Saturday, May 1, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Sweetgrass (Hierochloe odorata)
Sweetgrass (Hierochloe odorata) seeds.
Hierochloe, from the Greek, hieros, "sacred", and chloe, "grass".
odorata, from the Latin, "sweet smelling, fragrant".
Synonmys: Hierochloe borealis, Buffalo Grass, Sacred grass, Holy Grass, Holy Sweet Grass, Vanilla Grass, Feur Moire (Gaelic), Zebrovka ("the place where bison graze"),
Foin d’odeur, Wenserakon ohonte, Wiingashk, Weengushk, Hair of Mother Earth, Manna Grass, Seneca Grass.
Distribution: Circumboreal; common above 40ยบ north latitude in Asia, Europe, and North America.
Habitat: Wet meadows, low prairies, edges of sloughs and marshes, bogs, shaded streambanks, lakeshores, and cool mountain canyons.
History:
Used for religious purposes both North America and Europe.
This is one of the main ingredients in the smoking mixture for Peace pipes.
Sweetgrass is also a traditional incense or smudge.
Some Native American peoples used it as incense for purification of places and things.
It was strewn before church doors on Saints' days in northern Europe.
Used in France to flavour candy, tobacco, soft drinks, and perfumes.
In Russia it is added to vodka to make Zebrovka (a vanilla scented vodka).
Brewed as a tea, has been used for coughs and sore throats, chapping and windburn, and as an eyewash.
Used by Native Americans for basket making.
Sweetgrass Cultivation:
Full sun to part shade.
Moist to wet rich soil with lots of cow manure (think 60 million bison :-D )
Very hardy. Grows well in containers if given plenty of moisture.
Seeds - Rub seed cases between fingers to remove the seeds. Sow in spring (or at equivalent temperature) in flats/pots and only just cover the seed.
Germination usually begins to take place within 2 weeks but may take several months (wild seeds have a staggered germination).
Water from underneath so as not disturb the seeds. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in early summer.
Germination rates: Sweetgrass naturally has a very low germination rate of about 5-15% but once you have one plant it spreads easily by runners.
Division in spring or summer. Very simple, virtually any part of the root will regrow to make a new plant.
The plants have a running root system and can spread quickly when grown in suitable conditions.
Sweetgrass Tips for Adelaide, Australia (Mediterranean-like hot/dry conditions):
I have a very small garden so I grow mine in a big plastic storage box, I think it was actually sold as a bait bin, it's something like 200lt in volume.
Its in full sun on the north side of the house.
Soil is potting mix, a bottle of those water saving crystals and a bucket of dynamic lifter (it really likes blood & bone or cow manure).
My Sweetgrass container has no drainage holes on the bottom just one small hole drilled about half way up on one side. Sweetgrass likes really wet soil and this way the bottom half of the box is always saturated unless the plant uses it. When I water I use a stick in the hole and fill to the brim (It can stay that way for hours or days) to saturate the soil and then remove the stick so there is no problem with mosquitoes. This container also keeps the grass stems cleaner as Sweetgrass is a bit floppy. Grass stems can grow up to 1m in length.
Sweetgrass seems only to set seed if the plants are in several cm of water in summer.
Sweetgrass will die if it dries out but is very tough otherwise.
I bought my seeds from a seller on ebay.
http://myworld.ebay.com.au/leaves_of_the_yggdrasil/
Hierochloe, from the Greek, hieros, "sacred", and chloe, "grass".
odorata, from the Latin, "sweet smelling, fragrant".
Synonmys: Hierochloe borealis, Buffalo Grass, Sacred grass, Holy Grass, Holy Sweet Grass, Vanilla Grass, Feur Moire (Gaelic), Zebrovka ("the place where bison graze"),
Foin d’odeur, Wenserakon ohonte, Wiingashk, Weengushk, Hair of Mother Earth, Manna Grass, Seneca Grass.
Distribution: Circumboreal; common above 40ยบ north latitude in Asia, Europe, and North America.
Habitat: Wet meadows, low prairies, edges of sloughs and marshes, bogs, shaded streambanks, lakeshores, and cool mountain canyons.
History:
Used for religious purposes both North America and Europe.
This is one of the main ingredients in the smoking mixture for Peace pipes.
Sweetgrass is also a traditional incense or smudge.
Some Native American peoples used it as incense for purification of places and things.
It was strewn before church doors on Saints' days in northern Europe.
Used in France to flavour candy, tobacco, soft drinks, and perfumes.
In Russia it is added to vodka to make Zebrovka (a vanilla scented vodka).
Brewed as a tea, has been used for coughs and sore throats, chapping and windburn, and as an eyewash.
Used by Native Americans for basket making.
Sweetgrass Cultivation:
Full sun to part shade.
Moist to wet rich soil with lots of cow manure (think 60 million bison :-D )
Very hardy. Grows well in containers if given plenty of moisture.
Seeds - Rub seed cases between fingers to remove the seeds. Sow in spring (or at equivalent temperature) in flats/pots and only just cover the seed.
Germination usually begins to take place within 2 weeks but may take several months (wild seeds have a staggered germination).
Water from underneath so as not disturb the seeds. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in early summer.
Germination rates: Sweetgrass naturally has a very low germination rate of about 5-15% but once you have one plant it spreads easily by runners.
Division in spring or summer. Very simple, virtually any part of the root will regrow to make a new plant.
The plants have a running root system and can spread quickly when grown in suitable conditions.
Sweetgrass Tips for Adelaide, Australia (Mediterranean-like hot/dry conditions):
I have a very small garden so I grow mine in a big plastic storage box, I think it was actually sold as a bait bin, it's something like 200lt in volume.
Its in full sun on the north side of the house.
Soil is potting mix, a bottle of those water saving crystals and a bucket of dynamic lifter (it really likes blood & bone or cow manure).
My Sweetgrass container has no drainage holes on the bottom just one small hole drilled about half way up on one side. Sweetgrass likes really wet soil and this way the bottom half of the box is always saturated unless the plant uses it. When I water I use a stick in the hole and fill to the brim (It can stay that way for hours or days) to saturate the soil and then remove the stick so there is no problem with mosquitoes. This container also keeps the grass stems cleaner as Sweetgrass is a bit floppy. Grass stems can grow up to 1m in length.
Sweetgrass seems only to set seed if the plants are in several cm of water in summer.
Sweetgrass will die if it dries out but is very tough otherwise.
I bought my seeds from a seller on ebay.
http://myworld.ebay.com.au/leaves_of_the_yggdrasil/
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