francisibijola

[lindahall]

Hugh Algernon Weddell – Scientist of the Day

Hugh Algernon Weddell, an English/French botanist, was born June 22, 1819, at an estate near Gloucester, but he was raised and spent his entire career in France or in the service of France in South America.

Learn more

[unmalviaje]

♡

[frimleyblogger]

Luxardo London Dry Gin

My take on Luxardo London Dry #Gin bought from @DrinkfinderUK #GinReview

Founded in 1821 by Girolamo Luxardo and still controlled by the same founding family, Luxardo is one of the oldest European companies producing liqueurs and spirits. It is best known for its Maraschino Liqueur and Cherries and operates out of Torreglia in Padua after moving from Zara, the Venetian capital of Dalmatia, following the devastation caused to the area in the final throes of the Nazi…

[thebotanicalarcade]

n4_w1150 by Biodiversity Heritage Library Via Flickr: Journal of botany, British and foreign. London :Robert Hardwicke,1863-1942. biodiversitylibrary.org/page/15640412

[laagansabukid]

MAINTENANCE SA LWD SA WATER SOURCE

LANTAWA: Kinatibuk-ang paghaw-as sa mga yutang anod nga na-stock sa Water Dam nga maoy Impounding Facility sa LWD. Kabahin sa ilang Maintenance gikan sa Lantapan Water District (LWD) ang paghabwa sa mga yuta nga inanod nga napundo sa Water Dam sa Water Source sa Kulasihan River, nga anaa sulod Cinchona Forest Reserved ug kabahin na kini sa Protected Area sa Mt. Kitanglad Range Natural Park o…

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Liqueurs

Liqueurs

Also known as cordials.

Distilled spirits that feature flavorings such as fruits, herbs, and spices.

Heavy, sweet, and complexly flavored drinks.

These sweet alcoholic beverages are used to make cocktails, or can be served alone as aperitifs or digestifs.

Making Liqueurs

Involves adding fruits, sugar, cream, spices, herbs, nuts, and flavorings to a liquor base at a distillery.

The sweetness of liqueurs is their most common feature.

Although, they can range widely in sugar content.

Popular types of liqueurs: orange liqueurs, herbal liqueurs, and coffee liqueurs.

Liqueur vs. Liquor

Both are drinks with high alcohol content and similar-sounding names.

However, there are essential differences between these two categories:

Fermentation: Liquor—also known as hard alcohol, spirits, or distilled spirits—is a category of alcoholic beverages that ferment and undergo distillation. In the distillation process, heat and condensation increase the alcohol content, and a significant portion of the water boils off, concentrating the alcohol and particular compounds. Liquors usually starting with a grain base (distillers occasionally use fruits). The six main categories are whiskey, brandy, rum, vodka, gin, and tequila.

Flavorings: Most liqueurs begin with liquor as a base; then, distillers add herbs, spices, and other flavorings. Bartenders can serve liqueurs as-is or add them in small amounts to a liquor base to form mixed drinks.

Sugar: The main difference between liquor and liqueur is sweetness. Liqueurs are intensely flavored with the most predominant note usually being sweetness. Flavoring herbs and oils and added sugar provide flavor and texture.

Alcohol content: Both liqueurs and liquors have a range of alcohol content. Most liquor is in the 40 to 55 percent range of Alcohol by Volume (ABV), or 80 to 110 proof. Liqueurs typically contain more ingredients, so the alcohol content is generally lower, from 15 to 30 percent ABV or 30 to 60 proof.

15 Popular Types of Liqueurs

There is a wide range of liqueurs, from cream-based cordials to proprietary recipes.

Amaretto: An Italian liqueur made from apricot kernels, which give the liquor a distinctly bitter almond flavor. Its name comes from amaro, the Italian word for “bitter.” Sweeter notes of brown sugar temper the bitterness of the apricot pits. It contains 21 to 28% ABV and can be sipped alone or added to cocktails.

Amaro: A broad category of regional Italian bitters. Made from either a neutral spirit or brandy, this bitter liqueur is a staple in the Italian lifestyle. A curated blend of botanical ingredients—typically an inherited recipe that includes herbs, spices, and flowers, as well as barks and roots like gentian root, cinchona, and wormwood—gives each variety of amaro its unique flavor. Campari, Cynar, Fernet Branca, and Aperol are popular amaro liqueur brands.

Anise liqueurs: Anice, the primary flavoring agent in black licorice, is a popular ingredient in alcoholic drinks in many countries and cultures: Ouzo in Greece, Sambuca and Galliano in Italy, Pernod Absinthe in France, and Raki in Turkey, among others.

Chambord: A popular brand of raspberry-flavored liqueur. The ingredients are red and black raspberries, honey, vanilla, and cognac. Chambord is great for making Raspberry Mojitos and Raspberry Margaritas.

Cream liqueurs: Thick, sweet liqueurs made with the addition of milk or a milk substitute, along with sweetener, to provide a creamy sweetness to the drink. Baileys Irish Cream liqueur and Amarula are two examples of cream liqueurs.

Creme liqueurs: Creme liqueurs are thick, sweet, syrup-like beverages. Unlike cream liqueurs, creme liqueurs do not contain dairy. Instead, added sugar provides a thick consistency. Crème de cassis (made from blackcurrants), crème de cacao, (a chocolate liqueur) and crème de menthe are different flavors of this category.

Coffee liqueurs: These liqueurs contain caffeine, and the predominant flavor is coffee. Coffee liqueurs, such as Kahlúa from Mexico or Irish Sheridan, are generally served with cream and sugar.

Elderflower liqueurs: These herbal liqueurs provide a light, floral note to cocktail recipes. St. Germain is a popular brand of elderflower liqueur.

Limoncello: A liqueur flavored with lemon peel. Limoncello is strong, sweet, and bright yellow.

Medicinal: Some liqueurs, such as Chartreuse and Benedictine, were initially used for medicinal purposes. These liqueurs tend to be floral and highly complex, with an ingredient list that remains secretive.

Orange liqueurs: These liqueurs feature predominant orange flavors, and are broadly known under the labels curaçao or Triple Sec. Popular brands include Cointreau and Grand Marnier.

Schnapps: Some varieties of schnapps do not classify as liqueurs, but those with added sweetness and flavoring agents, such as peach schnapps and peppermint schnapps, are liqueurs.

Drambuie: This Scottish liqueur has a base spirit of Scotch whiskey and a proprietary blend of herbs and spices.

Frangelico: Italian liqueur flavored with roasted hazelnuts; comes in a uniquely shaped bottle, modeled after a Christian monk, complete with a rope belt.

Strega: Italian herbal liqueur that gets its name from the Italian word for witch. The distinctive yellow color comes from saffron, imparting flavor to the liqueur.

Source ⚜ More: Writing Notes & References ⚜ Cocktails ⚜ Food History Wine-tasting ⚜ Drunkenness ⚜ Drinking ⚜ Literary & Hollywood Cocktails

[herpsandbirds]

Cinchona Tree Frog (Isthmohyla rivularis), family Hylidae, Costa Rica

ENDANGERED.

photograph by Andrew Gray 

[tropic-havens]

Banana flower in Cinchona, Sarapiquí, Provincia de Alajuela, Costa Rica

[galacticnikki]

A Baby Witch's First Grimoire

Grimoire Entry 14 - Protection Herbs

A:

Acacia

African Violet

Agrimony

Ague Root

Aloe

Althea

Alyssum

Amaranth

Angelica

Anise

Arbutus

Asafetida

Ash

B:

Balm of Gilead

Bamboo

Barley

Basil

Bay

Bean

Betony, Wood

Birch

Bittersweet

Blackberry

Bladderwrack

Bloodroot

Bluebell

Bodhi

Boneset

Briony

Bromeliad

Broom

Buckthorn

Burdock

C:

Cactus

Calamus

Caraway

Carnation

Cascara Sagrada

Castor

Cedar

Celandine

Chrysanthemum

Cinchona

Cinnamon

Cinquefoil

Clove

Clover

Club Moss

Coconut

Cohosh, Black

Cotton

Cumin

Curry

Cyclamen

Cypress

D-G:

Datura

Devil's Bit

Devil's Shoestring

Dill

Dogwood

Dragon's Blood

Ebony

Elder

Elecenpane

Eucalyptus

Euphorbia

Fern

Figwort

Fleabane

Frankincense

Galangal

Garlic

Geranium

Ginseng

Gorse

Gourd

Grain

Grass

H-K:

Hazel

Heather

Holly

Honeysuckle

Horehound

Houseleek

Hyacinth

Hyssop

Irish Moss

Ivy

Juniper

Kava-Kava

L-M:

Lady's Slippers

Larch

Larkspur

Lavender

Lekk

Lettuce

Lilac

Lime

Linden

Loosestrife

Lotus

Lucky Hand

Mallow

Mandrake

Marigold

Masterwort

Meadow Rue

Mimosa

Mint

Mistletoe

Molluka

Mugwort

Mulberry

Mullein

Mustard

Myrrh

N-Q:

Nettle

Norfolk Island Pine

Oak

Olive

Onion

Orris

Papaya

Papyrus

Parsley

Pennyroyal

Peony

Pepper

Periwinkle

Pilot Weed

Pimpernel

Pine

Plantain

Plum Purslane

Quince

R-S:

Radish

Ragwort

Raspberry

Rattlesnake Root

Rhubarb

Rice

Roots

Rose

Rosemary

Rowan

Sage

St. John's Wort

Sandalwood

Sloe

Snapdragon

Southernwood

Spanish Moss

Squill

Sweetgum

T-Z:

Tamarisk

Thistle

Ti

Toadflax

Tomato

Tormentil

Tulip

Turnip

Valerian

Venus' Fly Trap

Vervain

Violet

Wax Plant

Willow

Wintergreen

Witch's Hazel

Wolf's Bane

Yerba Santa

Yucca

Feel free to check out my master post for more information!

[fatehbaz]

Because most medicines were produced from [...] plants [...] these early “pharmaceutical monopolies” required full control of the production and trade of a species. Russia successfully managed the rhubarb trade in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, while Spain controlled the distribution [...] from Spanish America, mainly cinchona from Peru, in the same period. “True” cinnamon grew only on Sri Lanka, so whoever controlled the island could dominate the cinnamon trade. The Portuguese were the first to create a monopoly on the cinnamon trade there in the early seventeenth century. That monopoly was later optimized by the Dutch in the late eighteenth century [...].

“True” should indeed be in quotation marks here - the term reflects the historically contingent tastes of Europeans, rather than any botanical category [...]. The rarity of cinnamon in the early modern period made it one of the most coveted spices of that era, and European countries without direct access to the cinnamon trade tried to imitate, substitute, steal, smuggle, or transplant the “true” product from Sri Lanka. [...]

---

In the early modern period, cinnamon was also important both as an exotic commodity and as an important therapeutic substance. The Dutch East India Company (VOC), which controlled Sri Lanka between 1658 and 1796, was well aware of this. The VOC vigorously exploited the Salagama - [...] specialized Sri Lankan cinnamon peelers - to supply enough cinnamon, which for a long time was gathered from forests. Only after the peelers rebelled, leading to a war that lasted between 1760 and 1766, did the company revise its production policy. 

Experiments with “cinnamon gardens” (kaneeltuinen in Dutch) led to enormous successes, and the company eventually grew millions of cinnamon trees on plantations in the final decades of the eighteenth century. Meanwhile, competitors of the Dutch had come up with their own solutions [...]: Spain had started growing other Cinnamomum species on plantations in the Philippines, while France and Britain succeeded in transplanting cinnamon to islands in the Caribbean. But the Dutch monopoly was not simply threatened by outside competition. Smuggling, by peelers or VOC personnel, was strictly forbidden and severely punished. [...]

---

Hendrik Adriaan van Rheede tot Drakenstein (1636–1691) was the VOC administrator on India’s Malabar Coast when he started experimenting with cinnamon oil in the 1670s.

He concluded that the oil, which he extracted from the roots of local cinnamon trees, was of better quality than oil from cinnamon trees on Sri Lanka. Van Rheede reported these results in his entry on cinnamon in volume 1 of the Hortus Indicus Malabaricus, the twelve-volume book that was produced by a team of local and European scholars, and supervised by Van Rheede himself.

Van Rheede’s assessment of cinnamon - in fact, the very publication of a multi-volume work about the flora of Malabar - infuriated the governor of Sri Lanka, Rijckloff van Goens, who had secured the cinnamon monopoly of Sri Lanka for the Dutch. Van Goens insisted that Van Rheede stop his medical experiments, claiming that the monopoly was at risk if the cinnamon trade was extended beyond the island of Sri Lanka. 

But Van Goens was not so much concerned about the therapeutic efficacy of cinnamon from either of the two regions. He was motivated by an imperial agenda and regarded the natural products of Sri Lanka as superior to anything similar in the region.

The experiments of Van Rheede, who was his former protégé, threatened not so much the botanical quality of the product, or the commercial interests of the Dutch East India Company, but rather the central position of Sri Lanka in the Dutch colonial system and the position of Van Goens as the representative of that system.

---

Even when Sri Lanka still only produced cinnamon that grew in the wild, the Dutch harvested enough to supply an international market and were able to dictate the availability and price level throughout the world. The monopoly, whether defined in commercial or pharmaceutical terms, was not easily put at risk by efforts like Van Rheede’s. Those involved in the early modern cinnamon trade were motivated by various reasons to defend or undermine the central position of Sri Lankan cinnamon: botanical, medical, commercial, or imperial. These motives often overlapped.

---

All text above by: Wouter Klein. “Plant of the Month: Cinnamon.” JSTOR Daily. 17 February 2021. “Plant of the Month” series is part of the Plant Humanities Initiative, a partnership of Dumbarton Oaks and JSTOR Labs. [Bold emphasis and some paragraph breaks/contractions added by me. Presented here for commentary, teaching, criticism purposes.]

[eatclean-bewhole]

Did you know that pharmaceutical companies often attempt to replicate the benefits of plants in their synthetic drugs or even use plant-based ingredients in their formulations?

For example, aspirin—a common pain reliever—is derived from the bark of the willow tree, which has been used for centuries to reduce pain and inflammation. Another well-known drug, digoxin, which treats heart conditions, comes from the foxglove plant. Even quinine, a key treatment for malaria, was originally sourced from the bark of the cinchona tree.

Despite this, pharmaceutical companies often synthetically replicate plant compounds to patent and profit from them, rather than relying solely on the natural source. These companies tweak molecules or combine elements in ways that allow them to create patented versions, profiting from nature’s original remedies.

By harnessing the power of plants and nutrition directly, we can experience these benefits without the side effects of synthetic drugs.

[transmutationisms]

original anon here tysm for the recs ! if the marxist frameworks was too limiting im also completely fine w general postcolonial botany readings on the topic :0

A Spiteful Campaign: Agriculture, Forests, and Administering the Environment in Imperial Singapore and Malaya (2022). Barnard, Timothy P. & Joanna W. C. Lee. Environmental History Volume: 27 Issue: 3 Pages: 467-490. DOI: 10.1086/719685

Planting Empire, Cultivating Subjects: British Malaya, 1786–1941 (2018). Lynn Hollen Lees

The Plantation Paradigm: Colonial Agronomy, African Farmers, and the Global Cocoa Boom, 1870s--1940s (2014). Ross, Corey. Journal of Global History Volume: 9 Issue: 1 Pages: 49-71. DOI: 10.1017/S1740022813000491

Cultivating “Care”: Colonial Botany and the Moral Lives of Oil Palm at the Twentieth Century’s Turn (2022). Alice Rudge. Comparative Studies in Society and History Volume: 64 Issue: 4 Pages: 878-909. DOI: 10.1017/S0010417522000354

Pacific Forests: A History of Resource Control and Contest in Solomon Islands, c. 1800-1997 (2000). Bennett, Judith A.

Thomas Potts of Canterbury: Colonist and Conservationist (2020). Star, Paul

Colonialism and Green Science: History of Colonial Scientific Forestry in South India, 1820--1920 (2012). Kumar, V. M. Ravi. Indian Journal of History of Science Volume: 47 Issue 2 Pages: 241-259

Plantation Botany: Slavery and the Infrastructure of Government Science in the St. Vincent Botanic Garden, 1765–1820 (2021). Williams, J'Nese. Berichte zur Wissenschaftsgeschichte Volume: 44 Issue: 2 Pages: 137-158. DOI: 10.1002/bewi.202100011

Angel in the House, Angel in the Scientific Empire: Women and Colonial Botany During the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries (2020). Hong, Jiang. Notes and Records: The Royal Society Journal of the History of Science Volume: 75 Issue: 3 Pages: 415-438. DOI: 10.1098/rsnr.2020.0046

From Ethnobotany to Emancipation: Slaves, Plant Knowledge, and Gardens on Eighteenth-Century Isle de France (2019). Brixius, Dorit. History of Science Volume: 58 Issue: 1 Pages: 51-75. DOI: 10.1177/0073275319835431

African Oil Palms, Colonial Socioecological Transformation and the Making of an Afro-Brazilian Landscape in Bahia, Brazil (2015). Watkins, Case. Environment and History Volume: 21 Issue: 1 Pages: 13-42. DOI: 10.3197/096734015X14183179969700

The East India Company and the Natural World (2015). Ed. Damodaran, Vinita; Winterbottom, Anna; Lester, Alan

Colonising Plants in Bihar (1760-1950): Tobacco Betwixt Indigo and Sugarcane (2014). Kerkhoff, Kathinka Sinha

Science in the Service of Colonial Agro-Industrialism: The Case of Cinchona Cultivation in the Dutch and British East Indies, 1852--1900 (2014). Hoogte, Arjo Roersch van der & Pieters, Toine. Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C: Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences Volume: 47 Issue: Part A Pages: 12-22

Trading Nature: Tahitians, Europeans, and Ecological Exchange (2010). Newell, Jennifer

The Colonial Machine: French Science and Overseas Expansion in the Old Regime (2011). McClellan, James E. & Regourd, François

Colonial Botany: Science, Commerce, and Politics in the Early Modern World (2005). Ed. Schiebinger, Londa L. & Swan, Claudia

Plants and Empire: Colonial Bioprospecting in the Atlantic World (2004). Schiebinger, Londa L.

[thebotanicalarcade]

n332_w1150 by Biodiversity Heritage Library Via Flickr: Journal of botany, British and foreign. London :Robert Hardwicke,1863-1942. biodiversitylibrary.org/page/34839762

[wingedjewels]

Colibrí Ermitaño Verde - Green Hermit - (Phaethornis guy) by Raúl Vega Via Flickr: Cinchona, Costa Rica

[laagansabukid]

ROUTINE MAINTENANCE SA LANTAPAN WATER DISTRICT

LANTAWA: Regular Routine Maintenance gikan sa Lantapan Water District ang paglimpyo sa Water Impounding Facility mismo sa Water Source sa Kulasihan River, Cinchona Forest Reserved, Kaatuan, Lantapan. Gipangunahan ni Engr. Xiunmerth Decano ang regular routine sa pagmentenance sa matag water source lakip na ang Settling Pond human sa duha hangtod tulo ka oras nga pagtuslob sa bugnaw’ng tubig sa…

[rhetoricandlogic]

THE BEDLAM STACKS by Natasha Pulley

RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 2017

ulley’s (The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, 2015) second novel demonstrates that the imagination she showed in her impressive debut was no fluke.

The story opens in 1859, with the narrator, Merrick Tremayne, morosely nursing an injured leg at his decrepit family estate in Cornwall. Merrick used to smuggle opium into Hong Kong for the East India Company until an explosion a few years ago cost him his health and job. Botany and exotic travel run in the family: his grandfather and father both spent years in Peru, combing the Andes for botanical valuables such as orchids and frost-resistant coffee. Now the company wants to send Merrick to his ancestors’ old stomping grounds, hiring him to break the Peruvian quinine monopoly by smuggling out cuttings from cinchona trees, the source of the antimalarial medicine. Is Merrick well enough to hike the Andes? Pulley understands her genre—swashbuckling costume fantasy—but she deals in surprises, not clichés. An exploding tree, a mysterious moving statue, and a visit from an old friend help make up Merrick’s mind, propelling him across the ocean to a strange world of thin air, volcanic glass, and floating cities, where descendants of the Incas keep magical secrets. Strictly speaking, this is a prequel—a few paragraphs and a character or two tie this novel to Pulley’s masterful debut—but the two books have very different atmospheres.

Where Pulley’s first novel sparkled with the ingenuity of spinning gears, her second offers a slower, sadder meditation on love, trust, and the passage of time.