Benefits Of Liriope - Green Tropical Nursery & Farm %

Benefits of Liriope

Liriope Attracts and Feeds Bees & Other Pollinators.

Liriope attracts bees with its spears of lavender flowers. This perennial plant is native to China, Japan and Taiwan and grows in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 through 11a. Liriope blooms profusely in late summer and early fall. It provides essential nectar for bees after spring and early summer flowers die out.

Food availability affects productivity and reproduction of bees. The late summer food supply has a direct effect on the development of queens and males, Keith S. Delaplane reports in his book, “Crop Pollination by Bees.” Liriope provides valuable food the bees need to thrive and pollinate crops and gardens.

Edible Uses

Root – Cooked. Liriope roots sometimes have a fleshy, tuberous part near their tip. Liriope roots can be candied.

Therapeutic Uses

The root is anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic. In Korea, it is used as a tonic to increase stamina and as an expectorant used to treat coughs.

Liriope platyphylla Root can be purchased from health food stores or online. This product is often used to make herbal tea.

Tea Brewing Method

Rinse the herbs with cold running water then soak it for 30min.
Water : Herbs ( 2liters : 30g )
Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 30min ~ 2hr or more. ( Roots, Seeds or Fruits : 1hr – 2hr / Loose leaves : 10min-30min ) Enjoy!!

**Keep refridgerated and drink the tea hot or cold

Living Mulch

Living mulch is a ground cover plant growing at the base of a tree. Living mulches are sometimes used at locations where the tree is growing in a sidewalk tree cut-out and the living mulch (plants) are growing around the tree. The living mulch is intended to beautify and replace the need for a tree grate or conventional mulch by using plants to provide weed suppression, control of the soil temperature, and a visual means to discourage people from walking close to the tree and causing soil compaction.

Living mulches can reduce water runoff and erosion, and filter surface water runoff for use by the tree. Living mulches have also been shown to increase the population of organisms which enhances the quality of the soil. Living mulches are intended to grow for many years in harmony with the tree. Opponents of this concept believe the living mulch robs the tree of soil moisture, nutrients, and microorganisms. But the fact is that these plants actually help the tree by preventing evaporation of soil moisture and converting nutrients into forms that are useful for the tree.

Over time, living mulches improve soils and build the skeletal framework which holds plant nutrients so that they are available when plants need them. This is because living mulches add organic material into the soil without disturbing it. When mowed regularly or tilled into the soil, living mulches add plant nutrients for free, including the big three: nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, as well as sulfur, calcium, and micronutrients.

Less Irrigation, More Water Conservation

Because living mulches add soil organic matter over time, in the long term they help to conserve soil water. Soil organic matter acts like a big sponge soaking up water and releasing it slowly when needed. These living mulches hold onto and recycle soil water.