Food, Fiber and Ethnobotany

Thank you Christophe Meneboeuf for this wonderful image of Bulrush harvest on Lake Titicaca. 


This is a current day image of Uros people an indigenous people predating the Incas. Image taken in 2005, of a practice, rooted so to speak with people whose history is linked to evidence for populating polynesia from South America. Their boats for transpacific voyages were made from living giant bulrush, Scirpus californicus a plant with many uses for food and fiber.


What can I say about the biology of the plant shown in this picture

This week, late August I am collecting seed of Scirpus acutis. It is a tricky plant to gather seeds as soon as they ripen they fall out of the heads. When picking seed I am pulling these fruit clusters from over my head and I am sprinkled with seed. End of day I am brushing the flat, hard black seeds out of hair and arms like lice. 


When finished fruiting the deep green plants immediately become senescent and change color. The bulrush patch starts looking as if a frost had hit but just a rapid decline to preserve the starch content in the roots. These rhizomes and their starch content were important food source for  original people. What is nice about this plant is how the rhizomes grow very shallow. Perhaps this is adaptation to boggy soils where oxygen is limited due to the nutrient rich and reducing environment. When I grow this plant at our native plant nursery, on sandy loam soil,even in second year without irrigation the roots remain shallow. This is an easy plant to harvest for food, especially during dry season at end of growth period. 


Other uses for this plant is as a source of fiber for mats, roofing and floating residence,  Even duck decoys.
More from Norm Kidders article linked above curing the collection and working with tules. 


'WORKING WITH TULES


Cut tules anytime after they have reached full height. They will tend to get firmer from late summer into fall. They can be cut in the fall until wind and rain have broken and dried them. The feel of the stem is the real determining factor. Be careful when cutting to keep the tules neatly stacked in the same direction so they don't bend or break. I tie them into bundles about 8 inches thick at the base with cords near each end and one in the middle. Always carry the bundles with the butt ends forward to avoid breakage.
Once cut, the stems must dried before use. Depending on when they are cut, they may shrink up to 50% in diameter as they dry. When they are uniformly light green they are just dry enough, although yellow or tan is better. While drying, be sure to allow for good ventilation, and don't stack the tules too thickly, or mold and mildew will result. I prefer to dry tules in the shade. It takes longer, but they acquire a leathery texture. Drying in the sun is quicker (few days instead of a few weeks), but the stems end up more crisp and brittle.

TWINING
Twining is easily confused with weaving, but differs in a fundamental way. Weaving involves a single strand passing in and out between the standing stock or ribs. Twining involves two (or three) strands which pass around the ribs in sequence, while intertwining around each other. This results in a 'locked' stitch compared to weaving's looser wrapping. Twining done without ribs (twisting) results in a two (or three) ply rope.

TWISTING
Twisting is used to turn fibers into string, or in this case using whole or split tules to make tule rope. To begin, grasp a bundle of at least two tules at each end and twist them between your fingers until the tules begin to 'kink' back on themselves. Move your hands closer together as the tule strands are twisted, and the kink begins to twist into a 2-ply strand. Attach the end to something (your teeth?), and now, as you twist clockwise, pass the strand over each other counterclockwise, switching hands. Repeat this endlessly, adding in new tules (fat end first) into each side as needed (See the "Bulletin of Primitive Technology" #2 for a complete description of the string making process).

TULE MATS AND SUCH
To twine tules into mats or other items, begin as you would for rope, twisting together three or tour inches of single ply cord. Instead of twisting the plys together, place the twisted section around a small bunch of tules with each twist. You should have the tules laid out roughly. Pass the strand which lies on top of the first bunch over the strand which comes up from beneath, and then this strand passes beneath the second bunch of tules and then comes back out to the working face. Repeat this - over, behind and out - until you have completed a row. Add in additional pieces of tule as needed to maintain the thickness of the strand. As the row progresses, each 'stitch' should slant at the same angle across the face of the project At the end of a row, twine the tule strands into rope until it is long enough to reach the next spot you want a row to begin, then turn and twine the row. Continue this process until you have finished. End the last row with a knot, then tuck the ends back into the work.'


To the modern day
Making paper from bulrush is also an ancient craft. To this day specialty papers are sold for special and decorative purposes. Surfing the net I have seen bulrush wallpaper objects of art and yes below bulrush sandals made  with 60% Bulrush,30% PVC 5% poly fabric and 5%bead, offered by a chinese manufacturer.