I am alway fascinated by people’s relationship with plants,  their importance and their place in the native landscape, and yes I am a bit of an unashamed plant geek.

The stories of  plants and their place is so important; not just for people, but as they are the basis of so many species’ existence. By letting others know some of the plant stories, I am hopeful that their place and their presence is more valued.

As someone fascinated by food (and food plants) and as someone who has grown to love and learn about our native landscapes and spend quite sometime in them, I have been finding out more and more about “Bush tucker” plants in the Top End.

Bush Tucker not only seems a popular topic, to catch the attention of people and tell these plants stories, it was vital as a food source for the traditional custodians of the land, it provides food to our wildlife and highlights why looking after the fantastic swathe of native landscapes we have in northern Australia is important. IN Darwin this is the Larrakia people, who we respect past and present.

I will slowly tell the stories of these plants (and some already are on here- follow links after the photos)….

Enjoy this colourful feast, which  shows just some of the food plants that are common in the greater Darwin region, the majority of which has been wild collected (16 of 18, with permission from the landholder/ collecting permit)

From the top, Left to right:-

Terminalia carpenteria, Terminalia microcarpa, Grevillia pteridifolia( Fern leaved Grevillea) , Naucleau orientalis (Liechart Tree), Syzygium fibrosum, Syzygium minutiflorum, Exocarpus latifolius (Native Cherry), Syzygium nervosum and Fluggea virosum (Native white currant)

Cychlophyllum shultzii ( Lolly bush), Terminalia ferdiandiana (Kakadu or Billy Goat Plum) Ficus racemosa (Cluster fig), Persoonia falcata (Milky plum) Syzygium suborbiculare (Red Bush Apple) Planchonia careya (Cocky apple), Meiogyne cylindricarpa (Bush Apricot) Buchanania obovata (Green Plum) and Sterculia quadrifida (Peanut Tree)

There is also long list of  many language names for all of these plants across the many languages of northern Australia.

Thanks to Yvette Brady, one of my Bush Tucker teachers, to Strider and to the some of my  Yolngul family in Arnhem Land for passing on this knowledge.

Also see https://tasteofthetopend.com/2015/05/15/top-ten-of-the-top-end-bush-tuckers-plant-based/

Or search “Bush Tucker” in this webpage.