the shore of river area that near to “Gong” playing area in Toucheng Leisure Farm!!!

葉片有芳香的味道，可以提鍊為香料之用。

Leaves have an aromatic flavour, can be used as spice.

桃金孃科白千層屬 

原產地澳洲

Myrtaceae – Melaleuca plant

Native to Australia

因為枝條柔軟有很強的抗颱風能力，耐水淹、抗鹽鹼、耐強風的特性。喜溫暖至高溫，全日照，栽培土質以肥沃砂質土為佳。適用於庭園景觀、防風綠化。

Because characteristics soft branches have strong anti-typhoon capacity, resistance to flood, salt and strong wind. It favour warm to high temperatures, full sun, fertile sandy soil as cultivated soil has better effect. It is suitable for green garden landscape and wind shield.

樟樹– Cinnamomum camphora

樟樹是中華民國臺灣省苗栗縣、雲林縣、南投縣、臺南縣及日本下關市的市樹或縣樹。

Camphor tree in Taiwan (ROC), Miaoli County, Yunlin County, Nantou County, Tainan County and the city of Shimonoseki, Japan as city or county tree.

用途Uses：

常見的行道樹：枝葉濃密、樹形美觀，可作行道樹及防風林。
Common Shade Tree: Dense foliage, beautiful, can be used for street trees or windbreaks.

木質芳香，抗蟲害、耐水濕，可作建材、造船、傢具、雕刻用。
Woody with aroma favour, pest-resistance, tolerance to water-wet, can be used as building material, ship building, furniture and carving.

提煉樟腦、樟腦油：根、木材、枝、葉均可提煉樟腦、樟腦油；樟腦供醫藥、塑料、炸藥、防腐、殺蟲等用，樟腦油可作農藥、肥皂、假漆及香精等原料。
Refined camphor, camphor oil: Root, wood, branches, and leaves can be refined as camphor, camphor oil; camphor can be used for medicines, plastics, dynamites, preservatives, insecticides and other uses, camphor oil can be used as pesticides, soap, varnish and essence and other raw materials.

藥用：效用：根、材：袪風散寒，溫中健胃，止癢止痛。根、幹、枝、葉：通竅，殺蟲，止痛，提製樟腦。治心腹脹痛，牙痛，跌打，疥癬。
Medicine：Effect: Root, wood: carminative and relief cold, warm stomach, antipruritic and anti-pain. Root, stem, branch, leaf: insecticidal, anti-pain, refined camphor. Treat heart pain, toothache, scabies and ring worm.

食物：昇天鳳蝶、青帶鳳蝶、台灣鳳蝶
Food: Pazala eurous asakurae, Graphium sarpedon connectens, Papilio thaiwanus

別名: 香樟、本樟、鳥樟、栳樟、樟仔 

樟科樟屬
Common Name: Camphor tree

Lauraceae – Cinnamomum plant

常綠喬木，樹高可達40米；散發樟樹的特有清香氣息。
原產中國東南部；是台灣中低海拔主要樹種之一。
樹皮暗褐色，有縱裂溝紋。
Evergreen trees can grow up to 40 meters; exudes the unique fragrance of camphor tree.
Native to Southeast China; One of the major species on low-elevation area in Taiwan.
Dark brown bark with longitudinal crack grooves.

卵形或橢圓狀卵形的單葉互生，薄革質，全緣，表面光滑，背面微有白粉，無毛，葉緣微呈波狀，有離基三出脈，脈腋有明顯腺體。
Alternate leaves in ovate or elliptic-ovate, thin, leathery, entire, smooth surface, the back slightly glaucous, glabrous, margin slightly wavy, there are three veins from the base, axillary has obvious glands.

雌雄同花，花兩性，圓錐花序腋生於枝頂端，黃綠色小花，花期4～5月。
Hermaphroditic flowers, bisexual, axillary panicles at the top branches, yellow-greenish flower, flowering from April to May.

球形漿果，10～11月成熟，成熟時由綠色轉為黑紫色；果皮呈紫黑色，有光澤。
Spherical berries, ripe during October to November, green turn to black-purplish and shiny when ripe.

澳洲茶樹– Melaleuca alternifolia

因最早發現於澳洲，因此稱為“澳洲茶樹”。雖然被稱為茶樹，卻與茶無關。
Named as Australia tea tree due to first discovered in Australia. Although known as tea tree, but not to do with tea.

他具有治療、舒緩、殺菌與消毒的效果。
It has a therapeutic, soothing, antiseptic and disinfectant effect.

別名：互生葉白千層、茶香白千層、並葉白千層

桃金孃科、白千層屬

多年生常綠喬木Common Name: Australia Tea Tree Myrtaceae – Melaleuca Perennial evergreen tree 

從茶樹葉片萃取所得的精油具有治療、舒緩、殺菌與消毒的特性。

Extraction of essential oil from the tea leaf has therapeutic, soothing, antiseptic and disinfectant properties.

用途：
1. 可治療擦傷、割傷、蚊蟲咬傷、感染病
2. 稀釋後精油可護膚或製成護髮劑
3. 利用消毒、抗菌的效果，用來作足部按摩。

使用部位：莖、葉、精油
使用區分：醃漬、泡茶、抗茵、沐浴、觀賞、藥用、精油、護膚

Uses:
1. Can treat abrasions, cuts, insect bites, infection disease
2. Diluted essential oil can use as skin care or made as hair care.
3. Used for foot massage due to it has disinfectant and antibacterial effect.
Use part: Stems, leaves, essential oils
Function: pickled, tea, antibacterial, bath, ornamental uses, medicinal, essential oils, skin care

 

枝條細長，葉子類似茶的新芽，呈線形的葉片如松樹般，含芳香精油；枝幹直立易木質化；雄蕊多數，著生於花萼筒上，植株開花須待幼年期過後大型植株才會開花。
Branches slender, leaves like tea’s new  buds, linearly as pine-like leaves, containing aromatic oils; stem erect and woody, numerous stamens grow on the calyx tube, flowering need to wait until the tree grow as large tree just will bloom.

用途與近緣種用途區分：對細菌、真菌及濾過性病毒皆具有強力殺菌效果，提煉出茶樹精油，已經成為一般家庭醫藥箱的必備品。經常被添加在口腔清潔用品中如─牙膏、漱口水，白千層在庭園樹中很常見，與澳洲茶樹在分類上很接近，是同一屬的植物，提煉的白千層精油，也有很強的殺菌效果。黃金串錢柳，外觀看起來和澳洲茶樹很像，是純觀賞植物。 Purpose and uses to distinguish closed species: Need to have strong bactericidal effect to bacterial, fungi and viral, by extracting the tea essential oil, has become general family medicine cabinet essential goods. Often added in the mouth cleaning products like toothpaste, mouthwash, Melaleuca leucadendra almost similar to Australia tea tree same genus but different species and can often found in garden, the extracted essential oil also has strong bactericidal effect. Appearance of Melaleuca bracteatalooks like Australia Tea Tree, for ornamental use only.

楓香樹 – Liquidambar formosana

落葉壓乾後可作書籤，蒴果乾後可作乾燥花素材。是頭城農場常用的活動素材。
The dry leaves can be used as a bookmark, the dry capsule can be used as dried flowers materials. Commonly used in activities material at Toucheng Leisure Farm.

葉片搓揉有番石榴香氣的楓香樹。
When rub the leaves, it will release guava aroma. 

別名：台灣香膠樹、楓樹、楓子樹、楓仔樹、楓仔、香楓、白楓、白膠香、雞楓樹、雞爪楓、靈楓、大葉楓、香菇木、路跆通等
金縷梅科楓香樹屬植物。
楓香樹是一種落葉大喬木。
楓香樹原產於中國南部及台灣。
Common Name: Chinese sweet gum, Formosan gumAltingiaceae – Liquidambar plant
It is a large deciduous trees.
It is native to Southern China and Taiwan.

陽性植物，喜好陽光、耐蔭、耐火、抗有毒氣體及抗風寒。
分佈於海拔 2000米以下溝谷、山坡、次生林中或溪河沿岸等地，深根性，喜生於濕潤、肥沃的壤土。樹形呈圓錐形，高可達40米，胸徑最大可達1米以上。葉為單葉互生或叢生枝端，心形或闊卵狀三角形，薄革質，掌狀3裂或幼時5－7裂成三角形，表面綠色，顏色隨季節轉變，入秋後轉變成黃色至翌年春季落葉時轉變成紅色。花單性，雌雄同株。果為蒴果，由多枚蒴果聚合成頭狀果序，圓球形，密生星芒狀刺，形如流星鎚，木質，成熟時深褐色。
Light-demanding plant, favor full sun, tolerance to shade and fire, antitoxic and anticold.
Distributed on valleys, hillsides, secondary forest or the places along the river that bellow the altitude of 2000 meters, deep rooting, favor grow on moist and fertile soil. Conical tree shape and can grow up to 40 meters and the diameter can up to 1 meter or more.
Simple leaves are alternate in arrangement or cluster on the branches, heart shape  or broad ovate-triangular, thin and leathery, palmate lobed or when young 5 to 7 split into triangles, green surface, the color will changes with the seasons, change to yellow when autumn later on when spring, turn into red colour.
Flowers unisexual.
Fruit is capsule, from multiple pieces of capsules aggregated into the head-like infructescence, spherical, densely stellate-shaped spines, shaped like a meteor hammer, woody, turn into dark brown when ripe.

楓香樹的枝幹可採樹脂供製線香及藥用。

The resin of branches can be taken for making incense and medicinal uses.

枝幹可供培植香菇。

Branches can use to cultivate mushrooms. 

木材堅硬兼能抗白蟻，是良好的建築及傢俱材料。

The woods are hard and resistant to termites, an excellent material for construction and making furnitures. 

 落葉壓乾後可作書籤。

The leaves are pressed and can be used as bookmark after dry.

蒴果乾後可作乾燥花素材。

Dry capsule can used as dried flower material. 

春夏季時綠蔭遮天，可作為行道樹、庭園樹或盆景樹種。

During spring and summer as shaded tree, as street trees, garden trees or bonsai tree

葉可供飼養天蠶蛾，為長尾水青蛾及四黑目天蠶蛾等數種蛾類幼蟲的食草植物。

Leaves can used to feed giant silkworm, as food for luna moth, Saturnia pyretorum and other species of moth.

青楓–  Acer serrulatum

槭樹和楓樹從表面看來極相似而混淆，簡易的辨別方法，槭樹葉片對生，果為翅果，果實好像長了兩片翅膀；楓樹葉片叢生枝端，果由多數蒴果互相癒合而成頭狀之聚合果，果實近圓形，而表面似有密集的尖銳刺。

Acer serrulatum and Liquidambar formosana seem like very similar from appearance and confusing, a simple and easy identification method: Acer serrulatum leaves opposite in arrangement, Samara fruit, fruit look like grown a pair of wing; Liquidambar formosana leaves cluster on branches, fruit from multiple pieces of capsules aggregated into the head-like infructescence, fruit almost round in shape, but the surface seems like got densely sharp thorns.

槭樹科槭樹屬

Aceraceae – Acer genus

落葉喬木;枝皮及幼樹幹皮綠色。

Deciduous tree; branches and sapling stem in green color.

台灣特有種。分布全島中低海拔闊葉林。

Endemic to Taiwan. Distributed on the low-elevation of  broadleaf forest in whole island.

葉掌狀5~7裂，有鉅齒，萼片5，花瓣8，果為翅果。

5~7 lobed palmate leaves with giant teeth, 5 sepals, 8 petals, Samara fruit.

秋冬時期葉轉紅，文人經常以他們為詠詩寫景的對象，遊客喜愛將紅葉夾入書本成為書籤。

When autumn and winter, leaves turn into red, scholars often use them as the object to describe the scenery in poem, tourists like to collect the leaves and clip into the book as bookmark.

Angelia