MAKATI CITY — My earliest recollection of plant-based treatments were from A-Tiaw!, a practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine whom we visited as children for various ailments.
Cu-Shien, as he was formally addressed, was ram-rod straight and after laying my hand on a little pillow and taking my pulse, he would speak to me in gentle tones, ask a few questions and write out his prescriptions in Mandarin and gave instructions to my Mom on how to prepare what he had prescribed.
This often involved soaking the herbs, boiling them, straining them and reboiling them until we got an often dark and bitter brew that had to be chased down with rock sugar or candied wintermelon. Man, they were bitter but they worked!
His clinic was located at the back of a Chinese drugstore lined with shelves filled with glass jars full of interesting, intriguing and sometimes eerie contents that were of plant or animal origins! There were herbs, roots, winterworm summer grass (cordyceps), ginseng for qi energy, and among others, an assortment of natural cures for as many ailments as a hypochondriac can imagine!
In the mid-80s, we had a lush, ugly, dark and depressing bush in front of our apartment which I asked my helper to uproot because the neighborhood kids would pick and use the leaves as their “pretend vegetables” and leave a mess in their aftermath.
Our neighbor was horrified when she found out what I had done and told me that the bush had been planted by her Vietnamese sister-in-law who would pick the young shoots and mix them with pancit!
Well, I have always been leery of any food, plant or otherwise, that I can’t pronounce, so I didn’t give the incident much thought.
But I realize that as I got older, I started to appreciate the blessings that nature has bestowed upon us. I saw unfamiliar plants in a new light… plants that are often ignored or consigned to the garbage heap because of their bad rep as weeds or sagbot.
A few weeks ago, I wrote about edible flowers and last week I quoted parts of a book authored by my friend Flor Tarriela, titled Weedibles, Weedicinals, Edible Flowers and More.
Flor owns Flor’s Garden, a five-hectare hectare organic farm, butterfly and bird sanctuary in Antipolo that is now a Department of Tourism-accredited agri-tourism site, and a National Extension Service Provider of the Agricultural Training Institute under the Department of Agriculture.
Her book is a wealthy compendium of botanicals or plant-based treasures that are used to treat diseases or to maintain health and provide food.
This week, we shall learn about other useful plants that Flor has shared in her book:
Cadena de Amor Mexican Creeper; Antigonon leptopus — a common vine with dark green, heart-shaped leaves, and pink or white flowers that grow in bunches. Flor’s Garden serves its pink and white flowers in salads and other dishes to add color and beauty. Others add the flowers to cupcakes. Its flowers and leaves can be dipped in batter and deep fried as tempura.
Katuray Vegetable Hummingbird; Sesbania grandiflora — a fast-growing flowering tree with large pea-like flowers and seed pods. Its flower comes in various shades of yellow, white, rose pink, or red are edible. They are eaten either cooked or used raw in salads, curries, and as a steamed vegetable. The leaves and young pods are blanched and eaten with bagoong or fermented salt fish. In Flor’s Garden, fresh red katuray flowers are added to salads.
Alugbati Malabar spinach; Basella alba — a popular vegetable which has purple or green stems and heart shaped leaves. It is nutritious, rich in Vitamins A, C, calcium, iron, and antioxidants. It helps improve the immune system, eye health, good skin, and digestion. It is good as fresh in salad, or added to any dish, such as, monggo, sinigang or just sautéd.
Curry Leaf Tree Curry leaf; Murraya koenigi — an aromatic tropical tree with astrong scent. Its fresh and dried leaves are used in cooking soups, stews, and meat dishes. Acclaimed chef and food author Peter Kurovita uses curry leaf a lot in his cooking series.
On a visit to Sri Lanka, Flor noticed that curry leaf tree grew in many homes and most cuisines have added curry leaves due to their health benefits. Crushed curry leaves can be added to Virgin Coconut Oil then massaged to scalp promote hair growth.
Gynura Longevity Spinach; Gynura procumbens — a low-growing perennial, semi-succulent plant. It is edible and with medicinal value. The young leaves of gynura are tender and eaten fresh as is or added to salads, smoothies and soup. They may be used as juice or tea or stir fried with other vegetables or sautéd alone. Gynura leaves help in lowering cholesterol and blood pressure
Kadok Wild Pepper; Piper sarmentosum Kadok — an edible herb, with heart-shaped leaves like ikmo but with green stem and waxy leaves. Columnist Domini Torrevillas gave us our first kadok plant from Flor’s Garden. It grew abundantly. It is not only edible, it is medicinal, too, with its anti-oxidant properties. The leaves may be eaten raw. In Flor’s Garden, kadok leaves are used as wrapper, instead of lettuce for salads.
Saluyot Jew’s Mallow; Corchorus olitorius — an edible leafy vegetable that is valued as a nutritious food. It is rich in protein, iron, calcium, beta carotene, and vitamin C. Many Filipinos regard saluyot as a vegetable that is good for clear eyesight; having healthy red blood cells, strong bones and teeth; smooth and clear skin, strong immune cells, and fast wound-healing. It is also known to be an anti-stress food. Saluyot may be eaten raw or cooked, and mixed in vegetable dishes
Luyang Dilaw Turmeric; Curcuma longa — part of the ginger family and its roots are used in cooking. Luyang dilaw is the main spice in curry and gives curry its yellow color. This spice has been used as a medicinal herb for its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant qualities. Many drink turmeric tea to improve digestion, promote weight loss, slow down aging process and protect from infection
Tsaang Gubat Wild Tea: Carmona retusa or “Tea from the Forest’’– included in the Department of Health’s 10 approved medicinal plants. It is used for the treatment of stomach ache, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Boiled leaves drunk as tea can relieve stomach ache. Leaves are also good as mouthwash with their fluoride content, preventing tooth decay. Tsaang gubat is also used for landscaping and bonsai making. Tsaang gubat plants which are shaped like animals are available in plant shops for gardens.
Stevia Sugarleaf; Stevia rebaudiana — an herb with natural sweetness from its leaves. It is considered a substitute for sugar with no carbohydrate, and no calories. It tastes so good when eaten raw. Fresh and dry leaves are good for coffee, tea, and any drink. It is 300 percent sweeter than sugar but amazingly with no effect on the blood sugar level and it also helps control it
Lagundi Five-Leaf Chaste Tree; Vitex negundo — a small tree with many branches. It has five leaves in a stem and has lovely light purple bluish flowers. Boiled leaves used as tea are known to cure colds, cough, and asthma, and can reduce fever. Pounded leaves are applied to tooth cavities to relieve toothache. Mass of lagundi leaves applied on forehead and temples relieve headaches.
Ikmo Betel Pepper; Piper betle Ikmo — known as buyo in the Visayan region. It is a climber plant with fragrant leaves. For the sore part of the body choose big ikmo leaves: wash, wipe and clean them. Then apply oil on each leaf and heat it over candle fire then apply it to the sore part. Leaves are also used in massage in a similar way.
Katakataka Miracle Plant; Bryophyllum pinnatum — an herb with thick, succulent and fleshy leaves which means “unbelievable” because of its amazing characteristic. The plantlets grow on the edge of the leaves. The leaves may be inserted in the pages of a book. After a week or two, katakataka may be seen on the edges of the leaves. They may then be detached from the parent plant. Katakataka leaves are considered as astringent, antiseptic, and anti-inflammatory. Heated leaves over candles maybe applied to sore joints, body aches and sprains to give a soothing effect. They are also good for eczema, burns, and boils.
Mayana Coleus; Coleous scutellarioides — an herb with colorful foliage. Thus, it is popular as a house plant and in gardens. Some leaf colors are yellow, green, red, pink, purple, and blue. Mayana certainly adds beauty to any surrounding. Crushed or pounded mayana leaves are used to apply to bruises, sprain, and headaches. Juiced leaves are also used to stop mild bleeding of wounds.
Akapulko Ringworm bush; Senna alata — a small tree with dark green leaves and nice bright yellow torch-like flowers. The leaves have anti-fungal properties. They are pounded and the juice is applied directly or added with lukewarm water to wash skin, remove itchiness, and treat skin sores caused by ringworm, scabies, eczema, herpes, and insect bites. Its flowers and seeds are used as purgative
Kamantigi Balsam; Impatiens balsamina — a succulent herb with antifungal properties. Its flowers are pink, white, red, and purple. It may have variegated petals. Its seeds explode when matured. To use the leaves for treatment, crush and apply them externally to bruises and sore parts of the body. Leaf juice is used as treatment of warts and rheumatism. Chopped kamantigi leaves are soaked in water overnight then sprayed on plants to get rid of aphids.”
Agriculture Sec. William Dar cites that Philippine flora accounts for some 14,000 diverse species that represent five percent of the world’s flora.
With this wealth of local plants available to us, let’s care for them to increase their quality, yield and longevity for our food and health.
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Author’s email: [email protected]h
