When I
researched the Tohono Oodham Nation, one of the foods they foraged in the
Sonoran Desert was ironwood seeds, so I decided to find out what I could about
this food source.
First, about the
trees. There are many trees known as ‘ironwood’, so the version found in the
Sonoran Desert is often called desert ironwood. The tree itself grows extremely
slowly, and can possibly live for centuries. But even after one of them dies,
it might remain a landmark for millenia. This is because the heartwood is so
full of toxic chemicals that decay is practically eliminated.
The seedpods
grow from the middle of a stem, not the end, and each pod can hold up to a
dozen or so seeds. The pictures I saw depicted a brown pod that reminded me of
a cross between a green bean and a smooth-skinned peanut pod. Or possibly a
vanilla bean pod. The seeds inside seemed to have a passing resemblance to
peanuts, which seems fitting, since both the peanut plant and the desert
ironwood are legumes.
As with other
legumes, the desert ironwood enriches the surrounding soil with nitrogen, so
the area immediately surrounding this tree is richer for growing plants than
the soil another couple of feet away from the tree. Did the Oodham tend to
cultivate their crops by planting them in close proximity to an ironwood? I don’t
know, I haven’t found any information on that. But in my mind, it would make
sense for them to have done so.
Now, about those
seeds.
Ironwoods
generally flower from late April through May and set seed pods a few weeks
later, which will dry in June-July. The flowers, fresh seedpods and dried
seedpods are edible.
The pink flowers
can be used in or as a salad. They can also be candied for use as a dessert,
but I don’t know if the Oodham did that. Good to add to my basket of knowledge
as I look for means to feed an alien culture.
The seedpods are
apparently beige from the start, so how do you know when to harvest them if you
want them fresh? You open up one pod and look for the seeds inside to be green.
If the seeds are sweet and taste slightly like a peanut, you are good to
harvest. Gently pull whole pods off the tree.
However, if that
seed tastes chalky, you’ve waited too long to harvest them as fresh. Go away
and come back when the pods are fuzzy, dry and dark brown. The seeds inside
will now be hard and brown. Don’t bother picking the pods by hand at this
point; just put a tarp or blanket on the ground and gently shake free the dry
pods. But don’t harvest any dry pods that land on the bare ground.
Whether you have
harvested your ironwood seeds fresh or dry, they should be cleaned and
processed for storage as soon as possible after picking to reduce the chances
of spoilage. Now, I got some information from a website (see below) on how to
do this, but the instructions as given require things I’m pretty sure the
Oodham did not have in yesteryear. Things like ice water, plastic bags and a
freezer. Suffice it to say that they suggest you blanche the fresh seeds,
package them in bags with as little air enclosed as possible, and throw the
bags in the freezer. Even the dry seeds need to be frozen for at least 2 days
to avoid bug infestation.
So I’m guessing
the Oodham didn’t process them that way. I’m guessing they merely cooked them
using their favorite method and ate. And the next day, somebody would go and
forage again. Maybe they came back with more ironwood seeds, maybe they found
something else.
All good to know
when I’m trying to keep somebody alive on what seems an inhospitable planet.
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