Ling?

Rhombus: Ling, Water?chestnut, ?

Water?caltrop, Sing?haranut?

Latin name: Trapa?bispinosa?

Alias: natrium, water lozenge, wind lozenge, crow lozenge, lozenge, water chestnut, lozenges, natrium.?

Family: Rhododendron family (Trapaceae), rhododendron genus. Annual aquatic herb.

Flower color: white, reddish.

Flower color: white, light red.

Native to Europe, the south of China, especially in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River Taihu Lake area and the Pearl River Delta cultivated most. Rhombus meat containing starch 24%, protein 3.6%, fat 0.5%, young and tender when the fruit can be eaten raw, the old ripe fruit can be cooked or processed into rhombus powder, air-dried into the wind rhombus can be stored to extend the supply of rhombus leaves can be made into green fodder or green manure.

Biological characteristics

▲ Morphological characteristics? The rhombus is an annual floating leaf aquatic plant of the Rhombaceae family, with rather specialized stems, leaves and fruits. The main root is weak, about a few feet long into the mud underwater, there is a fixed plant, the role of nutrient absorption, the stem is long and thin completely immersed in water, there are branches and "whiskers" can also play a role in absorption. Leaves are divided into two categories, aggregated on the shortened stem, floating out of the water called floating leaves, inverted triangle, set into a disk with each other, commonly known as the diamond plate, each diamond plate has 40-60 leaves, petiole thick fat, the middle of the expansion into the air sac, so that the leaves can float on the water surface, sunk in the water for the line of long narrow leaves, no petiole and leaf blade points. Late summer and early fall leaf axils open a small flower, white or reddish-white, flower fertilization flowers will be bent downward, did not enter the water, and grow into a fruit that is the "diamond". Waiting for the piece to develop into the hard horn of the diamond, according to the presence or absence of the horn and the number is divided into hornless diamonds, triangular diamonds and four-horned diamonds. Young fruit color is green, red or purple, ripe hard shell into black, flesh cream, edible part of the seed of the fertile cotyledons.

▲ Growth habit? Prefer warm and humid, sunny, frost intolerant, from sowing to harvest about 5 months, the fruiting period is 1-2 months long, so the requirement of frost-free period in 6 months or more areas to get a good yield. The flowering and fruiting period requires a daytime temperature of 20-30 ℃, night temperature 15 ℃.

Common species

▲ four-horned rhombus class

1, wonton rhombus, produced in Jiangsu Suzhou, Zhejiang Hangzhou area. Late-maturing varieties, sown in the Qingming, harvested from the fall equinox to frost. High-quality yield, sweet and glutinous flavor, mu yield 1000 to 1200 pounds. Fruit skin green and white, 40 to 50 per catty, shoulder angle upward, waist angle recurved, diamond belly concave, diamond meat thick, thin skin, fruit weight and meat weight ratio of about 1.5: 1.

2, small white diamonds, produced in jiangsu wujiang, suzhou and other places. Medium-late maturity varieties, Qingming sowing, white dew to frost harvest, mu yield 600 to 1200 pounds. Flesh hard, containing starch, should be cooked, fruit shape is small, 60 to 70 per catty. Skin green and white,, shoulder angle slightly upward diagonal stretch, waist angle elongated recurved, belly slightly bulging, fruit weight and meat weight ratio of about 1.4: 1. diamond plate small, tough stem trailing, strong growth potential, strong resistance to wind and waves, growth of a wider range of adaptations, suitable for deep-water cultivation in lakes and slopes.

3, big green diamond, produced in Jiangsu Wujiang, Wu County, Yixing and other places. Medium maturity species, sowing and maturity and small white rhombus with the same, mu yield 1000 to 1200 pounds. Medium quality, large fruit shape, 20 to 25 per catty. Skin green and white, shoulder high, shoulder angle flat and thick, waist angle is also thick. Slightly downward curved. Fruit skin thick, fruit weight and meat weight ratio of about 2: 1.

4, water red rhombus, produced in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, and Jiaxing area. Early maturing species, sowing seeds in the morning, the beginning of autumn to collect young rhombus, summer, frost to collect the old rhombus, the general mu yield of 800 to 1000 pounds. Rhombus meat contains more water, containing slightly less starch, sweet flavor, suitable for raw food. Petiole, leaf veins and pericarp are water red. Fruit shape is larger, 25 to 35 per catty, shoulder angle elongated flat stretch, waist angle in the long, slightly downward diagonal stretch, fruit weight and meat weight ratio of about 1.5: 1. Do not tolerate deep water, not resistant to wind and waves.

5, Shaobo Ling, produced in Jiangsu Lixiahe area. Early, medium maturity species, summer to cold dew harvest, yield medium, mu yield 500 ~ 1000 pounds, 40 ~ 50 per catty, skin green and white, shoulder angle is larger, waist angle sharp, skin is thinner, fruit weight to meat weight ratio of about 1.5: 1.

6, Shajiao ling, produced in Jiangsu Wujiang, Wu County and other places. Medium maturity species, Qingming, grain rain sowing, autumn, summer harvest. Mu yield 400 to 600 pounds. Fruit shape is small, shoulder angle is sharp and flat extension, waist angle to the fruit side oblique extension, skin green and white and thick. Diamond meat hard, rich in starch, should be cooked. The rootstock is tough, the leaves are small and dense, wind-resistant, resistant to deep water and thin ground.

▲ two-horned rhombus class

1,扒菱, also known as wuling, wind rhombus, big curved horn rhombus, produced in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and all over the South. Late-maturing varieties, Qingming, grain rain sowing, cold dew, autumn harvest, mu yield 600 to 1000 pounds. Fruit shape grows, about 25 per catty. Skin dark green, two horns thick and long and recurved. Good quality, containing much starch. Mature fruit stalk is not easy to fall off, you can reduce the number of harvest; but thick crust, fruit weight to meat weight ratio of about 2:1. cold dew 2, bat diamond, produced near Nanjing. Early-maturing varieties, sowing seeds at Qingming, summer, cold dew harvest. Weak growth potential, leaf surface light green, back russet. Fruit shape medium, about 40 per catty. Skin color has red, green two kinds, two horns flat extension, the apex is blunt.

3, May diamond, produced in the suburbs of Guangzhou. Early-maturing varieties, two horns flat extension, medium yield, thin skin and thick meat, diamond meat containing more water, for raw food species.

4, July diamonds, produced in the suburbs of Guangzhou. Late-maturing varieties, green pericarp, fruit shape grows, two horns thick and long recurved, high yield, contains more starch, thick crust, suitable for processing powder and cooked food.

▲hornless lozenges

South Lake lozenges, also known as round lozenges, monk lozenges, Yuanbao lozenges, hornless lozenges, produced in Jiaxing, Zhejiang South Lake. Early, medium maturity varieties, sown in the morning, summer to frost harvest. Good quality, hard meat with japonica, medium fruit shape, about 40 per catty. Skin green and white, four corners degraded, only traces left, thin skin, fruit weight and meat weight ratio of about 1.5: 1. Because easy to drop fruit, fruit maturity must be harvested in time. Growth requires moderate water level, fertile soil. Weak resistance to wind and waves.

Attachment flavor sweet, astringent, flat, non-toxic. The pulp is rich in starch, in addition to glucose, protein, vitamins (B, C) and so on. It has the effect of clearing summer heat, benefiting the stomach, quenching thirst, quenching alcohol poisoning, diuretic and breastfeeding, anti-cancer and so on. Fresh rhododendron raw food, can eliminate summer heat, quench thirst, where summer heat injury, body heat and heartburn, thirst and sweating, loss of appetite, can be used as a therapeutic fruit; rhododendron cooked food temperature, can strengthen the spleen and stomach, benefit the gas, where the spleen is weak, tired, tired, do not think of food, limbs, eaters should eat. Suitable for gastric ulcer, dysentery, esophageal cancer, breast cancer, uterine cancer and other cancer prevention and treatment. Diamond, diamond shell, rhombus handle, rhombus leaves, etc. can be used as medicine, rhombus grass stem can be used for children's head sores, fresh rhombus handle pounded and rubbed when the dressing, can make the skin warts off; the old rhombus shell burned ash stored sex dressing can be used to cure yellow water sores, hemorrhoids. But the deficiency of cold people should not be eaten raw.

Alias rhododendron, water rhododendron, wind rhododendron

Source rhododendron family rhododendron plants Trapa?bicornis?Osbeck, to the shell, petiole, fruit, stems and petioles into medicine. Collected in late fall, in addition to the fruit for fresh use, the rest were sun-dried.

Sexual flavor attributes sweet, astringent, flat.

Functions?

Stomach, dysentery, anti-cancer. Used for gastric ulcer, dysentery, esophageal cancer, breast cancer, cervical cancer.

The rhododendron stalk is used externally to treat multiple warts on the skin; the rhododendron shell is used externally in the form of burnt ash to treat yellow water sores and hemorrhoids.