Facts on Garlic
* Garlic contains 17 amino acids. Amino acids are essential to nearly every bodily function, and make up 75% of the human body.
* For the prevention of sunburn, field workers in the Mediterranean regions would rub slices of garlic on their lips and noses.
* Taken internally, crushed garlic will give relief to colds, coughs and whooping cough.
* When you crush and chew the bulb of the garlic, a sulphur compound, alliin, present in garlic, is transformed into allicin, which is responsible for providing benefits to the heart and also contains antibiotic properties.
It has been proved that people consuming more garlic are less prone to heart diseases than those not consuming more of garlic.
* Garlic reduces the incidence of blood clotting in the body.
* The most important medicinal benefit of garlic is its ability to treat cancer. It has been found that chemical compound allicin found in garlic is very effective in treating tumors.
* Garlic is also used to treat acne, warts, and toothaches.
* If your rose garden is being attacked by aphids, an excellent home remedy to get rid of them is to spritz the leaves and blooms with a mixture of crushed garlic and water.
Facts On Ginger
* Ginger stimulates gastric juices, and provide warming and soothing effects for colds and coughs
* Greeks would eat ginger wrapped in bread. Eventually ginger was added to the bread dough creating the world famous gingerbread
* Ginger is renowned more for its medicinal properties than for cooking purposes though ginger often finds a place in the kitchen.
* Ginger promotes energy circulation in the body while positively increasing the body's metabolic rate.
* Ginger is an anticlotting agent, promotes sweating It is also an ,antibacterial,antiviral and relaxes peripheral blood vessels
* Ginger is also used in arthritis, diarrhea, flu, headache, heart and menstrual problems, diabetes, stomach upset and motion sickness.
* To ease muscle pain / strain - apply ginger with turmeric twice a day to the affected area.
* Headaches - Dilute a paste of ginger powder, about 1/2 a teaspoon, with water and apply to you forehead.
Growing Ginger at Home
* Ginger is cultivated all year round and can be cultivated approximately 3 -5 months after it was planted.
* Ginger is very easy to grow and can be grown indoors or outside in pots filled with potting mix, allow enough room in the pots, about 10 to 12 inches deep, for the actual ginger roots to form.
* The best time to plant ginger is in the spring. Simply buy some fresh ginger roots at a local grocery store or Asian market. Choose a smooth, shiny looking root that has some buds beginning to form.
* Soak the roots you bought in some warm water overnight.
The following day plant them in the pots just beneath the soil level.
Water well.
Once the ginger has started to grow, feed every two to three weeks with a general pot-plant feed.
* A mature ginger plant will grow between two to four feet tall. Stems and leaves may reach up to a foot long and resemble those of a lily.
* Harvest ginger roots after the rhizome has grown for around three to four months.
* Harvest ginger roots can either be stored in a dry cupboard or refrigerated for later use.
