Cucurbitaceae Genus: Cucumis Species: C. sativus

•

Originated in Nepal, where a great many varieties have been observed, from

Cucumis hystrix.

•

Has been cultivated for at least 3,000 years.

•

Listed among the foods of ancient Ur, and the legend of Gilgamesh describes people eating cucumbers.

•

Pliny:many varieties (26 wild & 5 cultivated) of cucumber+cultivated cucumber -remedies for different types of diseases and disorders.

•

Wives wishing for children wore them around their waists.

•

Carried by midwives, thrown the child was born.

away when

•

Romans -used to treat scorpion bites, bad eyesight, & to scare away mice.

A YELLOW INDIAN CUCUMBER

•

Armenian cucumbers Cucumis melo var.

flexuosus -very long, ribbed fruit with thin skin, does not require peeling, actually an immature melon

.

•

Not the same species as common cucumber (Cucumis sativus) but closely related.

•

Gourd -- Cucurbitaceae

Gourd

specifically refers to genera

Lagenaria

&

Cucurbita

also includes crops like pumpkins, luffa, cucumbers, squash, etc.

•

One of the earliest crops to be domesticated, grown for at least 10,000 years as ornamentation or for making musical instruments & utensils (suction cups by Hippocrates around century BC).

3rd

•

Gourds of the in cooler regions,

Lagenaria Cucurbita

genus favor a subtropical or tropical climate and grow poorly

in other climates.

1. Ornamental Gourds 2. White Bush Scallop 3. Summer Crookneck 4. Coyote Melon 5. Wild Cucumber 6. Horned Cucumber 7. Teasel Gourd 8. Vegetable Sponge (Cucurbita pepo).

(C. pepo).

(C. pepo).

(C. foetidissima).

(Marah macrocarpus).

(Cucumis metuliferus).

(Cucumis dipsaceus).

(Luffa acutangula).

• • • • • •

Teasle gourd -

Momordica dioica =Cucumis dipsaceus

Spine gourd -

M. subangulata

Sweet gourd -

M. cochinchinensis

balsam apple -

M. balsamina Vaika athalakka’i M. sahyadrica M. cymbalaria

( Kerala) (Tamil). (crossbread 6)

•

Tropical/Subtropical vine-Cucurbitaceae, grown in Asia, Africa, & the Caribbean.

•

Momordica charantia bitter melon , squash ; Goya from the bitter gourd indigenous or bitter Okinawa and karavella from Sanskrit , bitter melon , bitter gourd , balsam pear , karela , and pare . KUDRET NARI

•

Edible fruit-extremely bitter.

•

Origin Indian subcontinent-14th century Bitter melon has been used in various Asian & African herbal medicine systems for a long time.

•

Turkey-used as a folk remedy for a variety of ailments, particularly stomach complaints.

•

Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center-number of uses.

•

Some potential clinical activity reported "further studies required to recommend its use".

•

Pakistan / Bangladesh-bitter melon cooked with spices

•

Pakistan-unpeeled bitter melon boiled, stuffed with cooked minced beef, served with either hot tandoori bread, naan, chappati, or with khichri (a mixture of lentils and rice).

•

Active Constituents Not definitively determined, primary constituents responsible for hypoglycemic properties insulin-like momordicin , peptide (plant oleanolic acids .

of Momordica are (p)-insulin), charantin cucurbutanoids , ,

•

Rich in vitamins A &C + beta-carotene, minerals like iron, phosphorus, potassium.

•

MC-numerous other glycosides, saponins.

constituents including proteins

•

Momordin, may have anticancer properties.

•

Best-researched use of bitter melon -lower blood sugar levels in diabetics.

•

Alcohol extracted charantin from M. charantia has mixed steroids, improves glucose tolerance to a degree similar to oral hypoglycemic agent, tolbutamide (in animal model of diabetes).

•

Oral bitter melon preparations effective in clinical trials of type 2 diabetes.

•

Statistically significant improvement in glucose tolerance in type 2 diabetics.

•

Dyslipidemia

Several animal studies on the effect of bitter melon extracts on abnormal lipid parameters.

•

Significant decreases in triglycerides and LDL cholesterol and increases in HDL cholesterol were noted in all studies.

•

Cancer

No clinical trials conducted using MC extracts, in vitro studies indicate fruit + seed extracts inhibit the growth of several cancer cell lines, including

prostate adenocarcinoma

,

human colon cancer

(Caco-2 cells), and the

cancer cell line MDAMB 231

.

highly metastatic breast

•

Drug-Botanical Interactions Due to hypoglycemic effects, MC extracts may potentiate the effects of insulin & oral hypoglycemic medications.

•

Patients should be advised to closely monitor blood sugar when adding this botanical to a treatment regimen.

•

Side Effects and Toxicity Oral ingestion of bitter melon fruit is safe as demonstrated by long-term consumption of the fruit in Asian cultures.

•

Subcutaneous injection

of p-insulin extracted from MC appears to be safe; however,

intravenous injection

of MC extracts is

significantly more toxic

and not recommended.

•

Seeds contain

momorcharin, has antifertility effects in female mice, seed consumption not recommended in pregnancy.

•

Dosage Dose of fresh juice: 50-100 mL , extremely bitter & difficult to drink.

•

Encapsulated dry powder easier to ingest, standard dose is 3-15 g daily-a large dose in capsule form.

•

Standardized, encapsulated extract dosage ranges from 100-200 mg 3 times daily.

•

Cucurbita genus -important source of human food used for beverages, medicine, oil, and detergent.

•

13–30 species 13 species groups (27 species total).

•

5 domesticated species: Cucurbita argyrosperma, C. ficifolia, C. maxima, C. moschata, C. pepo.

• •

Medicinal uses Cucurbita-used in cosmetics for dry & sensitive skin + in treating schistosomiasis.

•

Flesh of C. argyrosperma conditions, seeds treated used for treating burns & skin with water are used as an anesthetic +promote lactation in nursing women.

•

C. ficifolia-used to make flavorings for soft & mildly alcoholic drinks & high doses of

C.

ficifolia

-successful in reducing blood sugar levels.

•

Fruits of some species (C. foetidissima) used as soaps detergents.

&

•

Cucurbita fruits-important source of carotenoids, vitamin A, + rhodopsin.

•

Cucurbitin an amino acid,a carboxypyrrolidine in seeds -eliminates parasitic worms.

•

Phytochemical constituents are alkaloids, flavonoids, palmitic, plus oleic & linoleic acids.

•

Anti-diabetic, Antioxidant, Anticarcinogen, Anti inflammatory.

•

Pumpkins & pumpkin seeds have high levels of crude protein, calcium, iron, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc + beta-carotene.

•

Good sources of vitamin A, vitamin C, fiber, niacin, folic of fat & cholesterol.

acid + iron, dietary free

•

Cucurmosin

a ribosome inactivating protein the sarcocarp (flesh) & seed of Cucurbita, notably in Cucurbita moschata.

• • •

Toxins Cucurmosin - toxic to cancer cells.

Cucurbitacin - plant steroid poisonous to mammals found in wild

Cucurbita

in quantities sufficient to discourage herbivores.

•

Bitter taste, ingesting too much can cause stomach cramps, diarrhea & even collapse.

•

Domestication has largely removed the bitterness from cultivated varieties, occasional reports of cucurbitacin getting into the human food supply & causing illnesses.

•

Wild Cucurbita & most ornamental gourds, with the exception of an occasional C. fraterna and C. sororia, bitter to taste.

Cotton

•

Used in the Old World at least 7,000 years ago (5th millennium BC), Mexico ± 5000 to 3000 BC , Tehuacán-Mexico cave: around 5800 BC.

•

Evidence of use found at the site of Mehrgarh, where early cotton threads have been preserved in copper beads.

•

Widespread Civilization.

during the Indus Valley

•

Gossypium-Malvaceae, tropics / subtropics.

40 species, native to

•

Gossypium stocksii Mast., a west Asian species.

•

Cultivated cottons Gossypium barbadense L., (from west Indies), Gossypium hirsutum L., (from Central America),

Gossypium arboreum

L., (the tree cotton from Africa), Gossypium herbaceumL., (from Asia).

•

Reference to the 'tree cotton',

Gossypium arboretum

, -a native of the Indian subcontinent.

•

Planting of cotton was common (Turkmenistan) , Ray & Pars of Iran.

in Merv

•

Ferdowsi's Shahname-refers to cotton ("panbe" in Persian).

•

Unknown to Greeks & Arabs until the Wars of Alexander the Great, when they wrote "there being trees on which wool grows" in "Indica".

•

Peru-cultivation of the indigenous cotton Gossypium barbadense -backbone of coastal culture development, like Norte Chico, Moche & Nazca.

•

Cotton-grown upriver, made into nets, traded with fishing villages along the coast for large supplies of fish.

•

Herodotus -in his Histories, says in India trees grew in the wild producing wool, plant was assumed as tree, rather than a shrub (German Baumwolle-"tree wool).

•

Mandeville in 1350, stated : "There grew [India] a wonderful tree which bore tiny lambs on the ends of its branches.

•

Branches bent down to allow the lambs to feed when they are hungry.

•

A transgenic cotton, with genes for pest resistance from the bacterium

Bacillus thuringiensis

(the Bt cotton) has been developed and is now in extensive cultivation in different parts of the world.

•

Gossypium - several medicinal uses.

•

Root of G. arboreum used in fever, seeds in gonorrhoea, gleet, chronic cystitis, catarrah.

•

Seeds of

G.barbadense

used in dysentery, seed oil to clear freckles & spots from the skin

.

•

Seeds of G. herbaceum used as laxative , expectorant , demulcent galactagogue , , aphrodisiac , procure abortion , as nervine tonic given in headache ; root emmenagogue & galactagogue, & bark juice of the leaves used snakebite .

against scorpion sting &

•

Leaves + seeds of G. hirsustum used in Guinea as an emollient & emmenagogue.

•

Cold infusion of cotton leaves with lime juice - given in dysentery; root bark is an emmenagogue + oxytocic; leaves & crushed seed kernels used as a poultice on sores bruises & swellings.

•

Most widespread use of cotton is in surgical bandages, for which no substitute has been found.

•

Nigeria-root considered as an emmenagogue.

•

Black Americans use root bark to induce abortion.

•

Root decoction given in amenorrhoea.

•

South American Africans use decoction of root as a contraceptive.

•

Cotton seed oil used to manufacture hydrogenated fats, seed cake is fodder, seed husk used as fuel.

•

Kernel oil composed of 47 % linoleic acid, 23 % palmitic acd & 23 % oleic acid, with small amounts of myristic and myristoleic acids.

•

Residual cake is 97 % protein.

•

Root bark also contains vitamin E & gossypol, pigmented glands of the seeds also contain gossypol, a toxic orange red polyphenol insoluble in water & thermolabile.

•

Gossypol is antiviral, influenza virus is inactivated by it.

•

Heating makes consumption.

the oil suitable for

•

Gosssypol is effective against herpes.

•

Roots of

Gossypium barbadense

&

G.

hisrsutum contain 6-methoxygossypol & 6,6’ dimethoxygossypol- an antifungal agent.

•

Gossypol-a nerve & cellular poison, causing liver congestion , oedema of the lung.

•

Horse weighing 450 kg cannot tolerate more than 450 g of the oil cake / day.

•

Gossypol causes haemorrhage, inflammation, haematuria, muscular weakness, respiratory difficulties , paralysis, & abortion- blindness.

•

Gossypol is spermicidal.

Jute plants (Corchorus olitorius -C. capsularis)

•

Earlier - Tiliaceae, now- Malvaceae.

•

Integral part of the culture of Bangladesh.

•

Initially processed only by hand due to its texture, but by treating it with whale oil, it is treated by machine.

•

Jute leaf: Vegetable for nutrition & medicine for human health, beauty.

•

Leafy vegetable rich in beta-carotene for good eyesight, iron for healthy red blood cells , calcium for strong bones and teeth, vitamin C for smooth, clear skin, strong immune cells , fast wound-healing .

•

Vitamins A, C, E present in jute leaf “spongeup” free radicals, scooping them up before they can commit cellular sabotage .

•

Jute leaf vegetable antioxidants -associated contains abundant with protection from chronic diseases like heart disease, cancer, diabetes, & hypertension + other medical conditions.

•

Due to better performance in respect of yield and quality the mutant CM-18 has been registered as the first jute variety in Bangladesh for vegetable purpose in the name of Binapatshak-1 in 2003.

•

Fresh jute leaf has higher demand.

•

Ayurvedics use the leaves for pain, piles, & tumors.

•

Elsewhere the leaves are used for cystitis, dysuria, fever, and gonorrhea.

•

Cold infusion restores appetite & strength.

Tea -Camellia sinensis an aromatic beverage (no: 2 after water)

•

Originated in China as a medicinal drink.

•

Long been promoted for having a variety of positive health benefits.

BUT: Additional research needed to "fully understand its contributions to human health, and advise its regular consumption .

•

Green tea reduces

cardiovascular disease

the risk of , some forms of

cancer

, reduces

promotes

blood pressure

oral health

, helps with , weight control ,

improves antibacterial & antivirasic

protection

activity

from

,

solar

provides

UV

light,

increases bone mineral density,

"anti-fibrotic properties & neuroprotective power.

•

Tea catechins have known anti-inflammatory & neuroprotective properties , help regulate food intake, have affinity for cannabinoid receptors , which may suppress pain & nausea, provide calming effects.

•

Consumption of green tea associated with a lower risk of diseases that cause functional disability, such as “stroke , cognitive impairment, + osteoporosis ” in the elderly.

•

Tea contains L-theanine, an amino acid whose consumption is strongly associated with a calm but alert & focused, relatively productive (alpha wave-dominant) mental state in humans.

•

This mental state to meditative practice.

is also common

•

Statistical cluster analysis, easy hybridization , & chromosome number various types intermediate hybrids & spontaneous polyploids of , indicate-single place of origin for Camellia sinensis, -the northern part of Burma & Yunnan - Sichuan provinces of China.

•

People began to boil tea leaves for consumption into a concentrated liquid without the addition of other leaves or herbs, using it as a bitter yet stimulating drink, rather than as a medicinal concoction."

•

Credible record of tea drinking dates to the 3rd century AD, in a medical text by Hua T'o , who stated that "to drink bitter t'u constantly makes one think better."

•

India-Drunk for medicinal purposes for a long but uncertain period.

•

Tea contains large number of possibly bioactive chemicals, including flavinoids, amino acids, vitamins, caffeine + several polysaccharides , a variety of health effects have been proposed & investigated.

•

Green + black tea may protect against cancer catechins found in green tea are thought to be more effective in preventing certain

obesity related cancers

such as: liver & colorectal cancer, both green & black teas against cardiovascular disease.

may protect

•

Studies suggest significant protective effects of green tea against: oral , pharyngeal, oesophageal , prostate, digestive, skin , lung urinary tract , pancreatic, bladder, , colon, breast, & liver cancers, lower risk for cancer metastasis & recurrence.

•

BUT -50% greater risk of prostate cancer amongst men who drank more than seven cups of tea per day, compared to those with moderate or lower tea intake.

•

Wide variety of commercial teas appear to either inactivate or kill viruses.

•

Several types of green & black teas, tested on animal tissues infected with such viruses as

herpes simplex 1 and 2 virus

.

and

T1 (bacterial)

•

“Iced tea or regular tea inactivates does destroy or the [herpes] virus within a few minutes“, similar results obtained with the T1 virus.

•

Tea may be consumed early in the day to heighten calm alertness; contains L-theanine, theophylline, & bound caffeine (sometimes called theine).

•

Kahwah is often served after every the Pashtun belt of Balochistan and in KPK.

meal in

•

Kashmir - salt tea, a pink, creamy tea with pistachios, almonds, cardamom, + sometimes cinnamon, consumed primarily at special occasions, weddings, during the winter months when it is very cold.

•

In Chitral & Gilgit-Baltistan, a salty, buttered Tibetan-style tea is consumed.

GRAPES

•

Domestication began 6,000–8,000 years ago in the Near East-cultivation in Asia 5000 BC.

•

Often the Mediterranean as the home for all grapes, actually native to regions in Asia, Africa, North America.

•

Most widely cultivated grapes- Vitis vinifera (Asia, one native grape the Amur grape Vitis amurensis ) , and several thousand varieties of this grape exist.

•

Earliest archeological evidence dates from 8,000 years ago in Georgia.

•

Yeast,earliest domesticate microorganism, occurs naturally on the skins of grapes, leading to the innovation of alcoholic drinks.

•

Stilbenes: (resveratrol, piceatannol, pterostilbene)

•

Flavanols: (catechins, epicatechins, procyanidins, proanthocyanidins, viniferones)

•

Flavonols: (quercetin, kaempferol, myricetin, isorhamnetin)

•

Phenolic Acids (caffeic acid, coumaric acid, ferulic acid, gallic acid)

•

Carotenoids (beta-carotene, lutein, zeaxanthin)

•

Gene-Mapping Project-heritage modern grape cv investigated-origin a region in Georgia-residues discovered on the inner surfaces of jars.

8,000-year-old of over 110 ceramic storage

•

Armenia, dating to around 4000 BC.

•

Syrah red wine of known from 16 AD.

Shiraz called Shirazi wine

•

Egyptian hieroglyphics record the cultivation of purple grapes; Greeks, Phoenicians and Romans grew for eating + wine production.

•

In USA native grapes from various species of Vitis genus were a part of the diet of many Native Americans , BUT Vitis vinifera cv imported for wine.

• •

French Paradox French tend to eat higher levels of animal fat, but the incidence of heart disease remains low .

•

Potential benefits include: reduced platelet aggregation, vasodilation , polyphenols (e.g.,

resveratrol

) mainly in the grape skin provide many health benefits.

•

Alters molecular mechanisms in blood vessels, reducing susceptibility to vascular damage.

•

Decreases activity of

angiotensin

, a systemic hormone causing blood vessel constriction that would elevate blood pressure.

•

Increases production of the vasodilator hormone, nitric oxide (endothelium-derived relaxing factor).

•

Polyphenols like resveratrol

provide physiological benefits & protective effects on the cardiovascular system.

•

Resveratrol Apparently serves defensive properties.

antifungal & other

•

Dietary resveratrol modulates the metabolism of lipids & inhibits oxidation of low-density lipoproteins & aggregation of platelets .

•

Found in widely varying amounts among grape varieties, primarily in their skins & seeds, which, in muscadine grapes, have about 100 times higher concentration than pulp.

•

Fresh grape skin contains about 50 to 100 micrograms of resveratrol per gram

.

•

In vitro studies indicate protection of the genome through that antioxidant actions may be a general function of resveratrol.

•

Resveratrol-1 year dietary regimen in a Phase III study of elderly patients with Alzheimer's disease.

•

Anthocyanins tend to be the main polyphenolics in purple grapes whereas catechins are the more abundant phenolic in white varieties.

•

Studies with mice show, resveratrol has transcriptional overlap with the beneficial restriction effects in muscle & brain.

of heart, calorie skeletal

•

Dietary interventions related heart failure.

inhibit gene expression skeletal associated muscle aging, with heart prevent & age-

•

Total phenolic content-a lab. index of antioxidant strength-higher in purple varieties due to anthocyanin density in the skin compared to absence of anthocyanins in white grape skin.

•

Anthocyanins attract the efforts of scientists to define their properties for human health.

•

Phenolic content of grape skin varies with cv, soil composition, climate, geographic origin, & cultivation practices or exposure to diseases, such as fungal infections.

•

Amount of fermentation time in contact with grape skins is an important determinant of its resveratrol content.

•

Ordinary non-muscadine extract contains 0.2 - 5.8 mg/L, depending on the grape variety.

•

Whitre forms contain lower phenolic contents.

•

Extracts from muscadine grapes may contain more than 40 mg/L, an exceptional phenolic content.

•

In muscadine skins, ellagic acid, myricetin, quercetin, kaempferol, & trans-resveratrol are major phenolics.

•

Contrary to previous results, ellagic acid & not resveratrol is the major phenolic in muscadine grapes.

•

Flavonols syringetin, syringetin 3-O-galactoside, laricitrin & laricitrin 3-O-galactoside are also found in purple grape but absent in white grape.

• •

Benefits Areas of benefit in grape research include the cardiovascular system, respiratory system, immune system, inflammatory system, blood sugar regulating system, and nervous system.

•

Another area of special benefit is cancer prevention, with risk of breast, prostate, and colon cancer emerging as the most likely areas of grape anti-cancer benefits.

•

other 21 fruits from the world

•

(almond, banana, breadfruit, walnut (nrmal,pekan,indian), apple, pear, peach, avocado, guava, mango, orange, papaya, passion-fruit, pineapple-14), abiu (

Pouteria caimoto

), acerola (Malpighia spp.), annona spp.,

Averrhoa integrifolia

), Durian.

carambola

, chempedak (

Artocarpus

•

pistachio=

Pistacia vera

; Arachis hypogaea- groundnut, pinon= 1) Siberian pine,

Pinus sibirica

; 2) Korean pine,

koraiensis

; 3) Italian stone pine,

Pinus pinea Pinus

; 5) Chilgoza pine,

Pinus gerardiana

; and 5) singleleaf pinyon, Colorado pinyon,

Pinus edulis Pinus monophylla

, and other pinyon pine species, , jackfruit, langsat (

Dimocarpus

and duku (Lansium longan syn. Euphoria (Garcinia mangostana), wax apple, santol domesticum),

longana

longan ), mangosteen (Sandorium koetjape)

•

Cyperus rotundus

(coco-grass, Java grass, nut grass, purple nut sedge, red nut sedge, Khmer kravanh chruk)

•

Species of sedge (Cyperaceae) native to Africa, southern / central Europe & southern Asia.

•

Word "round".

cyperus-

from the Greek (kuperos) & rotundus is from Latin, meaning

•

Names "nut grass" & "nut sedge" (shared with the related species Cyperus esculentus - derived from its tubers, somewhat resemble nuts botanically they have nothing to do with nuts.

• •

Folk medicine In traditional Chinese medicine -considered the primary qi regulating herb.

•

Plant mentioned in ancient Indian ayurvedic medicine Charaka Samhita.

•

Modern as musta ayurvedic or musta treating system disorders, maladies.

fevers, medicine moola dysmenorrhea churna, & -known for digestive other

•

Arabs of the Levant traditionally used roasted tubers, while they are still hot, or hot ashes from burned tubers, to treat wounds, bruises, carbuncles, etc.

•

Western and Islamic herbalists including Dioscorides, Galen, Serapion, Paulus Aegineta, Avicenna, Rhazes & Charles Alston have described medical uses: stomachic, emmenagogue, deobstruent & in emollient plasters.

•

In the traditional system, it was used both in its fresh and dry form. It is also mentioned in literature pertaining to Arabian and Persian medicines.

•

Was known to heal ulcers & sores.

•

Dioscorides mentions its use as a diuretic in the treatment of ulcers, as an emmenagogue & an ingredient in warm plasters.

•

It was used as a perfume & as aromatic.

•

Alternative medicine applies Cyperus rotundus internally & externally to treat nausea, digestive system maladies, high blood pressure, premenstrual syndrome, cramping.

•

Used to reduce fevers, inflammation, pain, & heart palpitations.

•

Clinical studies show-the essential oils in the plant's tubers have antibiotic properties,can stop the growth of bacteria Micrococcus pyrogenes.

•

Oil of Cyperus rotundus may be able to treat Staphylococcus aureus.

•

Tubers of Cyperus esculentus (tiger nuts) and C. rotundus were used in the ancient eastern Mediterranean medicine.

as food, perfume and

•

Tiger nuts that were consumed in Egypt, either boiled in beer, roasted or as sweets made of ground tubers with honey, were found in tombs from the 4th millennium B .

C . to the 5th century A .

D .

•

C. rotundus tubers, a dietary staple in a Stone Age Egyptian community, were used much later in perfumes Mycenaeans and and medicine Greeks, by and Theophrastus, Pliny and Dioscorides.

the Egyptians, recorded by

•

Egyptian preparation made of Cyperus tubers, other plant ingredients, honey and wine, described by Dioscorides, is similar to one in the Ebers papyri, demonstrating its continuity over 1600 years.

•

Cyperus perfumes are mentioned in Mycenaean documents and by classical authors.

•

Word "paper" is etymologically derived from papyros, Ancient Greek for the Cyperus papyrus plant.

•

Paper was invented by the ancient Chinese in the 2nd century BC during the Han Dynasty and spread slowly to the west via the Silk Road.

•

Earlier, other paper-like materials like papyrus, parchment and vellum.

were in use

•

Papyrus is a thick, paper-like material produced from the pith of the Cyperus papyrus plant which was used in ancient Egypt and other Mediterranean cultures for writing long before the making of paper in China.

•

Papyrus (German Egyptologist Georg Ebers) however is a "lamination of natural plants, while paper is manufactured from fibres whose properties have been changed by maceration or disintegration. “It was of the greatest consequence for Egyptian industrial arts that one of the most useful plants the world has ever known grew in every marsh

•

Papyrus, however, is only one of the predecessors of paper that are collectively known by the generic term ‘tapa' and which were mostly made from the inner bark of the paper mulberry, fig and daphne trees.

•

Papermaking has traditionally been traced to China where a sheet of paper using mulberry +other bast fibres along with fishnets, old rags, & hemp waste.

•

Earliest piece of paper found, at Fangmatan in Gansu province inscribed with a map, dates from 179-41 BC.

•

Islamic world After the defeat of the Chinese in the Battle of Talas in 751 (present day Kyrgyzstan), the invention spread to the Middle East.

Hemp wrapping paper, China, circa 100 BC

•

Legend goes, the secret of paper making was obtained from two Chinese prisoners from the Battle of Talas, which led to the first paper mill in the Islamic world being founded in Samarkand.

•

Records at Gilgit in of paper Pakistan by being the 6th made century, in Samarkand in modern day Uzbekistan by 751 A.D., in Bagdad by 793 A.D., in Egypt by 900 A.D., and in Fes, Morocco around 1100 A.D.

•

Muslims hammers also introduced (human or the use animal-powered) of in trip the production of paper, replacing the traditional Chinese mortar and pestle method ( later employed by the Chinese).

•

9th century-muslims were using paper regularly, for important works like copies Holy Qur'an, vellum was still preferred.

of The

•

By the 12th century in Marrakech in Morocco a street was named "Kutubiyyin" or book sellers which contained more than 100 bookshops

•

Reason of its disappearance is probably to be sought, not in any change of climate but in the physical conditions of the river—perhaps the periodical rise & fall of its water—not enabling it to hold its ground without human intervention.”

•

Also, the Delta silted up & around the 12th century BC made it a salty swamp, Papyrus, a fresh water plant, was doomed.

•

Where do umbels and stalks come from?

•

They emerge from what is called the rhizome, a horizontal, root-like stem that sends out shoots from its lower surface & leafy shoots from its upper surface.

•

Papyrus Boats Uses for the plant were endless.

•

They show the artistic, inventive and practical character of the ancient Egyptians in utilizing this most important natural resource that surrounded them.

•

Even the Roman naturalist Pliny noted aspects of the plant’s diversity and wrote, “…indeed they plait papyrus to make boats, and they weave sails and matting from the bark and also cloth, blankets and ropes.”

•

Small skiffs were made by fishermen as they served well for fishing and laying of traps or drag-nets.

• • • •

Genus Quercus ± 600 extant species.

Some truffles, have symbiotic relationships with oak trees.

Betula papyrifera

Quercus coccifera-Kermes Oak

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Any hard-walled, edible kernel is a nut Chestnut (Castanea), Oak Family Fagaceae (Quercus), Stone-oak Beech (Fagus), (Lithocarpus), Tanoak (Notholithocarpus), Family Betulaceae Hazel, Filbert (Corylus), Hornbeam (Carpinus).

Fagus orientalis, the Oriental Beech, a deciduous tree Fagaceae; extends from SE Bulgaria's Strandja mountain through northwest Turkey east to the Caucasus & Alborz Mountains of Iran; restricted to mountain forests;500-2,100 m altitude.

Notholithocarpus densiflorus, a dicot, is a tree or shrub that is native to California and is also found outside of California, but is confined to western North America.

Notholithocarpus densiflorus var. densiflorus, Notholithocarpus densiflorus var. echinoides Tanoak is a unique evergreen hardwood that belongs to the beech family (Fagaceae).

It has characteristics similar to both oak and chestnut.

All other 100 to 200 species of Lithocarpus are native to southeast Asia or Malaysia.

Tanoak (Lithocarpus densiflorus)

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Quercus ilex, Fagaceae Quercus ilex, the holm oak or holly oak is a large evergreen oak native to the Mediterranean region.

Fallen acorns

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Sphagnum Sphagnum cymbifolium Bog Moss,

Sphagnum is a genus of approximately 120 species of mosses Sphagnaceae.

Peat moss can also acidify its surroundings by taking up cations, such as calcium and magnesium, and releasing hydrogen ions.