Sowthistles of several kinds

 We start the day in 2012 and to be honest, I am not sure if it exists anymore.  Well, the road we are on, for road, read track, appears to have gone by 2023.  Where were we? 


We won’t pass a lot today, but if we nip over the road we will go to the Restaurante Garceran 2. It is a 3.9 starred gaff. https://restaurantegarceran.com/  It has almost 3200 people. Five days ago Maria wrote ‘We stopped for breakfast and the coffees came out quite quickly, but since there were too many people from buses stopping, we had to grab some pastries because it was impossible to wait for toast; that took too long.’    Tony was a bit more three star.  ‘I didn't like it. I ordered cannelloni that were frozen, and they didn't even bother to make a béchamel sauce to disguise the fact that they weren't homemade. For my main course, I ordered cod, and it was just passable. The food was rather cold, though. That said, 15 euros for the set menu on a Saturday holiday is a very good price, which is why I'm giving it 3 stars instead of 2. However, for lunch, I think it's a great place with very good cured meats.’




So, we have some time on my hands so let's talk about flora.   Apparently the region has 2500 wild species and 500, which have been domesticated and tamed. 




Indigenous tree species in the region are Aleppo pines, Mediterranean buckthorns, tamarisk trees, and field elms. Ulmus minor, as the field elm could be found in Long Melford. Three stood proudly at the bottom of the green until disease took them in 1978.


Esparto grass can be found in the region as can rosemary, lentisks, black hawthorns, Neptune grass, shaggy sparrow-wort, and Retama sphareocarpa.  Shaggy sparrow-wort.   Apparently the shaggy sparrow-wort was believed to prevent miscarriages in camels.



As to herbaceous plants, the place is the haunt of the sowthistles, slender and false sowthistles, mallow bindweeds and wall barleys.  The false sowthistles were believed to be good for constipation, colic and inflamed eyes.



Every onwards we go.


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