I usually trim the "stalk" down to the soil, thickened part annd all (new
leaves will grow back from the center of that little round part that's left
in the ground) and rinse all well, then chop it up and place in a pot of
water and simmer for a few minutes. When I'm pruning the plant back, I
usually have a LOT of leaves, so I usse a Dutch oven for simmering. The
plant will multiply well here in South. Calif near the ocean. The Asians use
the thickened sstalk for their cooking. It is SO good in soup, and Bille's
wife Nora said to put it into Chicken Adobo, too. You may also dig down next
to a stalk with a trowel and take the whole stalk out with the root, trim
the top off and replant somplace else.
The earth is the LORD'S and the fulness thereof
Amy's Marvelous Gardens
delicious design in landscape
zone 10 or 23 in Orange County, So. Calif.
http://people.we.mediaone.net/marvelousgardens
> Hello All,
> Last winter I managed to get some lemon grass plants from a plant nursery
> in Portugal. They have come to life and are putting out a lot of new
> leaves. I would like to collect the leaves in order to make herbal tea
with
the
The lemon grass used in SE Asian cuisines grows like onions, with upright
leaves. When you say it's "putting out new leaves" this sounds as if it's a
different kind of plant. If it truly is the kind used in SE Asian cooking,
I think you'll find the leaves have little lemon flavor or aroma. The part
that's commonly used is the white part . Some restaurants steep the leaves
in water for "finger bowl" sort of arrangement at the table. The plant
tends to multiply at the base, so watch for crowding there. Oops, I
apparently overstated the mildness of the leaves. Joy Larkcom says in one
of her books that the leaves are used for tea, but she doesn't specify old
or new. IMO lemon verbena would be a superior plant for tea, though. If
you're near any Asian groceries, you can just buy lemon grass and plant
that. Margaret L
Hello All,
Last winter I managed to get some lemon grass plants from a plant nursery
in Portugal. They have come to life and are putting out a lot of new
leaves. I would like to collect the leaves in order to make herbal tea with
them, but I'm not exactly sure of the best way to "prune" this plant.
Shall I only cut the older leaves? Shall I cut all the leaves? Is there
anyone out there who has had experience with this plant?
I also collect leaves and flowers from the vervain plant from which I make
herbal tea, and I would appreciate any advice that could be given about the
proper way to harvest the leaves as well. I want to get the most leaves
possible, doing the least damage to the plant itself.
Thank you for any advice, Kath
I suspect that was a different lemon grass, Carol. Cymbopogon citratus is
native to SE Asia, and has been cultivated in Florida, according to Hortus
III, but there's no indication it grows wild in Mexico. Margaret L
Hmmm, but then where would they get their te de limon, which is made from
lemon grass?
are
My husband and I hitchhiked through Mexico in 1958-9 and were told how to recognize lemon grass, so we picked it several times a day and made tea from it. We just picked the outer leaves - there were plenty of plants everywhere, as I remember. Nice to have a ready-made beverage when you are living in a tent for months at a time!
Carol
