English: This is the Norwegian version of the story I published in my book Around the World in 80 plants about a wild onion (Allium oleraceum) that was taken to Iceland and returned almost 1,000 years later). Dette er historien om en viltvoksende løk, som kanskje er utgangspunkt for det engelske ordet garlic, som ble tatt til Island for snart 1000 år siden av en engelsk biskop og kom tilbake til Trøndelag til en annen engelskmann som jobbet med løk! Idag er denne løken å finne i den nye løkhagen på NTNU Ringve Botaniske Hagen i Trondheim ved siden av kanskje samme løk som ikke vandret til Island. Denne historien fortalte jeg om i min bok Around the World in 80 plants (se https://www.edimentals.com/blog/?page_id=30). En norsk artikkel er dessverre ikke lenge tilgjengelig på nettet. Artikkelen som kan leses nedenfor er tatt fra en større intern rapport fra en flerårig prosjekt “Innsamling og kartlegging av gamle matløk” som undertegnede gjennomførte, finansiert av Genressurssenteret.
The Allium garden at the Ringve Botanical Garden (Chicago) in Trondheim contains a collection of old Norwegian onions used for food from all over Norway including Allium fistulosum (Welsh onion), A. x proliferum (Egyptian and Catawissa onions), A. oleraceum, A. vineale, A. ursinum, A. scorodoprasum and A.victorialis (the last four are wild or naturalised species that have been moved into gardens in the past for food and, in the case of ursinum and victorialis are currently being domesticated in a big way!
In addition, a collection of wild species and ornamental cultivars have been planted to demonstrate the diversity of the Allium family!
I’ll be adding pictures to the album below on a regular basis.
See more pictures on my FB album here: https://tinyurl.com/y489yldy
Norsk:
Allium hagen ved Ringve Botaniske Hagen (NTNU) i Trondheim inneholder en samling av gamle norske matløk samlet fra hele Norge i perioden 2008-2019. Dette inkluderte Allium fistulosum (pipeløk), A. x proliferum (luftløk), A. oleraceum, A. vineale, A. ursinum, A. scorodoprasum og A.victorialis (de fem siste er vill- eller naturaliserte arter som har blitt flyttet til hager som matplante før i tiden, og dette er fortsatt gjort når det gjelder ursinum (ramsløk) og victorialis (seiersløk) i økende grad!
I tillegg kan man her se en samling av ville arter og pryvarianter plantet for å demonstrere mangfoldet av Allium-slekten!
Hagen er støttet finansielt av Landbruksdirektoratet, og Genressurssenteret.
The garden outline can be seen in this recent aerial picture (centre towards the right)
Concerning the Norwegian onions, we received 118 tips from the public, 92 were received and 57 of these have been planted (13 species and hybrids). About 90-100 species can be seen here. The garden was cultivated during Autumn 2016, 260 accessions were planted in 2017 and a further 76 in 2018!
23rd July 2018
The first Allium to flower in 2019 was this species from mountains in China, Allium humile.
270519: Allium chinense planted in the garden!
210519: With the director of the Ringve Botanical Garden, Vibekke Vange in the Allium garden!
210519: With the director of the Ringve Botanical Garden, Vibekke Vange in the Allium garden!
11th June 2019
11th June 2019
11th June 2019: There’s been the biggest invasion of Painted Lady (Tistelsommerfugl) butterflies in Norway ever seen with an estimated 100 million and they are everywhere including mayn in the Ringve Botanical Gardens and they love Alliums to feed on, here on a chive (Allium schoenoprasum)
11th June 2019: Allium schoenoprasum “Pink”
11th June 2019: Allium schoenoprasum
11th June 2019: I’ve started making an accurate map of the Allium garden, plotting in the coordinates of each plant
11th June 2019: I’ve started making an accurate map of the Allium garden, plotting in the coordinates of each plant
200619
200619: Stephen Barstow 2 hrs · Edited · 200619: One of the tall chives gressløk) had collapsed in the recent heavy rains!
200619: Stephen Barstow 2 hrs · Edited · 200619: One of the tall chives gressløk) had collapsed in the recent heavy rains!
200619
200619
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200619: One of the Allium cernuum (nodding onion / prærieløk) accessions in bud
200619: Allium moly
200619: One of the Norwegian roof onions (Knut Bryn) in bud (Allium fistulosum) – see my book
200619
200619
200619: Allium decipiens
200619: Allium karataviense
200619: Dwarf white chives (gressløk)
200619: Pink chives (gressløk)
200619: The earliest Allium cernuum (nodding onion / prærieløk)
200619: Red-tailed bumblebee (steinhumle) were common on several Alliums.
200619: Allium douglasii
200619: Allium brevistylum (there are two accessions of this in the garden from Utah and Wyoming)
200619
200619: This Japanese Allum victorialis has dark flowers
200619: Allium pskemense x cepa
200619: Pink chives (gressløk)
200619: Allium crenulatum
200619: Red-tailed bumblebee (steinhumle) on chives (gressløk)
200619: Allium fistulosum (welsh onion / pipeløk)
200619: Painted Lady (tistelsommerfugl) on chives (gressløk)
200619: Egyptian / Catawissa onions (luftløk)
200619: Allium pskemense x cepa
200619: Allium fistulosum (welsh onion / pipeløk)
190619: Setting off cycling for the Ringve Botanical Garden this week with more onions for the Allium garden!
200619: Setting off cycling for the Ringve Botanical Garden this week with more onions for the Allium garden!
Nothing on these chaps, so-called Onion Johnnies, from Brittany in France, who sold onions from door to door in England up to about the 1960s (I remember them!!) Read more here: http://blog.holidayfrancedirect.co.uk/2013/02/last-of-the-onion-johnnies/
300719: Allium cyaneum
300719: Allium sphaerocephalon (it’s not often I’ve managed to overwinter this one, the round-headed leek); donated by Eirik Lillebøe Wiken
300719: Allium sphaerocephalon (it’s not often I’ve managed to overwinter this one, the round-headed leek); donated by Eirik Lillebøe Wiken
300719: Allium macranthum
300719: Allium macranthum
300719: First flowering of not hardy Tulbaghia violacea (Society garlic), indigenous to southern Africa (KwaZulu-Natal and Cape Province). I’m including a few plants within the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allioideae in the Chicago Garden!
300719: I’m a bit late dead-heading Allium fistulosum…now done!
300719: I’m a bit late dead-heading Allium fistulosum…now done!
300719: Allium flavum “Blue Leaf”
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300719: Allium flavum
300719: Allium cyaneum
080819: Allium nutans from IPK Gatersleben
080819: Allium denudatum (syn. Allium albidum) from IPK Gatersleben
080819: Allium nutans “Isabelle”
080819: Allium flavum “Minus” and Allium cyaneum
080819: This is a spectacular Allium which I received from my friend Hristo in Bulgaria. He was sent it from Kazakhstan. It is maybe a hybrid between Allium flavescens and nutans. It has white flowers and masses of satellite (secondary) flowers
080819: This is a spectacular Allium which I received from my friend Hristo in Bulgaria. He was sent it from Kazakhstan. It is maybe a hybrid between Allium flavescens and nutans. It has white flowers and masses of satellite (secondary) flowers
230819: Allium tuncelianum (Tunceli garlic or Ovacik garlic) is endemic to the Munzur Valley in Tunceli, in eastern Turkey. It has a garlic odor and taste and is used locally like garlic. It is more closely related to leek than garlic, but is hardier than leek.
230819: Allium tuncelianum (Tunceli garlic or Ovacik garlic) is endemic to the Munzur Valley in Tunceli, in eastern Turkey. It has a garlic odor and taste and is used locally like garlic. It is more closely related to leek than garlic, but is hardier than leek.
230819: Allium montanostepposum
230819: Allium tuberosum
060919: Allium carinatum pulchellum (rosenløk) flowers for a long time. There are still a few open flowers at the bottom of the inflorescense
060919: Allium ericetorum is one of the last Alliums to come into flower, often in October in my garden; see alsohttp://www.edimentals.com/blog/?page_id=2584
060919: Allium ericetorum is one of the last Alliums to come into flower, often in October in my garden; see alsohttp://www.edimentals.com/blog/?page_id=2584
Garlic bulbils maturing…this is a variety with masses of small bulbils that I call Cledor from Ingrid, who was a forum friend from Sweden, which she gor from Törnvik Frö (http://tornvik.se). I’m not sure if this really is 060919: Cledor as the description on the website (they still sell it) states that it produces many cloves, but mine only produce a few, sometimes only two.
060919: Eristalis rupium (Blank droneflue)?
060919: Allium tuberosum
060919: Allium macranthum in fruit
060919: For completeness, I planted a few Allium cepa, common bulb onion! A white skinned variety called Snowball at the front.
060919: Leeks (Allium ampeloprasum)
060919: Spring onions / Allium cepa and Allium fistulosum.
060919: A Japanese Allium fistulosum
060919: Allium cepa? “Apache”
060919: Allium “Red Toga”
300819: A brown hawker, brunlibelle (Aeshna grandis) landed in the garden while I was working!
060919: Hoverfly on Allium spirale
300819: Red admiral on late flowering Allium spirale from Nordgen (Alnarp)
300819: Collecting and documenting topset onions on 15 or so accessions of Allium x proliferum (luftløk)
300819: Collecting and documenting topset onions on 15 or so accessions of Allium x proliferum (luftløk)
300819: Collecting and documenting topset onions on 15 or so accessions of Allium x proliferum (luftløk)
300819: There’s a big difference in the resprouting of the Allium x proliferum (luftløk) accession
130919: Seed heads (frøstander) of Allium macranthum
130919: Stephen Barstow 3 mins · 300919: Allium pskemense is a close relation of Allium cepa (bulb onion / kepaløk)…this accession has been grown at Ringve for some years (see http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?page_id=1940 and http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?p=22827)
130919: Stephen Barstow 3 mins · 300919: Allium pskemense topset onions (right) compared with Allium x proliferum (Egyptian or Walking onions / luftløk)
101019: Allium “Millenium” still going strong
101019: Allium “Millenium” still going strong
101019: Allium sacculiferum, still in bud and unlikely to open in time before winter!
101019: Allium sacculiferum, still in bud and unlikely to open in time before winter!
101019: Allium fistulosum having another go!
101019: Allium tuberosum “Sibbo”, a Swedish heirloom from Erik de Vahl
101019: Allium tuberosum “Sibbo”, a Swedish heirloom from Erik de Vahl
101019: Allium schoenoprasum and Allium fistulosum
101019: Allium tuberosum with flat-leaved shoots from bulbils!
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061219
3 videos of Painted Ladies (Tistelsommerfugl) on Allium schoenoprasum on 11th June 2017
I was saddened to see in yesterday’s Adressa (local paper) that Trøndelags grand old asparagus farmer has died ☹
As part of my project for the Norwegian Genetic Resource Centre documenting and collecting old Norwegian vegetables, I received a tip about a retired farmer, Jan Lein, who had supposedly grown asparagus commercially on Tautra (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tautra), a historic island which I can just see from my house on the other side of the Trondheimsfjorden. The fact that the island is surrounded by relatively warm water in winter makes for a mild climate and early spring. The island and surrounding area is known as Trondheim’s vegetable garden!
I called Lein and agreed to meet him at his house on 17th October 2010. I met a really nice man who was proud of his pioneering work with asparagus on Tautra which he believed started in the early 1960s. He told me that he even grew organically with seaweed as fertiliser and he grew white asparagus by mounding the plants with earth. In his house, there were a number of pictures on the walls of his vegetables, including asparagus! The plants themselves derived from seed bought from Leuthens Seed Catalogue in Trondheim. He sold on the market in Trondheim for a number of years until his local production was outcompeted by imported asparagus ☹ Her grew about 12-13 different vegetables at that time!
Jan showed me this plant nearby which was one of the original plants
RIP Jan Lein, the northernmost Asparagus grower in the world?
The pictures below were photographed on his wall:
I get invited to talk in some wonderful places! On 27th April 2014 I visited Portåsen and gave a shortened version of my Around the World in 80 plants talk in the comfortable Hay Loft venue at Portåsen!
The Norwegian Genetic Resource Centre (NGRC) think that all cultural heritage institutions in Norway with landscaping ought to use historical plants suitable for the actual buildings, associated culture and history. Portåsen is one of the places that have made the most progress with this. Portåsen is the childhood home of Herman Wildenvey (1885-1959) in Nedre Eiker. Wildenvey is one of the most prominent Norwegianpoets of the twentieth century. During his lifetime he published 44 books of his own poetry. Portåsen was established in 2010 as a cultural centre for the dissemination of Herman Wildenvey’s life and works. Herman Wildenvey was known as the “sun and summer” poet, and his poems reference some 80 different flower and plants. It is said that one of his first reading experiences were from Blytt’s Flora. Therefore it is quite natural that historical plants and traditional plant use gives a key backdrop to the varied cultural events with exhibitions, concerts, walks etc. at Portåsen. The place is beautifully restored. In the flower beds around the houses in the yard can be found historical perennial ornamentals (to be classified as Plant Heritage, a plant has to be documented to have been grown 50 years ago), which were either found in old gardens locally or received from “Oldemors garden” at the botanics in Oslo or from Lier Bygdetun (both have collections coordinated with the NGRC). Just above the yard is a well-tended vegetable and herb garden with food and spice plants, and within a traditionally erected fence can be found old apple varieties. A meadow has also been sown with seeds from Ryghsetra, an old local hayfield which Friends of the Earth Buskerud have received the Norwegian Plant Heritage prize for maintaining! The following lines are from Wildenveys poem “O, ennu å være”
O, ennu å synge om midtsommernetter, Og ennu å ånde i kryddersval luft, Ennu å vite, hva blomstene hetter Og nevne dem ved deres farve og duft.
