Grow Your Own Drugs - Fruit

Goji
Will my goji berries fruit this year?

This morning I’ve been watching the first episode of the new BBC series – Grow Your Own Drugs via the iPlayer.

I have to say, I liked it. It has made me want to go out and buy about half a dozen more plants for the garden, but that’s not surprising. This week’s episode is all about fruit and ethnobotanist (an ethnobotanist is someone who studies useful plants) James Wong shows you how to make your own syrup of figs, a chicken soup to cure all ills (although the chicken is the least medicinal ingredient, so you could make a veggie version!), a hop pillow to fight insomnia and an exotic fruit face mask. You can find the recipes on the show website, but they’ll also be in the book that’s just about to be published.

James clearly has a passion for plants, and there’s also a little bit in the programme about growing your own at home. I already have goji berries, a fig, a kiwi and lavender. You can also grow rose hips, blackberries, hops and shittake mushrooms in the British climate (not to mention onion, garlic and chillies!). In fact, pretty much the only plant he mentions in this episode that you wouldn’t be able to grow is papaya.

Posted 3 March 2009, 15:37.   Posted in .

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