edible

Cornus kousa - Kousa Dogwood

Cornus Kousa - a beautiful small tree native to east Asia, Korea, China and Japan. Trees bear an edible fruit. The thin fruit rind is best discarded as it imparts a bitter taste. The custard-like pulp can be eaten when ripe or used in jams or sauces. The fruit is not widely eaten but can be seen used as a landscape tree, in botanical gardens, etc.

Erythronium oregonum - California Fawn Lily

Erythronium californium is a herbaceous perennial bulb native to Northern California. I took these photos in Lake County where the highly scented flowers appear in full bloom at the end of February through March. numbering in the many thousands.

The bulbs, along with many other regional species, were an important food source for indigenous peoples. The bulb populations we see today are remnants of previously managed and far more extensive traditional food and land management systems.

The area depicted in these photos consists of semi-dense chaparral consisting primarily of Manzanita, Heteromeles, and Quercus (duration) along with Umbellaria californica, CThe Erythronium appears in profusion, as shown below, in the understory. The bulb seems to co-exist along side a healthy gopher population, which, reportedly, can aid in the dissemination of bulblets .

Other important genera of edible neophytes widely consumed in pre-contact California include AlliumBrodiaea, Camassia, Chlorogalum, Calochortus, Dichelostemma, Lilium, Lomatium, Perideridia, Sanicula, and Triteleia.

Araucaria araucana - Monkey Puzzle tree

Araucaria anguvstifolia, another member of the pan-global Araucariaceae family, many of which have edible seeds and multiple other ethnobotanical uses.

Native to It is native to central and southern Chile and western Argentina. A. araucana is the national tree of Chile. Its conservation status was changed to Endangered by the IUCN in 2013 due to the dwindling population caused by logging, forest fires, and grazing.

The large seeds, or pinions, are edible can be consumed, prepared in a wide variety of ways. The tree, however, does not yield seeds until it is around 30 to 40 years old, which discourages investment in planting orchards (although yields at maturity can be immense); once established, it can live possibly as long as 1,000 years.

Araucaria angustifolia - Para pine, Brazilian pine, Candelabra tree

Calochortus amabilis - Golden fairy lantern

Calochortus amabilis flowers.

Calochortus amabilis flowers.

Calopchortus amabilis, another California native flowering bulb. This is a stout branching plant with bright yellow flowers with a triangular outline.

The plant prefers higher levels of shade, and soil humus rich in organic matter, however it grows in the wild in a wide variety of conditions, including full sun, rocky hillsides, chaparral and Serpentine soils. .

In the wild the plant can be found along the North Coast Ranges from Solano and Marin Counties to Humboldt an Colusa County.

As with the bulbs of many Calochortus species, C. amabilis bulbs were traditionally eaten by Indigenous peoples in the region. Bulbs were baked or boiled and eaten in a similar way as sweet potatoes. Large swaths of land were carefully sustainably managed over generations to provide supply of these delicious and nutritious bulbs.

Young seed pods on Calochortus amabilis

Young seed pods on Calochortus amabilis

Calochortus amabilis flower close-up.

Calochortus amabilis flower close-up.

Edible Condiment Leaves of Southeast Asia

The following is a list of species whose leaves are used as condiments in Southeast Asia. The list is not, by any means, complete, but includes some of the lesser known, more obscure species.

Acacia farnesiana, Cassie flower, Leguminaceae

Achronychia laurifolia, Ketiak, Rutaceae

Aegle marmelos, Bael fruit, Rutaceae

Allium odorum, Chinese chives, Liliaceae

Ancistrocladus extensus, Ox-tongue, Dipterocarpaceae

Antidesma ghaesembilla, Sekinchak, Euphorbiaceae

Begonia tuberosa, Tuberous begonia, Begoniaceae

Claoxylon polot, Rock blumea, Euphorbiaceae

Coleus tuberosus, African potato, Labiatae

Crypteronia paniculata, Sempoh, Lythraceae

Curcuma domestica, Turmeric, Zingiberaceae

Cymbopogon citratus, Lemon Grass, Graminae

Cyrtandra decurrens, Graminae

C. pendula, Rock sorrel, Graminae

Dendrobium salaccense, Cooking orchid, Orchidaceae

Derris heptaphylla, Seven finger, Leguminaceae

Elethariopsis sumatrana, Frangrant gingerwort, Zingiberaceae

Eugenia polyantha, White kelat, Myrtaceae

Evodia roxburghiana, Sour-relish wood, Rutaceae

Gymura procumbens, Akar, Compositae

Homalomena graffithii, Itch grass, Araceae

Hornstedtia, Tepus, Zingiberaceae

Horsfieldia sylvestris, Pendarahan, Myristicaceae

Kaempferia galanga, Chekur (Galangal), Zingiberaceae

Kaempferia rotunda, Kenchur, Zingiberaceae

Leucas lavandulifoia, Ketumbak, Labiatae

L. zeylanica, Ketumbak, Labaiatae

Limnophila aromatica, Swamp leaf, Scrophulariaceae

L. villosa

L. conferta

L. pulcherrima

L. rugosa

Lycium chinese, Kichi, Matrimony vine, Solanaceae

Lycopersicum esculentum, Tomato, Solanaceae

Medinilla crispata, Medinilla, Melastomataceae

M. hasseltii

M. radicans

Mentha longifolia, Longleaf mint, Labiatae

Murraya koenigii, Curry-leaf tree, Rutaceae

Nauclea esculenta, Pincushion, Rubiaceae

Ocimum canum, Hoary basil, Labiatae

Oenanthe javanica, Shelum, Umbelliferae

Ottelia alismoides, Pojnd lettuce, Hydrocharitaceae

Oxalis corniculata, Sorrel, Oxalidaceae

Pilea melastomoides, Sweet nettle, Urticaceae

Piper lolot, Pepper leaf, Piperaceae

P. caducibracteum

P. umbellatum

Pistacia lentiscus, Pistachio resin tree, Anacardiaceae

Pluchea indica, Indian sage, Comppositae

Polygonum hydropiper, Water polygonum, Polygonaceae

Staurogyne elongata, Cross flower, Acanthaceae

Trachyspermum involucratum, Wild celery, Umbelliferae

Passiflora palmeri - Passion flower, Granadilla, Sandia de la Passion

Here are some photos of the desert native Passiflora palmeri, photographed in Baja Sur, Mexico.