Tecticornia verrucosa
Paul G. Wilson
Samphire, Bulli-Bulli
(c) caliologist, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by caliologist
(c) Peter, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
What to Eat
Seed - cooked. Ground into a flour and used to make bread. The seed is small.
Where to Find It
Australia - Western Australia, Northern Territory.
Coastal flats, freshwater or slightly saline claypans & lakes in clay loam, clay, and sandy soils.
How to Identify
Tecticornia verrucosa is a leafless, succulent, annual or short-lived perennial plant growing 20 - 60cm tall. The small seed was harvested by the native Australian Aborigine as a food. It is unclear whether it is used today, but the plant has been recommended for cultivation in saline soils.
How to Grow
Amaranthaceae
Wikipedia
Source ↗Tecticornia verrrucosa is a species of plant that is succulent and halophyte (salt tolerant). This plant was a member of the Chenopodiaceae, which are now included in family Amaranthaceae. T. verrucosa was first described in 1972 by Paul Wilson. It is an annual or short-lived perennial which grows to 40 cm high, which branches at the occasionally woody base. The inflorescence is a set of opposite and decussate lateral sessile spikes, at right angles to the branch. They are cylindrical and 10–20 mm long by 6 mm diam. The flowers are triads with free tepals below and slightly united above. It grows on coastal mud flats, slightly saline clay pans, and inland freshwater. The Walmajarri people of the southern Kimberley call this plant Mungily.
Production
A herb. It lies along the ground and lives for a few years. It grows 20-60 cm high.
References (11)
- Bindon, P., 1996, Useful Bush Plants. Western Australian Museum. p 243
- Cancilla, D., 2018, Ethnobotanical and Ethnozoological Values Desktop Assessment - Eliwana Project. p 38
- Cherikoff V. & Isaacs, J., The Bush Food Handbook. How to gather, grow, process and cook Australian Wild Foods. Ti Tree Press, Australia p 191
- Facciola, S., 1998, Cornucopia 2: a Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, p 77
- Flora of Australia, Volume 4, Phytolaccaceae to Chenopodiaceae, Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra (1984) p 304
- Latz, P.K., 1996, Bushfires and Bushtucker: Aboriginal plant use in Central Australia. IAD Press Alice Springs p 283
- Latz, P & Wightman, G., 1995, Desert Bush Tucker Identikit. Common Native Food Plants of Central Australia. Parks & Wild Commission Northern territory. p 52
- Lazarides, M. & Hince, B., 1993, Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia, CSIRO. p 234
- Low, T., 1992, Bush Tucker. Australia’s Wild Food Harvest. Angus & Robertson. p 88
- Paczkowska, G. & Chapman, A.R., 2000, The Western Australian Flora. A Descriptive Catalogue. Western Australian Herbarium. p 210
- Wheeler, J.R.(ed.), 1992, Flora of the Kimberley Region. CALM, Western Australian Herbarium, p 106
