1 882.J A few of the Useful Plants of Northern Japan. 1 1 9 



NOTE ON A FEW OF THE USEFUL PLANTS OF 

 NORTHERN JAPAN. 



BY PROFESSOR D. P. PENHALLOW. 



THE object of the following lines is, not so much to draw at- 

 tention to the plants which are generally recognized as of 

 great value to man, as it is to bring to notice plants less widely 

 known for their useful properties and in which special interest 

 centers, either from the novelty of their use or the fact that, while 

 but little known, they possess qualities which, under the improve- 

 ment of cultivation, would render them highly desirable acquisi- 

 tions wherever they can be grown. 



Depending upon the natural products of the uncultivated soil 

 to supplement the products of the chase, the aborigines of Yesso 

 have long since discovered whatever plants are of real value, 

 either as articles of food, or as furnishing material for their few 

 and simple manufactures, and some of these they have turned to 

 such good account, that they are worthy of more than casual 



Various species of Lilium abound throughout the forests, and 

 all those which furnish a sufficiently large bulb, are utilized as a 

 source of farinaceous food. Early in autumn the women may be 

 seen returning to their villages loaded with bulbs. These are 

 thoroughly crushed in a large wooden mortar, after which the 

 starch is separated from the cellular mass by repeated washing. 

 The former is then dried and hung up in bags for winter use, 

 while the latter is dried in round, perforated cakes somewhat 

 resembling miniature mill-stones, and hung up to dry. Later, it 

 serves as food for the Aino and for the caged bears which are 

 generally to be met with wherever there is a small settlement. 

 The Japanese hold the lily bulbs, as a source of farinaceous food, 

 in great esteem, and the demand for them is so great that they 

 are cultivated ( L. bulbiferum) in large quantities and form one of 

 the prominent farm products to be seen in the market. The 

 bulbs are simply boiled and eaten as potatoes would be. From 

 personal experience we are able to certify as to their qualities. 

 It is somewhat more difficult, however, to give testimony bearing 

 .upon the flavor and desirable qualities of flowers and buds from 

 various species of Hemerocallis. In certain sections of the island, 

 particularly on the pumice formation of the east coast, these plants 



