Shidare and Oshima sakuras...

 

Thought I'd post these pics before they turn 'stale' now that the sakura season has ended here in Takamatsu...

This is one of my favorite sakuras... the Shidare-sakura...

It has a clear pink tinge to it, and the flowers are multi-layered... 

The Oshima sakura is single layered, and is comparatively whitish...

This tree that we have is actually just about a meter high...

It is perhaps a bit like an oversized 'bonsai'?

Their buds are also something to look at... 

And I understand that their young leaves are favored by the Japanese folks as a wrap for a sweet called 'sakura mochi'... reason is, the leaves of the Oshima sakura are quite fragrant, and they look really beautiful... don't you think so too?

PS: for a wide-angle view of the sakuras in our property, see here...

Broccoli... easy to grow, good to eat, and full of benefits...

Do you like broccoli? 

We love this vegetable... it is pretty easy to grow... 

And after we harvest the main 'crown', the smaller 'crowns' keep popping up and we get to continue enjoying the vegetable...

Broccoli is rich in vitamin C, and is high on dietary fiber...
Broccoli also contains multiple nutrients that have potential anti-cancer properties...

Furthermore, broccoli possesses the highest levels of carotenoids among its 'cousins' in the brassica family...

Lutein is one of those carotenoid compounds found in broccoli... and this stuff is good for the eyes...

Broccoli is also an excellent source of a chemical called indole-3-carbinol... this chemical apparently helps to repair our damaged DNA cells...

Now, how to cook the veggie... boiling the broccoli supposedly reduces the benefits of the anti-cancer compounds, with reductions of of 20 to 30% after 5 minutes, 40 to 50% after 10 minutes, and 70% after 30 minutes...

As with many other vegetables, steaming is recommended so as to maximize the benefits of the potential anti-cancer compounds....

Daphne Odora... fragrant but poisonous...

We have two big Daphne Odora bushes in the garden...

Native to China and Japan, they have glossy leaves that are actually quite attractive...

Each winter, they have been giving us beautiful flowers...

They smell really sweet, but apparently, all parts of the plants are poisonous...

Still gnawing on our carrots...

Learned quite a few things about the 'humble' carrots... (See source here...)

To start off, carrots are a good source of vitamin A, C, and B6, as well as potassium, copper, folic acid, thiamine and magnesium...

 

Carrots are also one of the best sources of alpha and beta carotene...

Now, what's with this beta carotene again?

It supposedly helps to reduce chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease...

And the deal with alpha carotene?

The alpha carotene apparently aids in slowing down processes that may lead to tumor growth...

So far so good...

 

Now, purportedly just below the skin, carrots contain phenolic compounds that are antioxidants...

Do you peel off the skin when you cook carrots?

For us, we almost always never peel the skin when we do carrots or apples or persimmons, for that matter...

We eat them whole...

And the leaves?

Yeap, it seems that they are also quite a 'treasure' in that they are high in vitamin K...

And vitamin K is supposed to help keep bones healthy as well as helping the blood to clot...

We think the leaves do taste somewhat like what Malaysians call 'ulam raja'...

Sort of a 'mango-ish' taste, I would say...

The leaves can be quite tough to chew, so we just select the tender ones...