Cyperus esculentus
| Cyperus esculentus | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 8 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 3' |
| Speed: | Fast |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Cyperus esculentus (common name: tiger nut)
Propagation: Seed - surface sow in the spring and keep the compost moist[1]. The seed usually germinates in 2 - 6 weeks at 18°c[1]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle. Grow on for their first winter in a greenhouse and plant them out in late spring after the last expected frosts.
Division in spring or autumn. This is more a matter of harvesting the tubers and replanting them. If this is done in the autumn, then it is best to store the tubers in a cool frost-free place overwinter and plant them out in the spring.
Cultivation: Prefers a moist sandy loam[2][3].
Plants are hardy to about -15°c[4].
The chufa, or tiger nut, is often cultivated for its edible tuber in warm temperate and tropical zones, there is a cultivated variety, var. sativus, that produces larger tubers[5]. We have had lots of problems with growing this cultivated form. Once the tubers come into growth then they normally grow vigorously, but the difficulty is getting them to come into growth. We harvest the tubers in the autumn and store them in moist sand, replanting them in the spring. However, they rarely come into new growth until mid to late summer which gives them too short a growing season to produce much of a crop[K]. We need to find a satisfactory way of storing the tubers and exciting them back into growth[K].
In warmer climates this plant is a serious weed of cultivation. It is much hardier than was once imagined and is becoming a weed in N. America where it is found as far north as Alaska[2].
The tubers are often formed a metre or more away from the plant, especially if it is growing in a heavy clay soil[6].
The tubers are extremely attractive to mice and require protection from them in the winter[K].
Range: Original range is obscure, the plant is a widespread weed from the Tropics to the Temperate zone.
Habitat: Muddy soil and shallow water, also as a weed of cultivated ground in southern Europe[5].
Edibility: Tuber - raw, cooked or dried and ground into a powder[7][8][9][10][11][2][12].They are also used in confectionery[12]. A delicious nut-like flavour[13][14][12] but rather chewy and with a tough skin[K]. They taste best when dried[15]. They can be cooked in barley water to give them a sweet flavour and then be used as a dessert nut[12]. A refreshing beverage is made by mixing the ground tubers with water, cinnamon, sugar, vanilla and ice[12]. The ground up tuber can also be made into a plant milk with water, wheat and sugar[12].
An edible oil is obtained from the tuber. It is considered to be a superior oil that compares favourably with olive oil[12].
The roasted tubers are a coffee substitute[7][10][12].
The base of the plant can be used in salads[12]. (This probably means the base of the leaf stems[K])
Medicinal: Tiger nuts are regarded as a digestive tonic, having a heating and drying effect on the digestive system and alleviating flatulence[16]. They also promote urine production and menstruation[16].
The tubers are said to be aphrodisiac, carminative, diuretic, emmenagogue, stimulant and tonic[17][16]. In Ayurvedic medicine they are used in the treatment of flatulence, indigestion, colic, diarrhoea, dysentery, debility and excessive thirst[16].
Usage: The tubers contain up to 30% of a non-drying oil, it is used in cooking and in making soap[18][19][3][20]. It does not solidify at 0°c and stores well without going rancid[19].
The leaves can be used for weaving hats and matting etc[21].
Pollinators: Wind
Notes: We could probably supply this in the next catalogue.
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Heavy Clay: Grows in heavy-clay soils.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Bird, Alfred. Growing from Seed Volume 4. Thompson and Morgan, 1990.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Saunders, Charles. Edible and Useful Wild Plants of the United States and Canada. Dover Publications, 1976.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Rosengarten Jr., Frederic. The Book of Edible Nuts. Dover, 1984.
- ↑ Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Tutin, Tom et al.. Flora Europaea. Cambridge University Press, 1964.
- ↑ McPherson, Alan and Sue McPherson. Wild Food Plants of Indiana. Indiana University Press, 1977.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ Harris, Ben. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health, 1973.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Elias, Thomas. A Field Guide to North American Edible Wild Plants. Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1982.
- ↑ Harrington, Harold. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press, 1967.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 12.6 12.7 12.8 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ Vilmorin-Andrieux. The Vegetable Garden. Ten Speed Press.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 Chevallier, Andrew. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants. Dorling Kindersley, 1996.
- ↑ Chopra, R. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, 1986.
- ↑ Schery. Robert. Plants for Man. Prentice Hall, 1972.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Komarov, Vladimir. Flora of the USSR. Gantner Verlag, 1968.
- ↑ Carruthers, S. Alternative Enterprises for Agriculture in the UK. Centre for Agricultural Strategy, Univ. of Reading, 1986.
- ↑ Stuart, George. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei Southern Materials Centre.