Happy Easter 2023 with this floriferous forced Primula elatior (oxlip / hagenøkleblom) in the kitchen window. Unlike England where oxlip is a rare native plant, it was introduced to Norway in the 1800s from further south in Norway and has commonly escaped from gardens naturalising mainly in my area and further north, right to the very north of Norway. This is the first of the three Primulas to flower here, followed by Primula vulgaris (primrose / kusymre) and finally Primula veris (hagenøkleblom).
All 3 species which also commonly hybridise where they grow together, as in my garden, are considered to be edible. I mostly use them in mixed salads, the flowers decorating early spring salads. This is what Cornucopia II says about their edibility:
Another one flowering currently in the window are the forced dandelions which we’ve been eating for since January most days:
Hybrids can also occur in gardens. I’ve several strains in my garden from seed, including “Sunset Shades” and “Red Strain”. I also grow the earlier flowering subspecies macrocalyx with overlarge sepals.
I use small amounts of leaves and flowers to decorate spring salads and other dishes…an undispensable shade loving and hardy edimental!
Primula veris “Sunset Shades”
Wild and forms of Primula veris, probably including hybrids
Wild and forms of Primula veris, probably including hybrids
…..and adding a few other things to the one species udo and American spikenard salads (Aralia cordata and Aralia racemosa) and this was the result, the summer’s first extreme salad, on the anniversary of the filming of the extreme salad youtube videos (“B” in the following link!) http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?p=16712
The centrepiece was Allium humile with tulip, Primula denticulata, Trillium grandiflorum, Trillium erectum, Arabis alpina and Primula veris
The centrepiece was Allium humile
It was commented “as if you were cradling a lover”…spot on!
Tonight’s dinner was a Hablitzia-Ramsons-Nettle quiche with oregano, poppy and celery seeds on top with cowslip-violet-Allium zebdanense-Arctic bramble flowers….wholegrain barley-oat-rye pastry…. not at all bad :) Anyone else have this tonight? …no, I didn’t think so somehow ;)
I had a little time to spare on Monday 8th May 2017, before my talk in the evening in Oslo. I went for a little walk on the coastal path (kyststien) on Nesodden where my son lives. Here’s a few pictures…
Ostrich fern (strutseving)
There were new leaves littering the ground everywhere, probably due to the strong wind?
Oslo in the distance!
Nettles / brennesle
Bergenia cordifolia has escaped from gardens in many places, completely dominating the shallow dry soils…this is a black listed invasive species in Norway…
Primula veris (Cowslip / marinøkleblom)
When I was a postdoc in Edinburgh, I was already interested in Ecology, although I had no training and together with my supervisor Phil Dyke we published a paper “The Importance of Langmuir Circulations to the Ecology of the Mixed Layer”….Langmuir circulations manifest themselves as streaks on the surface where particles and foam converge… Seeing these streaks (windrows) on the Oslofjord reminded me of this… See https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-642-68838-6_33
Young Norway maples (spisslønn)
Perennial vegetables, Edimentals (plants that are edible and ornamental) and other goings on in The Edible Garden
…no, I didn’t think so somehow ;)
