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bush tucker

Sat 21 Dec, 2013 9:53 pm

This is something that interests me quite a bit, but is also quite hard to find solid info on. There is a few books on the topic but nothing beats hands on experience.

Can anyone point me in the right direction to go on a guided walk/tour (somewhere in victoria preferably) where you learn to identify the different edible plants and learn how to prepare them.

I'm either putting the wrong terms into google, or it seems something like this doesnt exist?

Re: bush tucker

Sat 21 Dec, 2013 10:10 pm

Can the local bush handle hordes of bush tucker tourists?

Re: bush tucker

Sun 22 Dec, 2013 12:20 pm

I'd suggest growing your own. There are nurseries that specialise in bush tucker plants, that will help you with species native to the area you want.
If you grow the plants from seed, or seedlings, you'll recognize them at all stages of development when you're in the bush.

Re: bush tucker

Sun 22 Dec, 2013 1:35 pm

I thought there was a "Bushtucker Trail" on the Yarra river near Dights Falls

Re: bush tucker

Sun 22 Dec, 2013 9:31 pm

Hallu has a book for sale which may interest you:

Wild Food Plants of Australia : great bushtucker guide covering all Australian food plants and not just the tropical regions, even describes both aboriginal and colonial use of the plants. Near mint condition, 7 $.

viewtopic.php?f=13&t=15833

Re: bush tucker

Mon 23 Dec, 2013 8:00 pm

Shiner wrote:I'd suggest growing your own. There are nurseries that specialise in bush tucker plants, that will help you with species native to the area you want.
If you grow the plants from seed, or seedlings, you'll recognize them at all stages of development when you're in the bush.


I really like this idea.

I couldn't find any info on the dight's fall's 'food' trail.

Books are off my list at the moment due to some xmas splurging (etrex) :lol:

Re: bush tucker

Sat 28 Dec, 2013 12:15 pm

If you find any local sources for Yam Daisy seeds please share, I want some for my nature strip

Re: bush tucker

Sat 28 Dec, 2013 2:18 pm

Moondog55 wrote:If you find any local sources for Yam Daisy seeds please share, I want some for my nature strip


CERES or bulleen art and garden would be the first two places on my list to call.

Re: bush tucker

Sat 28 Dec, 2013 2:28 pm

drakkar wrote:
Moondog55 wrote:If you find any local sources for Yam Daisy seeds please share, I want some for my nature strip


CERES or bulleen art and garden would be the first two places on my list to call.


I would suggest Kuranga Native Nursery in Mt Evelyn. I think they are Australia's largest native nursery. They may not have them in stock but they would have plenty of contacts and should be able to source them for you.

Re: bush tucker

Tue 31 Dec, 2013 9:35 am

Some of the Botanical gardens have gift stores or "Plant days" when seeds or plants can be available; if they have a volunteer group they will tell you if they sell plants. The Belair National Park in SA has quite a large nursery which on my last visit included kangaroo apples & other edible species. Very occasionally organic farmers markets will have some stuff, so do the House and Garden expos held once or twice a year but get in VERY early if you want Qandong which sell out quickly & I missed 'em. I did get muntries which are ground cover & would be okay for nature strip in the right area. Don't ignore exotics - makes a lot of sense to me if gleaners strip olive trees and stop them spreading! Nasturtium leaves, seeds and flowers are edible. Blackberries of course may have been sprayed but in that case should have warning notices posted.
There was a discussion on the general forum see viewtopic.php?f=16&t=14216&p=187698&hilit=bush+tucker+forage#p187698

Re: bush tucker

Tue 31 Dec, 2013 9:36 am

BTW I am ALMOST sure that there are lots of Pine mushrooms near me, going for $28 for 1/2 kg in the central markets & looking much more tired. Where can I get these identified? There are aminita species in the same forest unfortunately..... The red and white ones are obvious, but...

Re: bush tucker

Tue 31 Dec, 2013 11:58 am

Moondog55 wrote:If you find any local sources for Yam Daisy seeds please share, I want some for my nature strip


LMGTFY. :wink:
http://www.victoriannativeseed.com.au/? ... =yam-daisy

Re: bush tucker

Tue 31 Dec, 2013 4:21 pm

Thanx Shiner,

Re: bush tucker

Tue 31 Dec, 2013 8:30 pm

Shiner wrote:
Moondog55 wrote:If you find any local sources for Yam Daisy seeds please share, I want some for my nature strip


LMGTFY. :wink:
http://www.victoriannativeseed.com.au/? ... =yam-daisy


Yam Daisy seeds are currently unavailable from this supplier.

Re: bush tucker

Tue 31 Dec, 2013 8:34 pm

Moondog55 - PM me if you get stuck and can't find yam daisy seeds. I have a few contacts and may be able to help you out.

Re: bush tucker

Tue 31 Dec, 2013 9:46 pm

MickyB wrote:
Shiner wrote:
Moondog55 wrote:If you find any local sources for Yam Daisy seeds please share, I want some for my nature strip


LMGTFY. :wink:
http://www.victoriannativeseed.com.au/? ... =yam-daisy


Yam Daisy seeds are currently unavailable from this supplier.


Well he didn't say now!

:oops: I missed that.

Re: bush tucker

Wed 01 Jan, 2014 8:59 am

It isn't urgent but I like to plant locally rare and/or endangered species when I can but I need to keep the height lower than 450mm so some stuff like Emu bush and Kangaroo Apple aren't suitable

Re: bush tucker

Tue 07 Jan, 2014 8:55 pm

Have you heard of our Tasmanian Native Pepper.
[urlhttp://pepperberry.net.au/[/url]
That is good tucker.
You can eat the leaves, actually are very nice when young shoved in a sandwich.
Can be cut up and added to salads.
Then the berries can be dried and used as pepper.
It is hot too. :roll:
They can be obtained from some nurseries.

Re: bush tucker

Wed 08 Jan, 2014 7:39 am

taswegian wrote:Have you heard of our Tasmanian Native Pepper.


These are also found in Victoria and NSW (Tasmannia lanceolata).

I have one at home that is growing on the trunk of a tree fern.

Re: bush tucker

Fri 10 Jan, 2014 10:15 pm

Moondog55 wrote:It isn't urgent but I like to plant locally rare and/or endangered species when I can but I need to keep the height lower than 450mm so some stuff like Emu bush and Kangaroo Apple aren't suitable


You do realise that the fruits of the Emu Bush, if you mean Eremophila, is poisonous if you aren't an emu?

Re: bush tucker

Sat 11 Jan, 2014 8:30 am

Yes I was aware, not all of my native nature strip needs to be edible. I just want to make a small step in the direction of saving some of our local endangered plants. Most of what is already planted is not on the endangered list.
Yam Daisy would have been a good one to plant to provide competition for all the non-native weeds. Norlane is a basalt plain over marl; heavy, sticky, acidic clay and yam daisy was one of the first native plants to disappear when sheep were brought in.
Have you ever eaten Kangaroo Apple? Most of the stuff on sale hasn't been selected for palatability and is as sour and bitter as anything I have ever eaten, especially if you chew the whole fruit as the thick skin has most of the bitterents in it. My nature strip is really a guerrilla garden I have tacit but not official approval

Re: bush tucker

Sat 18 Jan, 2014 5:08 pm

Moondog55 wrote:Have you ever eaten Kangaroo Apple?


Just a warning to anyone who wants to try the fruit of kangaroo apple. They can only be eaten when very ripe. They are poisonous at other times.

Re: bush tucker

Sun 19 Jan, 2014 9:30 pm

MickyB The few I have tasted have all been very ripe. I was told the proper technique is to squeeze the fruit and eat the seeds and pulp but not the skin, even so I think you would need to be very hungry or otherwise used to and therefore accustomed to the bitterness, like learning to like Angostura.

Re: bush tucker

Mon 20 Jan, 2014 7:59 am

Moondog55 wrote:MickyB The few I have tasted have all been very ripe. I was told the proper technique is to squeeze the fruit and eat the seeds and pulp but not the skin, even so I think you would need to be very hungry or otherwise used to and therefore accustomed to the bitterness, like learning to like Angostura.


I have also tasted them and have to agree with you. I believe that they were a good food source for Aborigines though.

Re: bush tucker

Tue 25 Nov, 2014 11:04 am

If you harvest a lot of the introduced weeds for use as bush tucker, it helps remove it from the bush while spicing up the meals.
My favourite is stinging nettle for greens and tea
Guinea weed makes a nice peppery green similar to rocket.
Dock weed is nice boiled and bindweed has some nice size tubers although a little bitter if boiled - best roasted on coals.

Re: bush tucker

Sat 10 Jan, 2015 10:12 am

http://gracelinks.org/blog/2296 Interesting idea; pretty sure Bracken isn't endangered!
Last edited by walk2wineries on Sat 10 Jan, 2015 10:19 am, edited 1 time in total.

Re: bush tucker

Sat 10 Jan, 2015 10:16 am

Moondog55 wrote:I thought there was a "Bushtucker Trail" on the Yarra river near Dights Falls


I recently saw another near the Lismore CBD along the Riverside walk.

And the Arid Lands Botanic Gardens - just outside Port Augusta and a GREAT place to visit if one is walking in the Flinders Ranges - http://www.aalbg.sa.gov.au/ does a bushtucker guided walk, I was lucky enough to be wandering through when they had one going.

Pretty sure there is a section - certainly they have Davidson Plums! at the Mt Annan Botanic Gardens, too.

Re: bush tucker

Sat 10 Jan, 2015 11:17 am

walk2wineries wrote:http://gracelinks.org/blog/2296 Interesting idea; pretty sure Bracken isn't endangered!


I have never tried Bracken but I have read that the flavour is similar to that of asparagus. The rhizomes of bracken can also be eaten. Maoris soaked and pounded them to obtain a starchy material resembling arrowroot. In other countries the rhizomes are eaten after roasting. The central parts of some tree ferns can also be used as a source of food including the black tree fern (Cyathea meduallaris) and silver tree fern (Cyathea dealbata), both from New Zealand , and Rough tree fern (Cyathea australis) and soft tree fern (Dicksonia antarctica), both from Australia. The pith in the soft upper part of the trunk can be baked or roasted before eating. The stems of the giant king fern (Angiopteris evecta) can be eaten in a similar manner.

Re: bush tucker

Sun 01 Feb, 2015 7:46 pm

Other good native nurseries stocking bush tucker plants not already mentioned include the nursery at La Trobe Uni Bundoora and Edendale in Eltham.

Just about all our native lilies can be eaten (Chocalate lilies, vanilla lilies, early nancy, Bulbine lilies etc.).
All members of the ericaceae (inc. epacridaceae) known as heaths, have little berries that may be eaten (Coastal beard heath etc.).
Dianella or flax lilies have fruit which maybe eaten with the exception of Dianella tasmanica which is a shame because they have the biggest berries.
Lomandra longifolia maybe cut close to the base and chewed, tastes like snow pea.
The native shade nettle Urtica uncisa maybe used as spinach substitute.
The Cherry ballart, and Coprosma sp. have edible red berries.

Tim Low has a great book written about Australian bush tucker. http://www.timlow.com/books

Re: bush tucker

Sun 07 Feb, 2016 1:18 pm

To take a bit of a different tack, it's worth recognising the introduced edible weeds out there too, so if you spot them where they shouldn't be, you can both supplement your dinner AND clean up the environment a bit! Double win!

In Melbourne, go to www.eatthatweed.com and book yourself in for a tour (or look at the pretty decent photos on the website).
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