Stenostelma capense
Schltr.
Bush carrot
(c) Tony Benn, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tony Benn
(c) Nicola van Berkel, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), uploaded by Nicola van Berkel
What to Eat
Edible parts: Roots, Tubers
The root tubers are roasted and eaten, traditionally baked in hot ashes.
Where to Find It
It is a subtropical plant. It grows in hot arid areas with a marked dry season. It can grow in places with a dry season of 6-11 months. In southern Africa it grows between 900-1,500 m altitude. It can grow in arid places.
Africa, Botswana, East Africa, Namibia, South Africa, Southern Africa, Zimbabwe,
How to Identify
A herb with a taproot. It grows 30 cm high. It can keep growing from year to year. The roots are long and spindle shaped. They are 30 cm long by 5 cm wide. The stems are usually branched. The leaves are narrow. They are 7 cm long by 5 mm wide. They are slightly hairy on the upper surface. The flowers are small and brownish-green. They are in groups on long flowering stalks.
Production
It grows in the Kalahari and is eaten during the rainy season.
Names & Synonyms
Mpungu, Ombaruru
References (5)
- Fox, F. W. & Young, M. E. N., 1982, Food from the Veld. Delta Books. p 116
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1999). Survey of Economic Plants for Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SEPASAL) database. Published on the Internet; http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ceb/sepasal/internet [Accessed 4th April 2011]
- Ruiters-Welcome, A. K., 2019, Food plants of southern Africa. Ph.D. thesis. Univ. of Johannesburg p 27
- Welcome, A. K. & Van Wyk, B.-E., 2019, An inventory and analysis of the food plants of southern Africa. South African Journal of Botany 122 (2019) 136–179
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
