12-13 QUARTERMASTER CORPS 



d. Stenochlaena palustris and Acrostichum aureum. — The 

 tender young leaves of both these ferns may be cooked and 

 eaten. The Stenochlaena (A) (fig. 4) is a climbing fern, 

 occurring often in abundance near the inner margins of 

 mangrove swamps, within the influence of salt or brackish 

 water; other species occur in the inland forests. The 

 Acrostichum (B) is a very coarse tufted fern, varying from 

 2 to 6 feet high, its mature leaves being very leathery. It 

 grows only in brackish swamps and hence always near the 

 seashore where it is commonly abundant. Local names. 

 (A, Stenochlaena) , Diliman, giliman, lamidin, lemiding, ag- 

 ndya, hagndya, dkar-pdkis, melat, miding, pdku-ramiding, 

 pdku-li7nbeh, pdku-merah, pdku-udang, pdkis-vordng, we- 

 wesu, bempesu. (B, Acrostichum). Ldgolo, Idngayo, hap- 

 pasen, sdato, lau-taputd, pdku-laut, paku-tiai, peye, piai, 

 kerakds, kalakiik. 



Section VI 



EDIBLE HERBS 



Paragraph 



Araceae in general 13 



Specific Araceae 14 



■ 13. Araceae in General. — a. These plants belonging in the 

 calla lily family are found in the forests and in the open 

 country, varying in size from small to very large herbs. 

 None of the climbing ones should be used for food. Their 

 vegetative parts are in general characterized by being sup- 

 plied with myriads of minute needlelike stinging crystals of 

 calcium oxalate that are intensely irritating when brought 

 in contact with mucous membranes of the nose, mouth, and 

 throat and, in some cases, even in contact with tender skin; 

 these microscopic crystals (and they occur in our common 

 Indian turnip or Jack-in-the-pulpit) cause the so-called 

 acrid "taste" of these plants, but in spite of the very in- 

 tense irritation they may cause, the plants are normally not 

 actually poisonous. In spite of the presence of these sting- 

 ing crystals a considerable number of these plants are reg- 

 ularly eaten and several are widely cultivated for food, such 

 as the taro (and the yautia in tropical America), and to a 



10 



