Photos by Sandra Michaud
Food Plants: Past, Present and Future
Food Plants: Past, Present and Future
Apache Redgrass being cultivated by the Office of Sustainability
Food Plants: Past, Present and Future
Apache Redgrass at the Cherry Creek Campground, with Dr. Felger in blue shirt
Food Plants: Past, Present and Future
A yellow wildflower found at Cherry Creek
Food Plants: Past, Present and Future
A mullein found at Cherry Creek
Food Plants: Past, Present and Future
A species of sunflower. When the centers are ripe, the tiny seeds can be eaten.
Food Plants: Past, Present and Future
Delphinium or Larkspur
Food Plants: Past, Present and Future
A walk up the wash led to more plants
Food Plants: Past, Present and Future
At the Gila River Extravaganza, samples of Big Sacaton and Apache Redgrass seeds.
Food Plants: Past, Present and Future
Big Sacaton (left) and Apache Redgrass (right). They can be found growing around Silver City.
Botanist Dr. Richard Felger led a group of about 20 people on a field trip to the mountains Thursday as part of the Gila River Festival. The group learned about native food plants in the area, and about the possibility of some of them being cultivated as a food source in the future. Dr. Felger explained that although almost all grass seeds are edible, many of them are too small, too spiny, or too hard to process to bother with.
Two of the varieties that hold potential are Apache Redgrass, also known as Bulb Panic Grass and Big Sacaton. Apache Redgrass is high protein, no-till and low water, and has promise as a food crop in the high country. It is experimentally being planted in fields to allow for mechanized harvesting, which will alleviate a major problem, being that it is extremely time consuming to harvest by hand.
Among other native foods discussed were agaves, piñons mesquite beans and juniper berries, all easily found in the area.