Showing 1 - 6 of 6
Toxic plants and rumours taking root
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 19/07/2015
» When will people ever learn? The warning on dieffenbachia, known in Thai as sao noi pra paeng, being a dangerous plant is going viral again. Apparently someone in India just read it and shared it with her friends, then people in the Philippines and Japan picked it up and now it is making the rounds on Facebook all over again.
Sweet benefits of soursop
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 13/07/2014
» Seeing the potential of soursop as a cash crop, a couple I have known for years have planted 100 saplings on their farm in Ratchaburi. In three years, we may be able to find the fruit on the market, and visitors such as Ibrahim al Rumhi — who emailed me last week to say he was leaving the following day and could I please help him find soursop to take home — might not have to leave empty-handed.
Help the medicine go down
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 12/01/2014
» In Green Fingers last Sunday, we learned about how hybridisers developed new hibiscus cultivars. The procedure is easy to follow for gardeners who would like to meet the challenge of producing their own hybrids, but for those of us who do not have the time or perseverance to do so, new varieties are sold cheaply at Chatuchak's plant market and nurseries in and around Bangkok.
Primordial plants bring beauty and health to the modern world
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 09/06/2013
» Selaginella, collectively known as spike moss, are not your ordinary kind of plants. Classified among the "lower plants" for their lack of flowers and seeds, they belong to a group which dominated the Earth's surface long before flowering plants and trees made their appearance. Fossil finds trace their origins to the Carboniferous period 290-354 million years ago. As a genus, they comprise more than 400 species worldwide.
Get going with guava's natural goodness
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 13/01/2013
» Guava is one of the best gifts presented by nature, according to a Korean company producing health and beauty products. I couldn't agree more. The US Department of Agriculture's handbook No8, which details the composition of foods, says the fruit is rich in vitamins A and B, calcium and iron, and contains five times more vitamin C than oranges, five times more fibre than apples, and more potassium than bananas. But there is one other reason why I think every backyard should have a guava tree: It is medicinal.
Enjoy the fruits of your labour
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 24/06/2012
» Thailand is a paradise for fruit; it is never without fruits in season, and they are very cheap. Yet I find that a ripe papaya, mango, guava or banana picked from my own trees tastes so much better than those bought from the market. They are fresher and the joy of being able to eat fruit from my own garden probably also makes them more delicious.