Search This Blog

Translate

9.7.14

Taro Leaves Alu che paan Arbi Ka Patta How to Make Alu Vadi Tips to prevent Itchy throat after eating Taro leaves dishes


Taro Leaves Alu che paan in Marathi Arbi Ka Patta in Hindi Colocasia Leaves and How to Make Alu Vadi.
Leaves used for making delicious Alu vadi. Heart shaped leaves ,  white roots growing in damp and wet places.  They are great energy booster, used by athletes and also there is a lot of mention  of medicinal and health benefits of eating taro. Taro can be used in many dishes along with vegetables and meat or in soups replacing potatoes. Old grannies used to say to eat Arvi in monsoons and also the alu vadi made by leaves.
One common share is that Taro roots are used in  weight loss as it is high in fiber , have good content of vitamins and nutrients.
We saw these in private farm house where they are flourishing and growing great. No care required and loads of Alu ke paan.
Some Taro leaves contain tiny particles of calcium oxalate that causes itching in the upper part of palate. If the taro leaves are uncooked or partly cooked this releases the crystals thus causing itching in mouth and throat. Even while cutting taro leaves one must be handled with care.
Ingredients for the snack, Alu Ki vadi, Chick pea flour , ginger, green chillies, lemon, jaggery,  tamarind , salt, for taste.
Clean the leaves well without pressure other wise they tear. Remove the central thick vein of the leaf. Apply besan paste, with paste of all spices,  on the thicker vein side. Again put another leaf and apply paste. Take four to five leaves and when complete roll together carefully so that all the batter does not come out. Steam then over boiling water for about fifteen to thirty minutes, see that they look cooked. They look firm.
Allow sufficient cooling before slicing them in thin or 1 cm slices and then fry them. They taste great,  a very healthy snack for monsoons. Mustard, hing, cumin jeera tempering adds a lot of flavor and taste, pour over the fried Alu Vadis. The vagar, with fresh curry leaves and these herbs makes the tasty treat snack complete with chutney, either spicy one or sweet one as you prefer, coriander mint spicy or sweet jaggery and tamarind one for the taste.
While I have seen people grow this Taro plant in containers  in childhood we had grown the plant in plastic tub. The plant needs side space as the leaves grow huge and heart shaped falling outside of the container . There is also the elephants ear plant that has very similar leaves and grows plenty in the wild and hence mistaken for arbi leaves .
Taro Plant growing in Private farm land

Huge Flowering Bud on taro Plant
 I was attracted by the heavenly fragrance of the creamish yellow blooms of Arvi plant. They are so large sized, and look similar to a large call lilly or Peace lilly flower, just a very larger version. And the fragrance is unique, wild, woody, great!
Heavenly Woody Fragrance of Taro Plant Flower

 So we just cannot pluck leaves from wild as they may be dangerous and poisonous for health and not real taro plant leaves. It is always better to buy taro leaves from reputed stores, and your known vegetable vendors or from plants that you know are original Taro plants.
If you are growing from the tuber of arbi in soil allow the leaves to mature and grow in size for the distinct taste and flavor for making Alu Vadi. Smaller leaves are not good.  In containers always remove the larger leaves and leave some small centre part for future growth.
The Taro plant needs dampness and wet soil and does not tolerate dry periods. Hence it is seen as flourishing in marshy lands.It is attacked by white fungus,aphids and bugs as the Taro plant is always in more water and damp soil.
Another bud coming out of Taro Plant
Taro roots are used to make so many dishes and are a healthy replacement for potatoes. Taro  can be fried as chips, used in soups and cooked as vegetables. Boil Arvi properly, pressure cook with salt to avoid itchy throat. Even while handling, cleaning, skinning,  Arvi the hands also start itching , apply oil while handling and cleaning taro roots.
Tips- For making the snack take care to clean them well, add lemon, tamarind, which is very important and also cook it well, uncooked or half cooked leaves leave the throat itchy and mouth scratchy. In case the throat is itchy after eating taro leaves suck on slice of lemon immediately to counter the effects.
Also dry off the leaf well after washing before applying paste as wet leaves do not hold the paste well and we are left behind with only rolls of leaves.
One great tasty treat for monsoons, along with herbal hari chai ki patti , lemon grass tea, will share later growing your own lemon grass plant,  enjoy!
Do share your experiences with taro plants leaves, Arbi Ka Patta dishes and also what you did when your throat got itchy after eating a bad Taro leaf dish, Alu Ki Vadi! 
Garden Care Simplified

Five Great Feng Shui Gifting Options
Feng Shui for Wealth Money Luck

Do share your experiences! 
Thanks a Lot for coming by!
All the Best from Rizwana!

5.7.14

Barbie Gardening Games for Girls online Encourage Gardening for Little kids


Gardening gone virtual little girls and kids are so much engrossed in playing online games and with the obsession of Barbie the games are just rocking. If you have a garden and are in with soil and plants your little ones favour the much loved Barbie garden games online. What more they need not even soil their hands and enjoy gardening games a lot.
Little girls are more and more choosing garden games and farm games as they get to do every action instantly and also get to grow plants in a jiffy, whereas the real gardening involves hard tasks and the long wait for flowering and fruits.
Large Sized Blooms of Red Hibiscus
With online gardening games girls enjoy fruits, Flowers’s, can attack the bees and prevent pest attacks, all in a few clicks!  From games like Barbie garden, backyard garden, to angel garden and Dora’s magical garden girls just love to play garden games. Farm games and bird games.
Flower show

Flower Show Thane 

At a Flower exhibition

Hanging Exotic Orchids Garden 

Then there are some online garden games related to gardening as to dress up the garden girl so here your little ones go on a fashion sprees and dress up with garden dresses and outfits. Online games have opened such vast options in gaming that the real gardening tips can easily be taught with the help of games.
All you girls,buck up and Grow some real plants! Develop interest in your little girls to grow small plants, begin with easy growing plants that require little care and watering and see how happy your little angels are to see a fresh leaf, a new bud and a beautiful flower on their plant!
More and more children going online and playing games has led them to become introverted and less social and gardening is the best way to connect with mother earth energy and grounding energy.
There is no need to have large space or many plants. Give them small pots, easy plants, and this will help them to take responsibility and also give them a sense of achievement. Confidence, focus and goal setting , and many more lessons can be learned by gardening in little children. Don't forget to put their name, little children love this!
All the Best from Rizwana!
Thank you for coming by Garden Care Simplified!
All the Best from Rizwana! Happy Gardening! Like, comment, share for the love of Gardening! do come by Face book group Garden Care Simplified!
Read more on-


4.7.14

Importance of Disposable gloves 8 reasons to use Garden Gloves Blue Roses and Care while planting for skin allergies


 With the onset of rains the garden is at its best! the lovely blue bells climber is going wild with lots of lovely vibrant ultramarine blue flowers that look almost like rose flowers,except they are a beautiful blue.
Even the red hibiscus has given out large sized blooms that glow bright vermillon red as against the grey sky backdrop,and the red crimson lake colored canna blooms, with the bougainvilleas and the adenium all in their glory with the cool temperatures and the water coming form heaven.  making the whole garden look like a painted canvas of colors!
Red Canna buds about to bloom


 Just the right time for repotting any plants that have outgrown or are sick, not showing any progress. The son champa plant has been with us since past six years or more and never given out any blooms, even after trimming many times.  Tried this year to replant it and check out the roots, and it had a vast root system that had over taken the whole large container and the base was not receiving water, think here was the problem for stunted growth. . No doubt the plant was growing out tiny leaves and no blooms.
Ixora plant with lovely groups of peach colored flowers

Re-potting the Son Champa Plant
 Usually I never used any gloves for gardening as I love the touch and feel of soil and mud, it gives immense happiness and earth energy. This time we were faced with another problem of red ants which were so persistent that they were not willing to leave.
The fragrant climber of Jasmine juhi has some tiny spikes or furs covering the bark surface , since past also i had these allergic reaction to some plants due to their surface having tiny thorns, spikes, hair ,  but this time it  needed medicines,  wash thoroughly with soap water and apply antiseptic. am now alert of skin allergies while handling soil , not every soil will hurt but this one had red ants!
I have already removed many plants like bougainvilleas ,we had a lot and now kept one in smaller container only , the thorns of bougainvilleas is the only one factor that makes it difficult to grow and trim regularly, other wise the plant is very forgiving and needs very little care and gives such lovely colorful blooms. Then the agaves are also not with us and the aloe vera has taken a space above the eye level.
Care while planting use gloves

Skin allergies from plants
Disposable gloves for gardening

Vibrant pink Bougainvilleas

Blue rose like flower

Blue bell climber at its best in rains
 The blue bells climber of morning glory flowers is at its best growing in many containers. The climber is happy to share space with any plant and grows climbing anywhere. Lovely vibrant blue roses!
Blue rose
 Garden Gloves and Disposable gloves are really very important part of gardening and now have become a routine while handling plants.
1) Many people do not like the touch of mud and soil as it seeps into nails and leaves stains on nails.It also may be a reason to spread disease and germs.
2) There may be insect larvae, ants, fertilizers, remains of cowdung that may react differently when they come in contact with direct skin. 
3) Handling some plants with thorns, spikes, furs and hairs gloves give extra protection to your hands from getting scratched, cut or abrased.
4) While trimming is an essential part of gardening they give extra support to hands while using garden scissors and cutters and also prevent fingers from getting hurt or scratched while trimming plants.
5) You save a lot of water. yes washing hands soiled in mud is one task that requires a lot of water, trust me , i know!
6) The earthworms and all slimy creatures in the garden do not come in direct contact with hands and the screams that come out, do come out but are reduced in volume with glove covered hands.
7) The containers and pots also have a layer of moss or fungus growth outside  which may sometimes cause an allergic reaction and gloves help to protect our hand from these while handling garden pots.
8) When plants attacked by fungus, mold, white ants, aphids, it really would be difficult to clean them by hand as many times this needs bathing the plant and physically removing these pests , other wise the plant dies off.  Here the garden gloves have been of great help as I ca easily wash the plants with shower and clean them with glove covered hands.
Every gardener some time or other faces skin allergies due to soil, some plants, thorns, or the liquid oozing out after trimming plants, and gloves are an essential part for every gardener.
. Also some people have sensitive skin and are prone to insect bite allergies and for this one reason do not grow plants.
Buy good quality gloves as the thick material helps protect hand from rough surfaces and garden accidental scratches.
If you want you can also buy disposable gloves that are easy to sue and come in compact packing's and are disposable, so you do away with the hassle of washing. drying and storing!
 
Hibiscus Red Layered Bushy Flower
Rains always bring out the best in me and my garden, and the red majestic blooms of hibiscus are glowing against the sky, hope we get good rains, and also there is so much anticipation and hope that new plants come up unexpectedly every season, some I had planted , some seeds or some that have come magically along with other plants!
All the Best from Rizwana!
www.razarts.com


Featured Post

2022 Tiger tips! when to grow plants from seeds practical tips and my Garden Orange fruits with beautiful flower photos

A prosperity garden! Each New year starts with enthusiasm hope faith and love! Those are gardeners, we love to see magic happen every day in...