Inter tussock spaces, located between a selection of native grasses and/or sedges making up a backyard organic native grassland garden patch, are ideal locations for planting a selection of bush tucker plants. Of course, this planting technique can also apply to organic veggie gardens. For example, the fast growing lettuces (from the "Daisy" or Asteraceae family) can be tucked in between slower growing celery plants and/or radishes can be planted with carrots or parsnips (Apiaceae family members).
Have you ever thought of growing in these inter tussock spaces, bush tucker representatives from the same botanical families as those plants in your veggie garden? This is not only an intriguing way to botanically compare vegetable and indigenous plants from the same family, but it will also improves your understanding of the similar cultural requirements for most plants grouped within a common family.
Having asked the question, lets explore this theme by concentrating on examples of indigenous bush tucker taste-bud tempters, from the Carrot (Apiaceae) and Daisy (Asteraceae) Families.
As an initial learning experience, allow a carrot, parsley or celery (Apiaceae family) to go to seed in your veggie patch. Not only will you benefit from harvesting your own seed supply, but also you will be fascinated by the large umbrella like flower (umbel) formed. A comparison with flowers from indigenous Apiaceae members soon establishes the family's floral similarities. Suitable exquisite examples include the green flowers, of the alpine grassland herb, Alpine Trachymene (Trachymene humilis) and/or the squat prickle-like flowers of the Blue Devil (Eryngium ovium).
In order to harvest organic bush tucker derived from the Apiaceace family, try the native Apium prostratum, known as either Sea Celery. Its broad leaf form occurs naturally on sunny beaches, while its tenderer and tastier, narrow leaf form known as Native Parsley, likes moist shady areas. The First Fleeters relied heavily on the variable forms of this plant as a cure for scurvy. Both Cook and Banks referred to it as parsley and regularly ate it.
Other Apiaceae bush tucker options are the Caraway herbs, which all can be added to stir-fries. These include the silver leaved, Silver Caraway (Oreomyrrhis argenta) and the strong carrot scented, Carroty Caraway (Oreomyrrhis sessiliflolia), along with Aussies equivalent to the garden Carrot, known as the Native Carrot (Daucas glochidatum).
The Daisy family (Asteraceae) also has many intriguing bush tucker herbs that are floristically similar to organic veggies such as lettuce, salsify, endives and artichokes. Again, as a learning and seed collecting experience, allow a lettuce to flower and go to seed.
Compare this flower with produces myriad of tiny seeds with rings of fine hairs (pappus) with the same flowers and seeds produced from a few inter-tussock Aseteraceae plantings. These can include the yellow button-like flowers of the native herb Billy Buttons Craspedia glauca or the smaller flowers of Shiny Buttons Leptorhynchos linearis. Both produce bulbous roots with a crisp nutty taste.
In addition introduce the attractive yellow daisy Native Dandelion Microseris scapigera that is known as an important Aboriginal bush tucker plant. Its fleshy bulbous tubers and can be either eaten raw or baked in baskets within an earth oven. The sweet syrup, which exudes from the roasted tubers, has given it staple food status amongst the aborigines.
Finally, as something fairly radical, consider growing Salsify or Vegetable Oyster (Tragopogon porrifolius) by purchasing seed and sowing it preferably in your veggie patch. This delicious unpopular veggie is also recognised as a common weed of the native grasslands.
It has outstanding food value with the long parsnip like tap root being eaten (sweetish oyster like flavour) as a vegetable or roasted and broken down into a rich sweet, chocolate like powder ready to use as coffee substitute or a sprinkled on ice-cream. The young shoots can be cooked and eaten like asparagus. Interesting enough the Latin meaning of the botanical name directly translates as "Goats Beard flower" with "leek like foliage" This certainly provides an excellent mental picture of the plant.
Phil Watson
