How can you not immediately fall in love with a plant called “American beautyberry”? It just makes the heart swell. Here, take a Kleenex.The emotive lexicon is well deserved.This large, deciduous shru
06.06.2023 - 18:56 / gardenerspath.com / Gretchen Heber
How to Grow and Use Capers Capparis spinosaI’m always interested in growing plants that offer a solid ROI. And while plants that offer a lovely flower or an unusual leaf shape in exchange for my work in cultivating them are nice, even better is a plant that rewards with something I can put on the dinner table.
And the caper bush fits this bill to a T. Edible flower buds that can be grown for food or beauty? I’m in!
The tragic dichotomy of growing this plant, however, is that in order to harvest its delicious fruit, you rob the plant of its equally spectacular fragrant and white to light pink blooms, which are 2 to 3 inches across and feature numerous, dramatically long purple-pink stamens.
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The flowers last about 16 hours, but open successively.
The solution is to plant twice as many shrubs as you might otherwise need. Let half bloom, and harvest the capers from the other half. Or you can let the flowers bloom, after which they will produce a caper berry.
Let’s learn more about growing this plant, which is also called Flinders rose.
What are Capers?Capers are the edible flower bud of the many-branched caper bush, which also produces edible berries. Both are pickled before they are eaten, as they are very bitter when raw. Other parts of C. spinosa are used in medicines and cosmetics.
Olive-shaped C. spinosa berries are larger than caper buds, which are more roundish. Both, when pickled, have a piquant, tangy flavor, though the flavor of the buds is more intense. The berries are also starchier.
These pickled bits of goodness are typically used as a seasoning or condiment. They are especially delicious with fish and
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