Dragon Fruit/Moon Flower

Hi over the last few days our dragon fruit have been flowering and what a beautiful sight they are.

The flowers are white, 30cm long and are open for only one night. The bud begins to puff out during the day and it is evident that it will open that evening. The photos below were taken below around 9pm using torch light. By that time they had reached their full beauty a sight to behold.

They have a translucency about them and almost seem to glow in the moon light. After one night of glory they start to close with the sun’s rays upon them, but not before the bee’s have had the most incredible feast. On cloudy days they stay open till about 10am. The fruit is then set and will grow rapidly. Some photo's of the beautiful rich red fruit in about 30 days to follow.

On doing some further research on the "Pitaya's" I find they are in fact regarded as a super food rich in antioxidants with, Vitamin C, Vitamin B, polyunsaturated fatty acids, protein, carotene, calcium, iron, phosphorous, " high in polyunsaturated fats (omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids) that reduce triglycerides and lower the risk of cardiovascular disorders. Eating dragon fruit can help the body maintain such normal function as ridding the body of toxic heavy metals and improved eyesight. Lycopene, responsible for the red color in dragon fruit, has been shown to be linked with a lower prostate cancer risk."

Fights Diabetes

The high amount of fiber in dragon fruit can ultimately help regulate diabetes, as it can stabilize blood sugar levels by suppressing sugar spikes. However, with any dietary changes or modifications, always consult your doctor to make sure this is a good food for you.

Reduces Signs of Aging

Eating a dragon fruit with its rich antioxidants can keep the skin tight and young. You can even make a face mask using the fruit combined with honey as a natural alternative to anti-aging masks."

Sources: http://foodfacts.mercola.com/dragon-fruit.html
http://www.aussiedragonfruit.com/Fruit.htm
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/10-surprising-benefits-dragon-fruit-you-never-knew.html

Brain Food

As we age so does our brain and we need to find a way to fight the effects. I am forever exercising my brain and endeavouring to strengthen my memory by learning new words, puzzles, naming every plant in the garden and eating various foods that I find help me such as sage, persimons, pomegranites and lots of salmon 3 or 4 days a week.

"Fish: The Ultimate Brain Food?

Traditionally fish has been described as “brain food” – a claim that was dismissed as an ‘old wives tale’ for many years but recent research into the links between fish and brain function suggest that this old wives’ tale may have more than a small grain of truth behind it.

We know that a large part of the brain is made up of omega-3 fats, making them vital for healthy brain function. In fact 60% of the fats in the brain are omega-3 with DHA, a type of omega-3 fat found in fish, being the main type. Omega-3 fats are essential for healthy brain development both in the womb and in early childhood. About 75% of brain cells are in place before birth and the other 25% are in place by the age of 1 year – making omega-3 fats an essential nutrient both for pregnant mothers and young children. Omega-3 fats were found to be so important for early brain development that they are now automatically added to baby milk formula and it is recommended that pregnant women eat two servings of fish every week – including at least one oil-rich fish."

Source: http://www.bordbia.ie/consumer/aboutfood/nutrition/fish/pages/ultimatebrainfood.aspx

"Sage sharpens the mind

by TIM UTTON, Daily Mail

Old wives' tales have long proclaimed sage's ability to boost the powers of memory. Now scientists have proved they were right.

Indeed, researchers are so impressed by the herb's powers that they are to investigate if it could be used to treat Alzheimer's disease.

The possible breakthrough follows clinical trials which found that healthy adults who had taken sage oil capsules performed significantly better in memory tests.

The herb - Latin name Salvia lavandulaefolia - is thought to protect the 'chemical messengers' which carry information in the brain and are essential to memory.

Men and women have taken sage to fight memory loss for centuries, usually in teas or tinctures. As far back as 1597, herbalist John Gerard wrote that sage was 'singularly good for the head and brain and quickeneth the nerves and memory.'

Half a century later, Nicholas Culpeper, claimed the herb 'heals the memory, warming and quickening the senses'.

Researchers from the Medicinal Plant Research Centre (MPRC), based at the universities of Newcastle and Northumbria, recently completed the first clinical trials involving the use of sage by healthy adults.

They tested 44 healthy adults aged 18 to 37. Some were given capsules containing between 50mg and 150mg of sage oil while others received a 'dummy' capsule containing none.

The volunteers took part in a wordrecall tests at intervals between one and six hours later.

Those who had taken the sage oil performed better across the board - on average recalling eight per cent more words than those on the placebo, in some cases more than ten per cent.

Research team leader Nicola Tildesley said: 'This proves how valuable the work by the old herbalists is, and that they shouldn't just be ignored because they were writing centuries ago."

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-194179/Sage-sharpens-mind.html#ixzz3xkdbX1AK

"Essential Oils For The Brain

Essential oils are an excellent way to treat mental fatigue and to boost your mental capacity. Here are three that can be a useful supplement to herbal remedies for times when you need to stimulate your brain.

Rosemary is a bright and sharp essence that improves clarity in the mind and emotions. Peppermint is stimulating It enlivens the mind and is one of the best oils to boost energy, creativity and learning.

Basil improves mental fatigue and focus."

Anyone have any special tips on improving memory love to hear from you.

Food to fight Obesity

If anyone recently watched Dateline you will know that plums grown in the granite belt of Queensland have just been released for sale in Woolworths.  These plums are known as Queen Garnet are being discussed with headlines such as"

"Plum hailed in fight against obesity after bringing fat rats 'back to normal', as scientists seek superfood status"  

So is this plum GC the superfood of the future which is grown exclusively in Australia and if as claimed above could  save the world from obesity.  Sounds to good to be true but guess who is off to the supermarket to get her daily fix.  Blueberries now have taken a back seat to these tasty colorful plums for there health benefits. 

Blue, red or dark purple coloured fruit and vegetables contain this andioxidant namely, "Anthocyanin" which is a flavanoid "They have some of the strongest physiological effects of any plant compounds, and they are also things of beauty: anthocyanis provide pigment for pansies, petunias, and plums. (Anthocyanis are a separate class of flavonoids from proanthocyanidins.)" 


"Queensland Department of Primary Industry scientist Kent Fanning worked on the plum for more than a decade.He said anthocyanin was a pigment coming under increasing attention from scientists because of its health benefits.
"The blue of blueberries, the red of strawberries, the red of raspberries - that's anthocyanin," Mr Fanning said.
"There's increasing evidence they help reduce inflammation and the structure and function of the gastrointestinal system.
"The potential benefits relate to protection against some forms of cardiovascular disease, improved liver function and improved pancreas function [and] what we call lifestyle diseases [that] are prevalent in the Western society."
The Queensland Government sold the global rights to the Queen Garnet to Nutrafruit, a syndicate of six Queensland friends with a connection to agribusiness."

I find this an interesting and intriguing story and will be watching for the results of the trials as well as getting my fix by buying some from the supermarket.  I love eating a variety of foods and those rich in colour and flavour.  We are currently picking gold passionfruit, cherry tomatoes (which were self sewn) and persimons from our garden which are all organic.  It has been too hot to plant any vegetables but the garden beds are ready for March and the cooler months of Autumn.

And something exciting happened last week.  The first flower from one of our dragon fruit set and flowered it was a beautiful site they are quite large (known as the moon flower) as they come out during the evening. It was still partly open in the early morning and we were able to self pollinate it before it closed and died as they only last the one night.  The wait is on now to see if it will set fruit.  I will keep you posted.
















Sources:
 http://www.chiro.org/nutrition/FULL/Anthocyanins.shtml
 http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-14/antioxidant-rich-plum-to-fight-obesity/

Sticking to your Shopping List

Shopping love it or hate it - we need to spend some time during the week at the Supermarket or of course, an alternative is to shop on line our local IGA has a delivery service for on line shoppers and what better way to stick to a list instead of being tempted to buy extras lured by packaging or position in the supermarket.  There is a small delivery fee but I believe that it could be well worth it and you also save on time. If that is not your go and you want to shop yourself make that list and I am one for lists but do I stick to them, not always so I came up with a plan to help me.
1. I write my list and number each item
2. Then I go through the list and try to eliminate 2 to 3 items
3. This list then goes straight into my handbag so I don't leave it at home
4. When at the shops I mark off each item as it goes into the trolley and the numbering system instils into me that I have so many items to purchase and that is it.  Not sure why that works but it does help.

If you need an extra incentive you can always reward yourself for having stuck to the list nothing big
maybe treat yourself to one of those massage chairs in the shopping centre at $2. Or pop soe coins into a piggy bank and save up for something special.

A New Year Time to Make A Plan

Well here we are well into 2015 with the second month, February is just around the corner.  It is time to take some time out and plan for the year ahead.  So get a book large A4 lined book something that is nice to write on (cheap as chips to purchase at Woolies, $2 shops etc) and start writing down things you want to see included in this year and then start researching how this can become achievable.
For example,  Christmas has just finished and if you are anything like me it is a stressful time of the year even though I do look forward to it and getting together with all the family which for me was at home and I cooked my heart out.  Just love cooking for our lot.  Any way whatever it is you need to plan for, for the following Christmas start putting some ideas into action. Cutting back on costs is a number one for most of us and had you thought of discussing with relatives ways to achieve this.  I know a family who draw names out of a hat and they buy only for that one person.  What a great idea. 

I will be back with more ideas later.  But I am back blogging that was on my list in my A4 lined exercise book!!

Happy Day to you all and remember speak to the ones you love as you would like them to speak to you!!!

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Dry Brittle Fingernails

Our hands and nails really cop a beating and as we grow older they become dryer. I would like to share my remedy for nais that continue splitting and breaking. I have had this trouble with brittle fingernails for sometime now. A few months ago I started a daily regime of using moisturizer on my nails as well as my hands 3 or 4 times a day. I put the hand and nail cream in a place that I would easily remember to put it on. It took several weeks to start repairing and although I think my nails could be better hope that continuous use will fix this problem.