Discuss: Stalking the Wild Groundnut

Sam,
Great to hear from you again. Thanks for your contributions to the article and the insights you’ve added here. I hope readers will be inspired to check out your excellent book and expand their eating horizons.

Groundnut was once plentiful along the banks and floodplains of the Connecticut River in western Mass. where I live.  Sadly, it is being rapidly displaced by non-native invasive plants such as Jap. knotweed, garlic mustard and swallowwwort.  Those who wish to gather this and other “wild foods” should be aware of this grim threat to native plant populations.

Allison,
As a hopniss lover here in Wiesbaden Germany I was very pleased about this discussion about Apios, yet really concerned to here your problems with invasive aliens displacing the groundnut.
I ve initiated the Bionic Knotweed Control here in our Natur Reserves for the same reason and just like one may forage the Apios tubers; noxious weeds are part of natures green feast.
Alliaria petiolata, while severely damaging your soils mycology offers the most delicate leafs with a strong garlic flavour and its seeds are a great addition to your pepper mill. That way, becoming its natural enemy, garlic mustard can be stopped.
One more thing about the groundnut. Thank to Vickie Shufer I have been able to sow a couple of apios seeds a few years back, but the tubers remain really small. Would anyone know how I can get in touch with Bill Blackmon ?

Yours

Peter Becker

Given the latex content of the Apios americana tubers, I wonder if that 5% of eaters who get violently ill are experiencing latex allergies?  Something to consider as latex allergies are on the rise in this coutry, as I have been informed working in healthcare settings.  Perhaps the long boiling that Sam Thayer refers to somehow denatures the allergen part of latex/rubber.  I have heard that A. americana flowers have been used in perfume production.  Anyon else?

There has been a lot of field work done with developing groundnut polycultures by Eric Toensmier Co-author of “Edible Forest Gardens” and author of “Perrenial Vegetables” two great books for the subject.  For those of you who live in groundnut country check those books out and put the ideas to work, we need more experimentation.  Groundnut is indeed a great plant for a permaculture.  Good luck all!

That was an excellent article Tamara.  I also have a copy of Sam Thayer’s article on hopniss, which is also excellent. 

I have a number of clones of apios.  A nitrogen fixing root crop seems like a very good idea.  As it is likely that someone from Plymouth, perhaps John Hawkins or Francis Drake introduced the “potato” from Virginia to Britain, it seems kind of appropriate to be growing the plants in this neck of the woods.  I am looking for the most cool weather tolerant, northern adapted material to add to my collection. 
Plants apparently produce seed as far north as Massachusetts - anyone know some kindly forager who might be able to supply me?  Importing tubers would also be possible with the correct paperwork.  There is a clone that occurs on Price Edward Island that I’d like to get hold of….  I too would like to get in touch with Bill Blackmon and any other groundnut nuts in North America, Europe, or anywhere else to exchange knowledge and germplasm.

It’s a great plant and will make a very useful contribution to food security in a diverse, polycultural cropping system. There aren’t many “minor crops” that taste so good and adapt so easily to western eating habits - I also like hog peanut Amphicarpaea bracteata and Lathyrus tuberosus, the macusson or tuberous pea.  I notice that the latter is widely naturalised in the US.

Peter’s experience with seed grown apios seems pretty much the same as mine - small tubers, paltry yield.  The answer might be to get hold of seeds from the northern edge of the range - these could prove to be more suitable.

There is a competitive sink relationship between stem growth, flowering and tuber development.  My understanding is that tuber formation really begins apace following flowering.  My seed grown plants don’t flower, too cold/ daylength restrictions?  so that might explain why the tubers formed are so small. The triploids flower regularly and bulk up succesfully before the winter.  Perhaps the northernmost diploids might be better adapted and could be used to select for a more suitable variety for those of us living at these lattitudes.

Best wishes

Owen

If I am going to find this, I need better photos of the leaves & c.

I have been growing ground nuts (apios tuberosa - lately called apios americana) for a few years. I grow them organically, in their own raised beds, isolated from other wild plants. This year for the first time I am offering the sprouted tubers for those who wish to start their own ground nut gardens. I was aware of Bill Blackmon’s efforts but didn’t know his program had ended. I would love to know how to contact him so I could get some samples of his enhanced strains. I live in southern NH and am intent on growing and developing the ground nut as a future food plant as well as a garden ornamental. I also have a pamphlet for sale about the ground nut. My website address is:
http://www.maryrowlandson.com/groundnuthomepage.html. It is brand new but will be expanding. I have been working on this project for a number of years and would love to hear from other “nuts” of the apios variety.