Useful Plants. The Scrub Nettle & Stinging Nettle.

Urtica incisa - Scrub Nettle

Family:	Urticaceae
Habit:	Perennial
Height:	1.8
Synonyms:
Range:	Australia - New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania, Victoria. Also found in New Zealand.

Urtica incisa (Scrub Nettle) is a Perennial which grows to a height of 1.8m . It has a hardness rating of 0and is vunerable to frost.
The flowers from this plant are monoecious (both sexes are found on the plant but each flower is either male or female) and they are pollinated by Wind

Soil Information

Scrub Nettle will grow in light (sandy),medium (loamy),hard (clay) soil. It is not necessary for the soil to be well drained.
The soil prefers the following PH / acid levels :
- pH of less than 6, Acidic soils
- pH between 6 and 8, Neutral soils
- pH greater than 8, Basic soils
Scrub Nettle prefers moist soils

Ideal Planting Locations

Scrub Nettle can grow in semi or areas with no shade.

Usually in damp gullies in Australia[154]. Lowland to montane forests, forest margins and shaded open places throughout New Zealand[173].

Planting places suited to this plant described below.

• Grows within a woodland garden
• Grows on a sunny edge
• Works within dappled Shade
• Grows in a shady edge

Cultivation Details

We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it should succeed outdoors at least in the milder parts of the country. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus. Prefers a nitrogen-rich soil[200]. The best fibre is produced when plants are grown on deep fertile soils[200]. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.

Edible Uses*

* See disclaimer
Edible Rating: 3/5
Young leaves - cooked[144, 173]. A tasty vegetable[193]. A very nutritious food, high in vitamins and minerals, it makes an excellent spinach substitute and can also be added to soups and stews. Only use the young leaves and wear stout gloves when harvesting them to prevent getting stung. Although the fresh leaves have stinging hairs, thoroughly drying or cooking them destroys these hairs. Nettle beer is brewed from the young shoots[200].

• Drink - not including plant saps, tea or coffee substitutes.
• Leaves -

Medicinal Uses*

* See disclaimer
Medicinal Rating: 0/5
None known

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a cold frame, only just covering the seed. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle, and plant them out in the summer. Division succeeds at almost any time in the growing season. Very easy, plant them straight out into their permanent positions.

Known Hazards

The leaves of the plants have stinging hairs, causing irritation to the skin[21, 200]. This action is neutralized by heat so the cooked leaves are perfectly safe and nutritious[200]. However, only young leaves should be used because older leaves develop gritty particles called cystoliths which act as an irritant to the kidneys[172].

Other Uses

A strong flax-like fibre is obtained from the stems[154, 156, 200]. Used for making string and cloth, it also makes a good quality paper[115]. It is harvested as the plant begins to die down in early autumn and is retted before the fibres are extracted[4, 99]. The following uses have been listed for U. dioica, but they are almost certainly also applicable to this species. The plant matter left over after the fibres have been extracted are a good source of biomass and have been used in the manufacture of sugar, starch, protein and ethyl alcohol[4]. An oil obtained from the seeds is used as an illuminant[4]. An essential ingredient of 'QR' herbal compost activator[32]. This is a dried and powdered mixture of several herbs that can be added to a compost heap in order to speed up bacterial activity and thus shorten the time needed to make the compost[K]. The leaves are also an excellent addition to the compost heap[12, 18, 20] and they can be soaked for 7 - 21 days in water to make a very nutritious liquid feed for plants[54]. This liquid feed is both insect repellent and a good foliar feed[14, 18, 53]. The growing plant increases the essential oil content of other nearby plants, thus making them more resistant to insect pests[18, 20, 54]. Although many different species of insects feed on nettles, flies are repelled by the plant so a bunch of freshly cut stems has been used as a repellent in food cupboards[4]. The juice of the plant, or a decoction formed by boiling the herb in a strong solution of salt, will curdle milks and thus acts as a rennet substitute[4]. This same juice, if rubbed into small seams of leaky wooden tubs, will coagulate and make the tub watertight again[4]. A hair wash is made from the infused leaves and this is used as a tonic and antidandruff treatment[172, 201]. A beautiful and permanent green dye is obtained from a decoction of the leaves and stems[4, 115]. A yellow dye is obtained from the root when boiled with alum[4, 115].

• Compost - Plants used for activating compost heaps, providing biomass for composting, using as instant compost etc.
• Dye - Plants that provide dyes.
• Fibre - Used for making cloth, rope, paper etc.
• Hair - Plants used as hair shampoos, tonics, to treat balding etc.
• Liquid feed - Plants that can be used to make a liquid fertilizer.
• Repellent - Plants that are said to deter but not necessarily kill various mammals, birds, insects etc.

http://www.aussiegardening.com.au/findplants/plant/Urtica_incisa

 Herb: Scrub Nettle

 Latin name: Urtica incisa

Family: Urticaceae (Nettle Family)

 Edible parts of Scrub Nettle:

Young leaves - cooked. A tasty vegetable. A very nutritious food, high in vitamins and minerals, it makes an excellent spinach substitute and can also be added to soups and stews. Only use the young leaves and wear stout gloves when harvesting them to prevent getting stung. Although the fresh leaves have stinging hairs, thoroughly drying or cooking them destroys these hairs. Nettle beer is brewed from the young shoots.
Description of the plant:

Plant:

Perennial

Height:

180 cm
(6 feet)

Habitat of the herb:
Usually in damp gullies in Australia. Lowland to montane forests, forest margins and shaded open places throughout New Zealand.
Other uses of Scrub Nettle:
A strong flax-like fibre is obtained from the stems. Used for making string and cloth, it also makes a good quality paper. It is harvested as the plant begins to die down in early autumn and is retted before the fibres are extracted. The following uses have been listed for U. dioica, but they are almost certainly also applicable to this species. The plant matter left over after the fibres have been extracted are a good source of biomass and have been used in the manufacture of sugar, starch, protein and ethyl alcohol. An oil obtained from the seeds is used as an illuminant. An essential ingredient of "QR" herbal compost activator. This is a dried and powdered mixture of several herbs that can be added to a compost heap in order to speed up bacterial activity and thus shorten the time needed to make the compost. The leaves are also an excellent addition to the compost heap and they can be soaked for 7 - 21 days in water to make a very nutritious liquid feed for plants. This liquid feed is both insect repellent and a good foliar feed. The growing plant increases the essential oil content of other nearby plants, thus making them more resistant to insect pests. Although many different species of insects feed on nettles, flies are repelled by the plant so a bunch of freshly cut stems has been used as a repellent in food cupboards. The juice of the plant, or a decoction formed by boiling the herb in a strong solution of salt, will curdle milks and thus acts as a rennet substitute. This same juice, if rubbed into small seams of leaky wooden tubs, will coagulate and make the tub watertight again. A hair wash is made from the infused leaves and this is used as a tonic and antidandruff treatment. A beautiful and permanent green dye is obtained from a decoction of the leaves and stems. A yellow dye is obtained from the root when boiled with alum.
Propagation of the herb:
Seed - sow spring in a cold frame, only just covering the seed. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle, and plant them out in the summer. Division succeeds at almost any time in the growing season. Very easy, plant them straight out into their permanent positions.
Cultivation of Scrub Nettle:
Usually in damp gullies in Australia. Lowland to montane forests, forest margins and shaded open places throughout New Zealand.
Medicinal use of the herb:
None known
Known hazards of Urtica incisa:
The leaves of the plants have stinging hairs, causing irritation to the skin. This action is neutralized by heat so the cooked leaves are perfectly safe and nutritious. However, only young leaves should be used because older leaves develop gritty particles called cystoliths which act as an irritant to the kidneys.

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.

http://www.naturalmedicinalherbs.net/herbs/u/urtica-incisa=scrub-nettle.php

This is apparently a scrub nettle, native to Australia.

This is a nettle we have growing not far from Elm Cottage. The leaves are narrow. Whether this is another type of nettle, or whether it has something to do with the ground it is growing in I am not sure, but both are edible once boiled.

Cumbungi, for food & cordage & more.

Cumbungi/cattail/bulrush grows in many parts of Australia, America, England & Europe, so again is worthy of note. A good supply of this plant will keep you fed year round.

"As well as the rhizome, the young shoots which appear in the spring and the raw young flower-stalks were also eaten (Beveridge 1883, 36, and 1889, 20; Robinson 1840, 996), and the bases of the mature shoots and leaves always remain soft and edible.

Cooking

Two main methods of cooking are recorded--roasting in the ashes, or steaming in an earth oven. Mitchell, on the Lachlan River, described roasting as follows (1839, vol 2, 53, 60, 384):

The natives gather the roots and carry them on their heads in great bundles

within a piece of net ... The root is taken in lengths of 8-10 in., they

peel off the outer rind, lay it a little before the fire, then twist and

loosen the fibres, when a quantity of gluten, exactly resembling wheaten

flour, may be shaken out. This gluten they call balyan.

Notice that the less-productive outer cortex was discarded before cooking. Although Mitchell described it first as cooked by being laid on the fire, later, starting down the Murrumbidgee from the Lachlan junction, he described `lofty mounds of burnt clay or ashes ... [in which] the balyan is prepared' (1839, 80-81). On the lower Murray River, the rhizomes were cooked on a heap of limestone which had been heated by fire, with another layer of heated stones and wet grass laid over the top, the whole then enclosed in a mound of sand (Angas 1847b, 85). Krefft (1865, 361), on the middle Murray, said it was harvested probably in late summer, and lived on for several months. It was cooked in a hole in the ground, and was carried about as provisions. Beveridge, at Tyntynder, on the Murray River below Swan Hill, remarked that more of it could have been used, but `it requires considerable labor to dig'; he indicated that it was cooked in an earth oven using balls of clay as heat retainers and gave a detailed description of how the oven was made. A hole, 3 feet in diameter and 18 inches deep, was dug by the women. Any pieces of clay about the size of cricket balls were placed to one side. The hole was swept out with grass or boughs, and filled with firewood, which was then set alight with the clay balls on top. When the fire had died down, the clay balls were removed with two sticks used as tongs, and the ashes were swept out. The hole was lined with moistened grass on which the rhizomes were placed, more moistened grass was used as a cover, and the baked clay nodules placed on top. The whole was then covered with earth until the food was cooked (Beveridge 1889, 19). Mounds still remaining on the flood-plain are full of these baked clay balls (Coutts et al 1979, 60, 69; Frankel 1991, 74-82) and were certainly cooking sites for Cumbungi and other foods. The action of earth ovens is to steam the food, and is an efficient way of cooking for a group. The technique was subject to minor variations (see Browne, in Finnis 1966, 42, for example). J Mathew, on the Murrumbidgee River, described very large earth ovens holding `half a ton' of rhizomes, prepared for large gatherings of people:

A hole of circular outline 3-4ft deep and 15-20ft across was made. The roots were placed in the centre on a pile of dry wood. On the surface
were

strewn layers of long grass and light sticks. The fire was lit and the excavated earth returned as a covering. The time for cooking might be several days. When done, water was poured on the oven to cool it. (Mathew1899, 91)

After cooking, the practice was to strip off the cortex, chew the central part of the rhizome to remove the starch, and to spit out the fibres, which could then be retained for making string.

In the Brisbane area, the rhizomes appear to have been chewed raw; the fibre was discarded (Petrie 1904, 92). In southern Western Australia, the rhizomes were cleaned and pounded between flat stones into a paste, presumably to break up the fibre, and then made into a cake and baked (Grey 1841, vol 2, 291; Moore 1884, 81). Morris (1943, 169) said that the pollen was used for food in Victoria, but gave no reference. It is certainly produced copiously. In New Zealand, the Maori ate the pollen, made into cakes or gruel, and also the centres of the rhizomes and the young leaves (Crowe 1981, 107-08"http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb3326/is_1_1999/ai_n28742509/pg_7/

Cattail Pond in Wychwood Forest where I live.

This plant is also note worthy for its use as thatching & matting for shelter use inside & out.

Native Australian Useful Plants. NSW.

I will be featuring useful native plants that grow in my area of New England NSW. Most of the information on Australian edible plants is based on the Northern Territory, & therefore is of no use to those of us in colder areas.
The Xanthorrhoea can be found though in all parts of Australia in various forms, so it is a good plant to take note of. I have heaps of these growing in my forest here near Armidale NSW.

The grass tree/black boy/yacca/Kangaroo tail. NOTE: A very similar plant known as yucca grows in America.

A traditional Aboriginal favourite

Grass trees were a 'staple' plant for the aborigines, providing food, drink, fibre and materials for making implements and weapons.

Food and drink

As a food source, the white, tender sections of leaf bases, the growing points of stem and succulent roots were all eaten regularly. The removal of the growing point was rare as it destroyed the plant altogether. The seeds were collected and ground into a flour to provide dough for cooking a type of damper, within the ashes of a wattle wood fire.

They frequently dug out edible grubs found at the base of the trunk. The grub's presence could be detected by the observing the dead leaves in the centre of the grass tree crown.

Small sweet pockets of honey could also be extracted from the carpenter bee's cellular nests, which were often bored in the soft pith of the flower stalk.

To wash this down, the nectar from the flower could be extracted by soaking it in water filled bark troughs, to produce a thick sweet drink. A citric flavoured alcoholic brew could be made from fermenting the nectar over 3 to 5 days. An extra tang was added to the brew by crushing a few 'formic' ants into the beverage.

http://anpsa.org.au/APOL33/mar04-5.html

Although not specifically a plant for fibre it was very useful in crafting of aboriginal tools. The light straight flower stalk served as a butt-piece for spears. A tip section of tea tree would then be attached to the end of the spear and hardened in the fire before used for hunting.
Mainland Aboriginals used pieces of very dry flower stalk for making fire with a drilling stick.
The leaves produce a hard waterproof resin, which could be collected from the base of the trunk. This resin melts when wanned, but sets hard when cold. It had a number of uses including;

• Forming glue by mixing it with charcoal, beeswax or fine sand and dust.
• Gluing the cement stone heads to wooden handles and spears to shafts and tips.
• Waterproofing bark canoes and water carrying vessels.

The versatility of this resin in the every day lives of the aborigines, made it a valuable trading item and was traded amongst tribes for other important collectables.