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Potpourri
Potpourri ( ) is a mixture of dried, naturally fragrant plant materials used to provide a gentle natural scent, commonly in residential settings. It is often placed in a decorative bowl. The word "potpourri" comes into English from the French word . The French term has two connotations. It is the French name for a Spanish stew with a wide variety of ingredients called , a specialty of the city of Burgos. The word in French has the same meaning as it does in English (and as does in Spanish), while the word , like Spanish , means "rotten". History Potpourri has been used in rooms since ancient times, in a variety of ways, including just scattering it on the floor. In early 17th-century France, fresh herbs and flowers were gathered—beginning in spring and continuing throughout the summer. The herbs were left for a day or two to become limp, then layered with coarse sea salt. The aging mixture was stirred occasionally as layers were added to it. Often the mixture would fer ...
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Sèvres Pot-pourri Vase In The Shape Of A Ship
''Pot pourri à vaisseau'' or ''pot pourri en navire'' ("pot-pourri holder as a vessel/ship") is the shape used for a number of pot-pourri vases in the form of masted ships, first produced between the late 1750s to the early 1760s by the Sèvres manufactory near Paris. The colours and details of the painted decoration vary between examples, as is typical of Sèvres porcelain, and one example is on a later gilt wood stand. The openwork lid lifts off to allow refilling of the pot-pourri. The shape was eventually produced in two or three versions, at slightly different sizes. It was first designed in 1757, probably by Jean-Claude Duplessis (c. 1695–1774), the artistic director of the factory. The first surviving finished example dates to 1759. Another name for them is ''vaisseau à mat'' (masted ship). These vases are considered to be one of the most famous models introduced by the Manufacture nationale de Sèvres; patrons such as Madame de Pompadour and her brother the Ma ...
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Perfume
Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. The 1939 Nobel Laureate for Chemistry, Leopold Ružička stated in 1945 that "right from the earliest days of scientific chemistry up to the present time, perfumes have substantially contributed to the development of organic chemistry as regards methods, systematic classification, and theory." Ancient texts and archaeological excavations show the use of perfumes in some of the earliest human civilizations. Modern perfumery began in the late 19th century with the commercial synthesis of aroma compounds such as vanillin or coumarin, which allowed for the composition of perfumes with smells previously unattainable solely from natural aromatics. History The word ''perfume'' derives from the Latin ''perfumare'', meaning "to smoke through". ...
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Olla Podrida
(, also , , ; literally "rotten pot", although ''podrida'' is probably a version of the original word ''poderida'', so it could be translated as "powerful pot") is a Spanish stew, usually made with chickpeas or beans, and assorted meats like pork, beef, bacon, partridge, chicken, ham, sausage, and vegetables such as carrots, leeks, cabbage, potatoes and onions. The meal is traditionally prepared in a clay pot over several hours. It is eaten as a main course, sometimes as a single dish, and sometimes with ingredients separated (i.e., meats from the rest, or liquids from solids). It is a specialty of the city of Burgos. The recipe can be found in ''Opera dell’arte del cucinare'' by Bartolomeo Scappi, the cook of Pope Pius V, published in 1570. This recipe was translated in Dutch by Antonius Magirus for the ''Koock-boeck oft Familieren kevken-boeck'', first published in Leuven in 1612. The word was adapted into English as ''olio'', which the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' defin ...
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Cinnamon
Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, breakfast cereals, snack foods, bagels, teas, and traditional foods. The aroma and flavour of cinnamon derive from its essential oil and principal component, cinnamaldehyde, as well as numerous other constituents including eugenol. Cinnamon is the name for several species of trees and the commercial spice products that some of them produce. All are members of the genus ''Cinnamomum'' in the family Lauraceae. Only a few ''Cinnamomum'' species are grown commercially for spice. ''Cinnamomum verum'' (AKA ''C. zeylanicum''), known as "Ceylon cinnamon" after its origins in Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon), is considered to be "true cinnamon", but most cinnamon in international commerce is derived from four other species, usually and more correctly refe ...
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Strychnos Nux-vomica
''Strychnos nux-vomica'', the strychnine tree, also known as nux vomica, poison fruit, semen strychnos, and quaker buttons, is a deciduous tree native to India and to southeast Asia. It is a medium-sized tree in the family Loganiaceae that grows in open habitats. Its leaves are ovate and in size. It is known for being the natural source of the extremely poisonous compound strychnine. Description and properties ''Strychnos nux-vomica'' is a medium-sized tree with a short, thick trunk. The wood is dense, hard white, and close-grained. The branches are irregular and are covered with a smooth ashen bark. The young shoots are a deep green colour with a shiny coat. The leaves have an opposite decussate arrangement (each opposing pair of leaves at right angles to the next pair along the stem), are short stalked and oval shaped, have a shiny coat, and are smooth on both sides. The leaves are about long and wide. The flowers are small with a pale green colour and a funnel shape. The ...
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Allspice
Allspice, also known as Jamaica pepper, myrtle pepper, pimenta, or pimento, is the dried unripe berry (botany), berry of ''Pimenta dioica'', a Canopy (forest), midcanopy tree native to the Greater Antilles, southern Mexico, and Central America, now cultivated in many warm parts of the world. The name ''allspice'' was coined as early as 1621 by the English, who valued it as a spice that combined the flavours of cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove. Several unrelated fragrant shrubs are called "Carolina allspice" (''Calycanthus floridus''), "Japanese allspice" (''Chimonanthus praecox''), or "wild allspice" (''Lindera benzoin''). Production Allspice is the dried fruit of the ''Pimenta dioica'' plant. The fruits are picked when green and unripe, and are traditionally Drying (food), dried in the sun. When dry, they are brown and resemble large, smooth Black pepper, peppercorns. Fresh leaves are similar in texture to Bay Laurel, bay leaves and similarly used in cooking. Leaves and wood are o ...
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Cedrus
''Cedrus'', common English name cedar, is a genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae (subfamily Abietoideae). They are native plant, native to the mountains of the western Himalayas and the Mediterranean region, occurring at altitudes of 1,500–3,200 m in the Himalayas and 1,000–2,200 m in the Mediterranean.Farjon, A. (1990). ''Pinaceae. Drawings and Descriptions of the Genera''. Koeltz Scientific Books . Description ''Cedrus'' trees can grow up to 30–40 m (occasionally 60 m) tall with spicy-resinous scented wood, thick ridged or square-cracked Bark (botany), bark, and broad, level branches. The shoots are dimorphic and are made up of long shoots, which form the framework of the branches, and short shoots, which carry most of the leaves. The leaf, leaves are evergreen and needle-like, 8–60 mm long, arranged in an open spiral phyllotaxis on long shoots, and in dense spiral clusters of 15–45 together on short shoots; they vary fr ...
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Cloves
Cloves are the aromatic flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae, ''Syzygium aromaticum'' (). They are native to the Maluku Islands (or Moluccas) in Indonesia, and are commonly used as a spice, flavoring or fragrance in consumer products, such as toothpaste, soaps, or cosmetics. Cloves are available throughout the year owing to different harvest seasons across various countries. Etymology The word ''clove'', first used in English in the 15th century, derives via Middle English ''clow of gilofer'', Anglo-French ''clowes de gilofre'' and Old French ''clou de girofle'', from the Latin word ''clavus'' "nail". The related English word ''gillyflower'', originally meaning "clove", derives via said Old French ''girofle'' and Latin ''caryophyllon'', from the Greek ''karyophyllon'' "clove", literally "nut leaf". Botanical features The clove tree is an evergreen that grows up to tall, with large leaves and crimson flowers grouped in terminal clusters. The flower buds initially ...
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Cassia Bark
''Cinnamomum cassia'', called Chinese cassia or Chinese cinnamon, is an evergreen tree originating in southern China, and widely cultivated there and elsewhere in South and Southeast Asia (India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam). It is one of several species of ''Cinnamomum'' used primarily for their aromatic bark, which is used as a spice. The buds are also used as a spice, especially in India, and were used by the ancient Romans. The tree grows to tall, with greyish bark and hard, elongated leaves that are long and reddish when young. Origin and types Chinese cassia is a close relative to Ceylon cinnamon ('' C. verum''), Saigon cinnamon (''C. loureiroi''), also known as "Vietnamese cinnamon", Indonesian cinnamon ('' C. burmannii''), also called "korintje", and Malabar cinnamon ('' C. citriodorum'') from Malabar region in India. In all five species, the dried bark is used as a spice. Chinese cassia's flavor is less delicate than that of Ceylon cinnamon. Its ...
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Fungi
A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from the other eukaryotic kingdoms, which by one traditional classification include Plantae, Animalia, Protozoa, and Chromista. A characteristic that places fungi in a different kingdom from plants, bacteria, and some protists is chitin in their cell walls. Fungi, like animals, are heterotrophs; they acquire their food by absorbing dissolved molecules, typically by secreting digestive enzymes into their environment. Fungi do not photosynthesize. Growth is their means of mobility, except for spores (a few of which are flagellated), which may travel through the air or water. Fungi are the principal decomposers in ecological systems. These and other differences place fungi in a single group of related organisms, named the ''Eumycota'' (''t ...
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Cupressaceae
Cupressaceae is a conifer family, the cypress family, with worldwide distribution. The family includes 27–30 genera (17 monotypic), which include the junipers and redwoods, with about 130–140 species in total. They are monoecious, subdioecious or (rarely) dioecious trees and shrubs up to tall. The bark of mature trees is commonly orange- to red- brown and of stringy texture, often flaking or peeling in vertical strips, but smooth, scaly or hard and square-cracked in some species. Description The leaves are arranged either spirally, in decussate pairs (opposite pairs, each pair at 90° to the previous pair) or in decussate whorls of three or four, depending on the genus. On young plants, the leaves are needle-like, becoming small and scale-like on mature plants of many genera; some genera and species retain needle-like leaves throughout their lives. Old leaves are mostly not shed individually, but in small sprays of foliage (cladoptosis); exceptions are leaves on the s ...
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