Rainforest Plant Uses
HSIE
Alocasia macrorrhizos (Cunjevoi)
This thick stem is sugary and full of fibre, but is also poisonous if eaten raw. If eaten raw, the mouth and throat swells up and may stay like that for a long time. If you want to eat the stem with out getting poisoned you must roast and pound the plant repeatedly for the poison to go.
Dodonaea viscosa ( Hop-bush)
The juice of the root in this plant was applied on toothaches and cuts to heal it. It was also put on stings of stingrays and stonefish for the pain to go away for a few days.
Araucaria Bidwillii ( Bunya Pine)
This fascinating tree holds large green cones that when opened, inside is a delicious, hard shelled nut, about 5cm long. This was so special and popular that tribes would walk hundreds of kilometres just to eat this nut.
Exocarpos cupressiformis (Cherry Ballart, Native Cherry)
The fruits on the Exocarpos cupressiformis have a juicy, succulant base with a hard seed at the top. the wood of the plant was used for spearthrowers and bullroarers (a musical instrument) and the sap was applied on snakebites to heal it. There were many species of the cherry but this was the most common.
Citriobatus pauciflorus (OrangeThorn)
On this plant there are little, round, yellow edible fruits about 1-3 cm across, with a leathery, smooth skin and large seeds.