Spices & Medicinal herbs

HERBS	Herbs by Common Name :: Herbs by Botanical Name :: Herbs by Property :: Herbs by Plant Parts :: Herbs by Extracts
SPICES	Spices by Common Name :: Spices by Botanical Name :: Spices by Propterty :: Spices by Part
VEGETABLES	Vegetables by Common Name :: Vegetables by Botanical Name :: Vegetables by Property :: Vegetables by Part

Spices & Medicinal Herbs Spices and Medicinal Herbs is an initiative by a group of young researchers to spread the awareness of Spices, Herbs and Vegetables and their respective usage for human treatment. Established in 2005, in a small town called Bina in the heart of India, Madhya Pradesh (popularly known as MP), Spices and Medicinal Herbs has grown since then. What are Herbs? - Classifical of Herbs - History of Herbs - Indian Herbs - Medicinal Herbs - Ayurvedic Herbs - Organic Herbs What are Spices? - Classification of Spices - History of Spices - Indian Spices - Medicinal Spices - Ayurvedic Spices - Organic Spices What are Vegetables? - Classification of Vegetables - History of Vegetables - Indian Vegetables - Medicinal Vegetables - Ayurvedic Vegetables - Organic Vegetables

What are Vegetables?

A vegetable is basically any part of an herbaceous plant that can be eaten, except for culinary fruits and arguably grains, nuts, herbs, and spices. Vegetables may be raw or cooked; fresh, frozen, canned, or dried/dehydrated; and may be whole, cut-up, or mashed.

Different parts of selected plants are eaten- flowers, flower buds (globe artichoke), leaves (lettuce), leaf buds (Brussels sprouts), shoots (asparagus), shoot buds (cabbage), stems (celtuce), flower stem (broccoli), pollen (bulrush), immature seed pods (green beans), fruit (chayote) , immature seeds (broad bean). We have also eaten gums (from acacia trees), sea algae (seaweed), and lichen.

Vegetables are eaten in a variety of ways as part of main meals and as snacks. The nutrient content of different types varies considerably. With the exception of pulses, vegetables provide little protein and fat. Vegetables contain water soluble vitamins like vitamin B and vitamin C, fat soluble vitamins including vitamin A and vitamin D, and also contain carbohydrates and minerals.

Colours of the vegetables

The green colour of leafy vegetables is due to the presence of the green pigment chlorophyll. Chlorophyll is affected by pH. In acid conditions it changes to olive green, and in alkali conditions it becomes bright green.

The yellow/orange color of fruits and vegetables are due to the presence of carotenoids, which are also affected by normal cooking processes or changes in pH.

The red/blue color of some fruits and vegetables (e.g. blackberries and red cabbage) are due to anthocyanins, which are sensitive to changes in pH. At neutral pH they are purple, at acid pH are red, and at alkali pH they are blue. They are very soluble in water.

Storage

All vegetables should be stored as efficiently as possible in a root cellar to maximize fresh vegetable intake over the winter. Many vegetables can last through to early spring and be nearly as good as just off the plant.

Root vegetables like potatoes, radish should be stored in a dark, cool place to avoid the reaction to light.

Leaf vegetables lose vitamin C and water rapidly during storage and should therefore be stored for the minimum time in a cool place, in a plastic bag.