Bush Tucker

 

The Bush Tucker features five Australian plants traditionally eaten by Aboriginal people. The part of the plant consumed as depicted varies from the tuber (murnong); fruit (quandong and lilly-pilly); seed (acacia); and flower (honey grevillea). The featured plants are found in a range of climates and locations throughout Australia.

The plant foods are shown against a background of a woven basket or wooden coolamon. These containers, from the collections of the Museum of Victoria, are appropriate to particular regions where the foods are found.

The issue date of stamp is 3 September 2002 and designed by Janet Boschen from Australia Post Design Studio.
 

 
Lilly-pilly (Acmena smithii):

 

There are several varieties of lilly-pilly fruits that may be eaten. Acmena smithii or lilly-pilly , depicted on the stamp, grows best in the moist soil of mountain gullies from Victoria to Northern Queensland. The pale mauve or white berry-like fruits are pleasantly tart and juicy and can be picked and eaten raw from the tree. Acmena smithii is a common urban street tree. 




 

 
 
Honey grevillea (Grevillea juncifolia):

 

Grevillea juncifolia grows on sand plains and dunes in Central Australia. It is characterised by large orange flower clusters with abundant nectar. The sweet honey is highly sought after and can be sucked directly from the flower or extracted steeping the flower in water to make a sweet drink. 




 

 
 
Quandong (Santalum acuminatum):

 

The quandong is a traditional staple food with a vitamin C content twice as high as that of an orange. Quondong trees are found in semi-arid areas of all mainland states. The small bright red fruits are eaten raw. Dried fruit, collected from under the tree, can be reconstituted in water.

 

The fruit can also be pounded and made into cakes to be dried and stored for later use. The relatively large kernels can also be eaten or ground into a paste for medicinal purposes. 

 

 
Acacia (Acacia coriacea):

The seeds of many types of acacia trees are eaten by Aboriginal people throughout Australia. One of the more attractive varieties, Acacia coriacea, is characterised by long, twisted pods containing vivid orange and black seeds. This acacia, also called dogwood, grows on the spinifex sandplains of Central Australia.

When they are green, the pods are roasted and the seeds extracted and eaten. Hardened seeds are also picked off the ground then soaked and mashed with water to make a ‘milky’ drink. 

 
Murnong (Microseris ‘lanceolata’):

The murnong is a small root vegetable resembling a dandelion. Murnong was a staple food of Aboriginal people in South-Eastern Australia until the mid 19th century when introduced grazing animals rapidly destroyed this once abundant and widespread plant. Now the murnong is considered an endangered species. Murnong tubers were sometimes eaten raw but were usually cooked in baskets. (Resources adopted from Australia Post Information.)