Trigonella esculenta

Trigonella esculenta (Willd.)
Wild Trefoil
Trigonelle comestible

Native to Mediterranean

Family: Leguminosae

Flowers are clustered tightly at the end of a long peduncle

Trifoliate leaf, hence the common name of “trefoil”

Bloom 5.21.13

Seed Pods

Leaf 5.21.13

 

 

Tragapogon porrifolius

Tragopogon porrifolius                
Salsify
Salsifis

Biennial grown for its edible roots; 3-4 months until harvest

Native to Europe

After flowering, the involucres (series of bracts around the flower) close up. When ready, they open wide again to produce dandelion-like feathery fruits

Bloom in a cherry orchard near Lacoste, 5.07.13

Emerging Fruiting Head 5.22.13

Fruiting head 5.22.13

Seed Pods 5.22.13

In Situ, Goult windmill 5.19.13

Life cycle illustration

Johann Georg Sturm, 1796

Harvested Roots

Tamarix gallica

Tamarix gallica
French tamarisk
Les tamaris

Indigenous to Saudi Arabia and sinai Peninsula but very common in the Mediterranean region. It was first classified by Carolus Linnaeus in 1753 but has been in cultivation since at least 1596. A relatively long-lived plant, it can tolerate a wide range of environmental conditions.
It is a deciduous, twiggy, shrub or small tree, growing to 15 feet tall. The tiny pink flowers, arranged in narrow, feather-like spikes along the branches, bloom in the spring often earlier than the leaves appear. The leaves are scale-like; an adaptation over time to exceedingly dry conditions.

Anti-inflammatory properties from extracts made from leaves and flowers – traditionally used for management of inflammation and pain.

Form in front of Abbey Saint-Hilaire, Ménerbes, 5.15.13

Spring branches.5.15.13

Blossoms.4.30.13

Scale-like leaves in summer

 

 

Fall, Lacoste,11.08.14