Bonners Ferry herald. [volume] (Bonners Ferry, Idaho) 1904-current, 1918-01-15
MUCH WILD FOOD
IN The FORESTS
Uncle Sans Foresters Show
Value of the Fruits OF
Native Trees.
Persimmon and Pawpaw Among Best
Known Fruits, and Edible Berries
of Many Kinds Are Found
Acorns NourlshInq.

1t is said that Daniel Boone and |
go into the wilderness with only a
rife and sack of salt and live In
comfort on the game and other wild
food which the woods afforded. While
few people want to try that sort of
thing nowadays, persons who know the
food value of the fruits of our ma
tive trees and shrubs are, according to
Uncle Sans foresters, able to use
them to good advantage in supplement-
Ing other foods.
Aside from the numerous edible
mushrooms, roots, fruits of shrubs and
smaller plants, the trees of our forests
afford a large variety of edibles which
are highly priced by woods connois-
seurs. First In Importance, of course.
are the native nuts-beechnuts, butter
nuts, walnuts, chestnuts and chinqua-
pins, hazel nuts, and several kinds of
hickory nuts. including pecans. The
kernels of all of these are not only
toothsome. but highly nutritious and
are used by vegetarians to replace
meat. The oil of the beechnut is said
to be little inferior to olive oil, while
that of butternuts and walnuts was
used by some of the Indians for vari-
Gus purposes. The Indians, 1t Is said,
also formerly mixed chestnuts with
cornmeal and made a bread which was
baked in corn husks, like tomales.
Some Acorns Are Edible.
Acorns are commonly thought to be
At only for feeding hogs, but many
kinds of them can be made edible and
nourishing for people as well. The
Indian custom was to pound or grind
the acorns up and leach out the tan
min, which makes most of them unfit
for eating when raw, by treating the
pulp with hot water. The resulting
flour, which contained considerable
starch. was made either into a por-
ridge or baked in small cakes Of
bread. AS a rule the acorns Of the
various white oaks having less tannin
, are the ones best suited for food. but
, Indians also used those of the black
ones, even though they contain much
tannin. The acorns Of the basket or
COW oak, the chinquapin oak. shin or
Rocky Mountain oak, live oak. and of
> several other species, are sweet enough
+, to be eaten raw.
Another nut which Is not suited for
eating raw, but from which palatable
food Is said to have been prepared by
the Indians is the buckeye. The kerr
= nels of these nuts were dried, powder
: ed, and freed of the poison which
: they contain when raw by filtration
= The resulting paste was either eaten
: cold or baked.
One of the best-known fruits, the
g foresterns say, is the persimmon
s which is edible only after 1t is thor
y oughly ripe. AS this is usually not
until late in the fall, 1t is commonly
L thought that the fruit must be frost
bitten. If the persimmon is eaten be
> fore 1t is well ripened the fannie aclt
which the fruit contains has a strong
ly astringent effect, which justif1es tn,
story of the soldier In the Civil wal
who said he had eaten green persim
mons so as to shrink his stomach VI
+ to fit his rations. The pawpaw, or Gus
i tard apple, is also best when thorough
n ly ripe. The fruit of some species Of
e haws is eaten or preserved In differen
t. parts of the country, while those O.
t. several different kinds of cherrie,
It have a food value and are used TO
r various purposes. Wild plums arr
y abundant in certain sections and occul
In particularly plentiful quantities
along the streams In the Eastern ant
y middle Western states.
= Several varieties of wild crab ap
!. Piles make delicious jellies. Some o
e the largest, which attain the size o
e small apples, are more or less abun
d dant throughout eastern North Caro-
If lima. Elderberries are frequently use,
for pies and for sauce. Those foun,
In the West are sweeter and have
better flavor than the Eastern varie
ties.
e blackberry Has Agreeable Taste.
- The berries of the blackberry, O
r. sugar berry, as it is called In tn
# South, are dry, but have an agreeabl
IT Taste. Those of the mulberry ar
If pweet and juicy when ripe. The mu
f. berry is valued In some sections fo
y feeding hogs and poultry, and som
it species are occasionally cultivated.
Many people like the fruit of tn
"a shad bush. "sarvice" berry, or Jun
ST berry, as it is variously called. l
u parts of the country this fruit is use
- - to make jelly.
NJ The French Canadians are said
IS use the acid flowers Of the redbud. {
IN Judas tree, in salads, while the bud
lie and tender pods are picked In vim.
I'd gar. Honey locust pods, often locar
Of called "honey-shucks," contain a swee
ct fish. thick, cheeselike pulp. which
a often eaten. Those of the mesquit
a furnish the Mexicans and Indians wit
A a nutritious food The Creolea 4