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Post by atimberline on Feb 16, 2009 13:39:02 GMT -5
I've been told by a number of elderly people that bracken tips were eaten as they emerged in spring, they were apparently quite good. I don't know of anyone today that eats bracken, and I cant say why it fell out of use. I do recall being told it was poisonous as a child, so perhaps fears that it is carcinogenic have put people off. I have been tempted to try it but haven't gotten past those childhood warnings yet; maybe this year. just don't make them your whole meal or eat them for weeks and you are likely to be ok. ...boiling them twice like poke shoots is important. They are poisonous to grazing animals that are forced to graze sites heavy with the bracken fiddleheads... of course the animals don't boil them twice... We ate them several times every spring growing up... and look at me, it did something ;D ... ...the Giant ferns of Australia made large spore/seed balls on the fronds that if roased lost toxic properties but unroasted were guarenteed death to the eater ... it is wise to be careful. Tim Peters
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Post by stevil on Feb 16, 2009 14:45:34 GMT -5
One also reads of the Nairdo (or was it Nardoo) Fern in Australia (just recollecting here). Spores or seedlike bodies eaten by the Cooper's Creek Aborigines as a starchy staple, pounded to a flour, though the Burke Exploration party starved anyway while trying to subsist on them. They may not have used the proper preparation procedure to extract the nutrient. Can't recall if this is a true fern or not. Marsilea spp. - yes, an aquatic fern. It was apparently "spore capsules" (that's a new one on me) that the Aborigines ate, but Burke and Wills did know this until near the end.... (still reading from Low's Bush Tucker) ...and I see Tim beat me to it...
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Post by stevil on Feb 16, 2009 14:56:06 GMT -5
...and the Australasian Bracken is also distinct, sometimes classified as a separate species, Pteridium esculentum (esculentum means edible), although I think it's officially a subspecies? So, its make-up may also be different. I agree that a few now and again are unlikely to cause you any problems. However, I must admit, I've still not tried.... I don't have a good bracken spot locally and my attempts to grow it (in a container) have failed...
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Post by canadamike on Feb 16, 2009 14:57:56 GMT -5
Well folks, I am a wild forager of some sort, but for anything having to be flavored with crushed ants ;D
They are comon here, but so is ostrich fern, a true delicacy...
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Post by raymondo on Feb 16, 2009 15:10:36 GMT -5
It appears there are some edible ferns here. I'll chase those down folks. Thanks.
Bunkie, the Australias Quarantine Service publishes a list of permitted and prohibited species which they very kindly make available to the public on the internet. If a plant does not appear on this list it is automatically prohibited. Anyone may make a submission asking for such a species to be considered. Hablitzia is in this category.
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Post by utopiate on Feb 16, 2009 15:39:22 GMT -5
I guess there should be a fern thread. Is Tim talking about treeferns? I know wild pigs raise hell with them for the starchy interiors.
Lotta ferns in the Pacific Northwest, but I never had much luck with em, mainly experimenting as a kid. Quite a few were eaten by the tribes formerly, both roots and fiddleheads. I remember trying bracken fiddleheads as a kid, but not having a taste for them. Seems like there was a very strong almond sort of flavor that I found very cloying. I probably tried changing waters on that too. Various roots I sampled were woody and strong tasting.
There is a licorise fern grows out of the heavy moss up on trees, particularly bigleaf maples. Rather strong anis flavor (not all that great though), could make a drink or confection, but mostly we just nibbled it for the novelty.
Also have a pepper fern in the rocks in drier climates. Once again, I don't like spicey food, so never used it for much. I think ferns just aren't gonna make to my perennial vegie list in a big way.
Yah Ostrich fern is the one people always swear by. Don't have it here though.
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Post by stevil on Feb 16, 2009 16:50:06 GMT -5
The Licquorice fern here in Norway is Polypodium vulgare (called Sisselrot in Norwegian). A century ago and most kids knew of and used this plant as a "sweet"/"candy". Sometimes, one would gather large numbers of roots, cut them up, cook in water, filtering out the roots and then cooking the fluid until all the liquid had evaporated. Children loved the licquorice sweet which remained....
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Post by bunkie on Feb 17, 2009 11:04:27 GMT -5
another tasty perennial, Cattails!!! they taste like cucumber. don't eat too many at once tho...i haven't tried making the flour with them yet.
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Post by mamangenevieve on Feb 18, 2009 16:50:28 GMT -5
Hello everyone,
I'm new here, so I'll start with a small intro. I live in the Ottawa region in Canada and I've been gardening in my small 10x10 garden for about ten years now. This summer, my husband and I bought 100 acres of land 30 minutes from our current location and we are now researching what to do with it. Most of my current landscaping is edible and I would like continue this on a larger scale.
I decided to jusmp into this topic because of the post on Hostas. I got the article from stevil and I am stunned to realise that a much bigger chunk of my lanscaping than I thought is actually edible! : )
So my follow-up question to reading that article is: are there hosta recipes out there or is the point just to take spinach recipes and putting hostas intead. I'd love to have that hosta sushi recipe for example.
To the general Homegrown group I would like to say that I am very impressed with the knowledge displayed in the discussions here.
And thank you Ottawagardener for pointing me to this site.
Have a great day everyone!
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Post by utopiate on Feb 18, 2009 17:00:35 GMT -5
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Post by ottawagardener on Feb 18, 2009 17:01:13 GMT -5
No problem! I'm happy to see here you and welcome!
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Post by emmajane on Feb 18, 2009 18:49:16 GMT -5
Nettles of course. Around my allotment there is a large bank of brambles and nettles and in the spring the young nettle tips are harvested and used in soups and as a spinach substitute. Dandelions are another which I like to blanch and have in salad. I also adore dandelion root tea but haven't yet gotten around to making my own brew.
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Post by raymondo on Feb 19, 2009 3:38:23 GMT -5
Hello and welcome to mamangenevieve from downunder.
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Post by grungy on Feb 19, 2009 7:42:35 GMT -5
Welcome, mamangenevieve. We will look forward to you posting and telling us your experiences with the new land.
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Post by mamangenevieve on Feb 19, 2009 8:13:20 GMT -5
Thanks for the welcome and hosta recipes. Of course I'll keep you posted about our new land. I'll be posting in some of the other topics as the range of topics I am exploring is very wide right now!
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