Wattleseeds are the edible seeds from any of 120 species of Australian '' Acacia'' that were traditionally used as food by

Aboriginal Australians Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Isl ...

, and eaten either green (and cooked) or dried (and milled to a flour) to make a type of bush bread. '' Acacia murrayana'' and '' A. victoriae'' have been studied as candidates for commercial production. Acacia seed flour has recently gained popularity in Australia due to its high nutritional content, hardiness, and low toxicity. Due to its low

glycemic index The glycemic (glycaemic) index (GI; ) is a number from 0 to 100 assigned to a food, with pure glucose arbitrarily given the value of 100, which represents the relative rise in the blood glucose level two hours after consuming that food. The GI of ...

, it is suitable for incorporation into

diabetic Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

foods. It is used due to its chocolate, coffee, hazelnut flavour profile. It is added to

ice cream Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as ...

granola Granola is a breakfast and snack food consisting of rolled oats, nuts, honey or other sweeteners such as brown sugar, and sometimes puffed rice, that is usually baked until crisp, toasted and golden brown. The mixture is stirred while baking ...

chocolate Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cacao seed kernels that is available as a liquid, solid, or paste, either on its own or as a flavoring agent in other foods. Cacao has been consumed in some form since at least the Olmec civ ...

, bread, and used by chefs to enhance sauces and dairy desserts.

History

Wattleseeds were a relatively recent addition to

Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Isl ...

diets with specialized seed grinders first dated to 1000 years ago. Many species require pre-treatment of seeds through parching at high temperatures, soaking, or cracking using seed grinders. Following the colonization of Australia, consumption of wattleseed decreased but was not eliminated. As early as 1814, Australian ''Acacia'' species were recognized for their

tannin Tannins (or tannoids) are a class of astringent, polyphenolic biomolecules that bind to and precipitate proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids. The term ''tannin'' (from Anglo-Norman ''tanner'' ...

content and developed into plantation crops across the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

. Several species, including '' Acacia colei'' and '' A. mearnsii'', have been maintained for their wattleseed in

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesSouth Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

respectively.

Cultivation

Wattleseed '' Acacia'' are

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wid ...

woody crops of varying age and size with some reaching 4m tall and 5m across. Their large size and multiple stems is an impediment to harvesting and has resulted in the development of several strategies of collecting seed pods, including 'finger stripping' of pods off of foliage, 'butt shaking' of the tree to dislodge pods, and whole biomass harvesting. The large number of species of '' Acacia'' has been seen as beneficial for the development of wattleseed as a

commercial crop A cash crop or profit crop is an agricultural crop which is grown to sell for profit. It is typically purchased by parties separate from a farm. The term is used to differentiate marketed crops from staple crop (or "subsistence crop") in subsiste ...

. Trees can be arranged as either

alley An alley or alleyway is a narrow lane, path, or passageway, often reserved for pedestrians, which usually runs between, behind, or within buildings in the older parts of towns and cities. It is also a rear access or service road (back lane ...

or phase arrangements for

plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...

s, but ''Acacia'' have also seen use as

windbreak A windbreak (shelterbelt) is a planting usually made up of one or more rows of trees or shrubs planted in such a manner as to provide shelter from the wind and to protect soil from erosion. They are commonly planted in hedgerows around the edges ...

s and groundcover for high salinity areas. Preparation can involve deep

ripping Ripping is extracting all or parts of digital content from a container. Originally, it meant to rip music out of Commodore 64 games. Later, the term was used to extract WAV or MP3 format files from digital audio CDs, but got applied as well to e ...

of the soil to allow for water to soak as well as species specific pre-treatments. Water stress has the possibility to induce flowering and increase seed production with sufficient nutrient availability. The longevity of trees depends on spacing, climate, and species. In '' A. victoriae,'' trees do not begin flowering until 2–4 years old.

References

{{reflist Bushfood Drought-tolerant plants Edible legumes Australian cuisine Desert fruits

History

Cultivation

See also

References