GMG Green Thumb Club

[Mandryka]

This is a lovely plant for the flowers and the autumn leaf colour though I think it can be a bit invasive and it is a can be late in leaf here. It would be "interesting"  to grow something through it which is blue in summer - for example Solanum crispum 'Glasnevin' It's such a shame lilac doesn't flower at the same time as Stags Horn Sumac.

I make a sumac condiment called za'atah - a mixture of sesame seeds, sumac, salt, thyme. You can buy it ready blended but for me it's too salty. You just dip some bread and oil and into it. Muslim dish but lovely with drinks.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

This is a lovely plant for the flowers and the autumn leaf colour though I think it can be a bit invasive and it is a can be late in leaf here. It would be "interesting"  to grow something through it which is blue in summer - for example Solanum crispum 'Glasnevin' It's such a shame lilac doesn't flower at the same time as Stags Horn Sumac.

I make a sumac condiment called za'atah - a mixture of sesame seeds, sumac, salt, thyme. You can buy it ready blended but for me it's too salty. You just dip some bread and oil and into it. Muslim dish but lovely with drinks.

Mandryka and André,

I was wondering whether or not it was the same sumac as is used in Middle Eastern cuisine.  I do have in my kitchen a mixture which I bought somewhere a few months ago (maybe at my co-op?), but would love to make some fresh as I imagine that it would have more flavor.  Do you collect the sumac berries yourself Mandryka?  If so, how do you treat them to make your za'atah?

André, intrigued by your posting I found this blog in which she talks about making a cold-brewed lemonade.  I see that it's also full of vitamin C too.

https://practicalselfreliance.com/staghorn-sumac/

PD

[Mandryka]

Do you collect the sumac berries yourself Mandryka? 

No!  I'm not sure it's the same plant.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

No!  I'm not sure it's the same plant.

I'm wondering that too.  So, do you buy a dried ground up spice to make your own blend?  Or can you buy it whole and then grind it up yourself?

PD

[Mandryka]

I'm wondering that too.  So, do you buy a dried ground up spice to make your own blend?  Or can you buy it whole and then grind it up yourself?

PD

I buy it ground and mix it with time and sesame seeds, then get a big wedge of good bread, dip it in the best and most expensive olive oil, and then dip in some of the za'atah. Accompany with a beer or a wine.

A friend of mine likes to use sumac as a seasoning for fish - grilled mackerel, for example. I prefer smoked paprika for that.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

I buy it ground and mix it with time and sesame seeds, then get a big wedge of good bread, dip it in the best and most expensive olive oil, and then dip in some of the za'atah. Accompany with a beer or a wine.

A friend of mine likes to use sumac as a seasoning for fish - grilled mackerel, for example. I prefer smoked paprika for that.

Any salt or anything else in it?  And, roughly, what proportions do you use.   

PD

[André]

Rhus typhina is indeed slightly invasive. It thrives in the same places that lilac trees do. Both love edge of woods clearings and open spaces and need lots of light. Both reproduce mainly through roots sprouting new branches outwardly. Sumac seeds can be planted. The fruits are ised to colour and flavour lemonade (pink lemonade). Check article and recipe here:
https://www.onearmedmama.com/2019/11/foraged-pink-staghorn-sumac-lemonade.html

And yes, their leaves in the fall season turn a beautiful bright red 




The spice referred to is from a different species of Rhus: Rhus coriaria, which resembles typhina, but with different fruits. Typhina has typical velvety drupes, coriaria's are bright, non-hairy drupes. A small pinch of dried fruit is enough to enhance salad dressing. It is native from Mediterranean Europe and Western Asia, but I suppose it can be grown elsewhere in similar climes.

Coriaria:

[Mandryka]

Any salt or anything else in it?  And, roughly, what proportions do you use.   

PD

One and a half tablespoons of Sumac, one of dried time, good pinch of salt and good pinch of sesame. You need good dried thyme, preferably wild and from a mountain in Iran -- though maybe there are good American sources.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

One and a half tablespoons of Sumac, one of dried time, good pinch of salt and good pinch of sesame. You need good dried thyme, preferably wild and from a mountain in Iran -- though maybe there are good American sources.

[/quote]Thanks, I'll check into the thyme.  I grow my own:  German thyme (as French thyme is too tender fo my area...I even bring my German in to protect it); I also have golden lemon thyme too.

PD

[Mandryka]

The above herbaceous perennial in Mandryka Towers is called Datisca cannabina.


I love it, not least because nobody knows what it is, but it's ridiculously enormous and unruly. Does anyone have a good system for stopping it flopping all over the place? Hopefully one that doesn't make it look as though it's in a corset.

[Irons]

The above herbaceous perennial in Mandryka Towers is called Datisca cannabina.


I love it, not least because nobody knows what it is, but it's ridiculously enormous and unruly. Does anyone have a good system for stopping it flopping all over the place? Hopefully one that doesn't make it look as though it's in a corset.

New one on me. Looked it up on RHS here https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/5352/Datisca-cannabina/Details being a perennial I would let it have it's way and prune hard at end of season. Like your rustic table. I have just finished a project using shingle in my garden which looks similar.

[Mandryka]

Indeed I've just cut it down. In the end I tied it up with some string for a while, but it looked like a big plant tied up with string.

The table was bought from amazon a few years ago, sold for indoor use but made of teak, so why not use it outside?!


Shingle looks great at first but somehow after a few years it loses its lustre, even if you're meticulous about keeping it weed free.

[Irons]

Indeed I've just cut it down. In the end I tied it up with some string for a while, but it looked like a big plant tied up with string.

The table was bought from amazon a few years ago, sold for indoor use but made of teak, so why not use it outside?!


Shingle looks great at first but somehow after a few years it loses its lustre, even if you're meticulous about keeping it weed free.

That is what I would do.

Table looks nice.

I am interested in your experience with shingle. I cleared the area as best I could and then covered with membrane which allows water through but blocks out light. The area covered is roughly 6m x 4m and I am shocked how much shingle was required. I'm thinking I need to put some more down. I use a blower for fallen dead leaves.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

That is what I would do.

Table looks nice.

I am interested in your experience with shingle. I cleared the area as best I could and then covered with membrane which allows water through but blocks out light. The area covered is roughly 6m x 4m and I am shocked how much shingle was required. I'm thinking I need to put some more down. I use a blower for fallen dead leaves.

What is the shingle that you are referring to Irons?  I think of shingles as what one puts on ones roof!

And, yes, Mandryka, I love your table and chairs!  Trust that you oil them every so often to protect them from drying out/the elements?

PD

[Mandryka]

I am interested in your experience with shingle. I cleared the area as best I could and then covered with membrane which allows water through but blocks out light. The area covered is roughly 6m x 4m and I am shocked how much shingle was required. I'm thinking I need to put some more down. I use a blower for fallen dead leaves.

You need to weed it. The membrane stops weeds coming up from the ground but it doesn't stop seedlings growing in the gravel itself. An annual treatment with Pathclear at the start of April is mostly all you need as it contains an anti-germination agent, but you will need to keep an eye out for airborne seedlings which manage to get away.

It is hard to remove leaves. I rake them off and pick them up, I have a special picker uppper tool, but I collect some gravel in the process, but I haven't found a better way. I have a hoover/blower (Monica Lewinsky she's known as), but frankly it is such a faff - heavy, you have to plug it in, it picks up gravel, you have to empty out the bag -  I haven't used it for a couple of years

The wind will make it move, possibly exposing some of your membrane. I think you just have to learn to live with it, push it back.

This is very effective cleaning stuff on hard paving -- next spring I'll try it on the shingle and see what it does.



And this is worth its weight in gold

[Mandryka]

What is the shingle that you are referring to Irons?  I think of shingles as what one puts on ones roof!

And, yes, Mandryka, I love your table and chairs!  Trust that you oil them every so often to protect them from drying out/the elements?

PD

Thanks -- I'm very lax about oiling I'm afraid. If you had to sit in the chairs you maybe would love them less!

[Pohjolas Daughter]

Thanks -- I'm very lax about oiling I'm afraid. If you had to sit in the chairs you maybe would love them less!

Would cushions help?

PD

p.s. And by shingle do you gents mean small stones?

[André]

Today's omelette was cooked with mushrooms I picked yesterday:



Chanterelles

and:



Turbinellus floccosus, not to be confused with the common chanterelle despite their passing resemblance. Its english name is the woolly (or scaly) chanterelle.

Both mushrooms are rather similar in taste, but the chanterelle is fleshier. Some say it smells and tastes like apricot, but I think a carrot is a closer match. Slightly pungent with a hint of bitterness. The chanterelle is a choice edible, but turbinellus floccosus can cause gastro-intestinal disturbances for some people. In any case, it was a good omelette  .

[Irons]

You need to weed it. The membrane stops weeds coming up from the ground but it doesn't stop seedlings growing in the gravel itself. An annual treatment with Pathclear at the start of April is mostly all you need as it contains an anti-germination agent, but you will need to keep an eye out for airborne seedlings which manage to get away.

It is hard to remove leaves. I rake them off and pick them up, I have a special picker uppper tool, but I collect some gravel in the process, but I haven't found a better way. I have a hoover/blower (Monica Lewinsky she's known as), but frankly it is such a faff - heavy, you have to plug it in, it picks up gravel, you have to empty out the bag -  I haven't used it for a couple of years

The wind will make it move, possibly exposing some of your membrane. I think you just have to learn to live with it, push it back.

This is very effective cleaning stuff on hard paving -- next spring I'll try it on the shingle and see what it does.



And this is worth its weight in gold

Thanks, most helpful. Bit of a worry re weeds though. My blower is not a good one which in this case is no bad thing - a rechargeable battery type. Exposed membrane is annoying but trying to not get obsessive about it.
The area I worked on we called "the jungle" for good reason, so an improvement (hopefully). Only completed about three weeks ago.   

[Mandryka]

That looks good - is that bamboo? If so, you'll have to watch out for shoots from the running root. The turf will try to take over the gravel unless you build a barrier, if not, you'll just have to have a battle with nature.


Yes, Ps Daughter, we are talking about small stones. And if I got cushions I know I'd leave them out in the rain!

I shall have to get some wild mushrooms now - I see a risotto on the agenda.