What would a traditional aboriginal australian do with a quandong?

1. How did aboriginals use quandong?
2. What are quandongs used for?
3. Can you pick quandongs?
4. Is quandong native to Australia?
5. How is a Quandong eaten?
6. How do you grow Quandong?
7. What part of a Quandong is eaten?
8. Can you eat the Quandong nut?
9. How is Quandong prepared?
10. How do you propagate quandong?
11. What does quandong taste like?
12. What is strawberry gum?
13. What animals eat Quandong?
14. How long does Quandong take to grow?

How did aboriginals use quandong?

Traditionally the Quandong was an important food source for Australian Aborigines. ... Ripe red Quandong fruits would be eaten raw or dried for later use. Typically Everard Ranges women would collect Quandongs in bark dishes, separate the edible fruit from the pitted stone, and then roll the edible fruit into a ball.

What are quandongs used for?

Quandong is used in products such as jams, preserves, sauces, relishes, juices, deserts and ice cream.

Can you pick quandongs?

Uses for Quandong

Quandong is said to smell like dry lentils or beans if slightly fermented. The fruit tastes both mildly sour and salty with varying degrees of sweetness. Fruit is picked and then dried (for up to 8 years!) or peeled and used to make delicacies such as jams, chutneys, and pies.

Is quandong native to Australia?

Santalum acuminatum, the desert quandong, is a hemiparasitic plant in the sandalwood family, Santalaceae, (Native to Australia) which is widely dispersed throughout the central deserts and southern areas of Australia. The species, especially its edible fruit, is also commonly referred to as quandong or native peach.

How is a Quandong eaten?

Stewed, dried or raw the quandong is one of Australia's most versatile bush foods — so versatile in fact that it can also be used to aid with foot massages or cure toothache. ... The sweet and tangy fruit is enjoyed raw and very often stewed and used as a pie filling.

How do you grow Quandong?

Quandongs grow best in full sun with a nutrient-poor, free draining soil and are both drought and salt tolerant. While its hemiparasitic habit means it can survive in tough conditions, it also means plants can be tricky to germinate and to grow.

What part of a Quandong is eaten?

The ripe, sweet, beautifully textured flesh of the Quandong is eaten fresh, although it can also be dried and stored for future use.

Can you eat the Quandong nut?

Dreaming stories often reference a symbiotic relationship between quandongs and emus. The birds eat the fruit in large quantities, swallowing the nuts. ... The fruit can be eaten raw but dried fruit was particularly valued because of its sweetness and its ability to be preserved and readily transported [21,22,38].

How is Quandong prepared?

The dried fruit should be soaked in water over night, and stewed in the ordinary way, but it requires less soda and less sugar than the fresh fruit. Quandong Jam. ... Cook until fruit is soft then add 3 lb. of sugar, boil until it jellies.

How do you propagate quandong?

Seed sterilization, germination and growth

Place the seeds or kernels in a pot with holes in the bottom for drainage). Fill a larger container with 10 percent bleach (1 part household bleach : 9 parts water). Place the pot in it and agitate until the contents are completely wet. Soak for 30 to 45 minutes.

What does quandong taste like?

FLAVOUR PROFILE

The flesh of a mature quandong has a yellow to red colour, dry texture and tart taste. The flavour profile is described as slightly sour and salty with its sweetness varying significantly between trees. Its aroma is likened to dry lentils or beans with earthy, fermented notes.

What is strawberry gum?

The Strawberry Gum is a tree native to the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales. The tree grows up to 10m with a flaky bark and small white flowers growing in spring. ... The Strawberry Gum gets its name from the intense berry flavour and aroma of its leaves.

What animals eat Quandong?

When an emu digests a quandong, however, it softens the shell, and its droppings leave a ready supply of easily opened quandong nuts. “You can eat it raw or roast them,” says Aunty Dale.

How long does Quandong take to grow?

You need to check them and water them regularly during the germination process. And these Blue Quandongs will take about six weeks. Once they've germinated, that's the time to start feeding them and you can use a slow release native fertiliser.