I would like to dedicate this post to 
photo credit: www.fineartamerica.com
About a year an a half ago, while visiting a friend on her farm, my son reappeared from the under growth with two bright red berries about the size of a marble and asked me if he could eat them.
that was an improvement. he learned to resist his first temptation to chew on things.
I asked him to show me the plant and he took me to it. I have seen it before but knew little about it. I took a couple of pictures and he kept the berries in his pocket.
when we got home, we started investigating. as many of this plant´s characteristics are unique, it didn´t take us long.
Ruscus Aculeatus in Latin. known more as Butcher´s broom.
we soon find out that not only this plant isn´t toxic, it is also medicinal.
It is used to treat problems related to blood circulation.
In nature, the female plant bears the fruit which starts a pea size green and ends up a beautiful tomato red marble.
domesticated plants which are sold for decoration are often hermaphrodite. just one plant is needed to bear the berries.
the typical habitat is in natural forests as part of the under growth.
while these plants thrive in the presence of water, they can be very resistant to dry conditions, frosts and extreme heat in the long dry summers of the Mediterranean climate.
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propagation is possible through the division of a large plant into smaller plants. we have introduces several to our farm and they have adopted easily.
the two berries my son originally took, were sawn in soil and after a very long wait in our nursery (about a year and a half), they germinated.
we will let them develop a good root system and plant them too.
wishing us all a great rest of the week.
