Brazilian Spinach
Not to TAS or WA
A low growing perennial leaf vegetable, which forms a neat mound. It is used cooked as spinach substitute. Suitable for subtropical and tropical areas only. This is a good tasting wet-season green leafy vegetable. This is one of those plants often mentioned in garden magazines but rarely available for sale.

GB100

Mushroom Plant
Rungia klossii
Not to TAS or WA
Syn. Acanth Spinach, Shombay, Moku, Tani, Kenkaba
Native to Papua New Guinea, this is a superb tropical green. It is low growing and attractive and will tolerate partial shade. It gets its common name from the slight mushroom flavour of the leaves. The dark green, shiny leaves are ornamental with a lighter marking. The leaves are nutritious, containing iron, Beta-carotene and vitamin C. The leaves and stems are eaten raw in salads or cooked as a green vegetable in stir-fries. Mushroom Plant will tolerate most soils although it prefers a moderate to rich loam, it dislikes waterlogging. It will survive light frosts with only slight damage. This plant is rarely available for sale.

GM100

Sweet Potato 'Beauregard'
Ipomea batatas
Not to TAS or WA
Produces large tubers with a red-orange skin and moist, deep orange flesh. It is quick maturing, very high yielding and resistant to cracking. It produces well even in cooler areas. Sweet potatoes are vining plants with attractive lobed leaves, pink morning-glory type flowers and tuberous roots. They do best in areas that are frost-free for at least 5 months with warm days and nights.

More info on growing sweet potato...

GS116

Sweet Potato 'Hawaiian Sunshine'
Ipomea batatas
Not to TAS or WA
Produces large tubers with an off-white skin and purple flesh. It has a drier flesh than Beauregard. It is an excellent source of purple pigments, called anthocyanins, up to 150% more than blueberries. These pigments have been linked to fighting cancer, aging, hypertension and neurological diseases, inflammation, diabetes and bacterial infections. Sweet potatoes are vining plants with attractive lobed leaves, pink morning-glory type flowers and tuberous roots. They do best in areas that are frost-free for at least 5 months with warm days and nights.

More info on growing sweet potato...

GS117

Sweet Potato 'Northern Star'
Ipomea batatas
Not to TAS or WA
syn. Kumara
Produces large tubers with a reddish purple skin and a nutty flavoured, drier creamy white flesh. It is hardy and resistant to soil insects. It produces well even in cooler areas. 'Northern Star' is one of the cultivars sold as kumara. It does not store as well as Beauregard and is prone to cracking. Sweet potatoes are vining plants with attractive lobed leaves, pink morning-glory type flowers and tuberous roots. They do best in areas that are frost-free for at least 5 months with warm days and nights.

More info on growing sweet potato...

GS118

Storm Lily
Hymenocallis littoralis
Not to TAS or WA
Syn. Sacred Lily of the Incas, Ismene.
This hardy, evergreen lily is an ideal plant for subtropical and tropical areas. Its common name, 'Storm Lily' comes from the way it bursts into a mass of flowers with wet season rains. It forms large clumps fairly quickly and has the excellent properties of being pest resistant and able to suppress weeds. Particularly useful along fencelines to stop running grasses invading; it grows to 1m when in flower. Provided as 2 bulbs per pack.

GS115

Surinam Spinach
Talinum triangulare
Not to TAS or WA
Syn. Waterleaf
Surinam spinach has bright green, slightly tangy, crunchy leaves and dainty pink flowers. It is related to purslane and so contains oxalic acid. It is ornamental enough to use in a flower garden. Use it raw in salads or tossed in at the end of a stir-fry. Although it is an annual it self-sows quite readily and will root very easily from stems just stuck into the ground, so it is easy to keep a continuous supply. It is a low bushy plant between 30 and 100 cm tall. It grows and thrives in partial shade and high soil moisture.

GS119

Tahitian Spinach
Colocasia esculenta
Not to TAS or WA
syn. Celery Stem Taro
This particular taro was developed for its yield of edible leaves and stems rather than its roots. The leaves and leaf stems are eaten as a cooked, green vegetable; the stems are widely used as a celery substitute in tropical areas. Taro should never be eaten raw. This hardy plant is widely adaptable in subtropical and tropical areas.

More info on growing tahitian spinach...

GT102

Turmeric 'Madras'
Curcuma domestica
Not to TAS or WA
Syn. Indian saffron, ukon, nghe, wong-keong
A shade-loving hardy, perennial herb with a beautiful white flower spike. The root can be used fresh like ginger or dried and ground for curry powder. It has long been used in both Chinese and Indian medicine; recent research has shown that it is beneficial in the treatment of many different health conditions. Turmeric was traditionally called Indian saffron and it is also used as a textile dye. Suitable for warm temperate to tropical areas.
More info on growing turmeric...

GT100 Provided as a several root sets per pack.

GT104 Provided as 1kg to use in cooking. Stores well.

Vetiver Grass
Vetiveria zizanioides 'Monto'
Not to TAS or WA
Syn. Khus khus
A dense, clumping perennial grass, to 1.5 m in height, native in India and Ceylon. 'Monto' is a sterile (non-seed producing) variety specially selected not to become weedy.
More info on growing vetiver...

Yam 'Greater'
Dioscorea alata
Not to TAS or WA
syn. Greater Yam, Chinese Yam, White Yam
Hardy, vigorously twining vines with shiny, heart-shaped, purple-tinged leaves grow from underground tubers that have a brown skin, white to creamy yellow flesh & can weigh many kilos. Full sun or semi-shade, needs a trellis. Suitable for warm temperate to tropical areas.
More info on growing yam...
GY101