As I write this I rejoice in the fact that any day now the Bunya tree cones will begin to fall. I don’t rejoice so much that the nuts are falling, but more that they are landing and then available for harvest! You certainly don’t want to be under them when they are falling or for that matter waiting to catch these babies, as they weigh in at upto 10kg plus gravity!) These delicious nuts are a great bonus to our diet and potentially free if you have one on yours or a friends block.
Free food is always great and food that literally falls from the sky is even better . The Bunya Tree (Araucaria bidwillii) is one of the truly ancient members of our local forests. They hark back to the age of dinosaurs and were once widespread across the Australian and are part of a family Araucariaceae that extends across many of the southern land masses and includes Hoop Pines, Norfolk Pines and Monkey Puzzle Pine.
These days Bunya Pine occurs naturally in one tiny patch of north Queensland and more locally as scattered populations between the Sunshine Coast and Kingaroy (Bunya Mountains). Not only are these trees ancient, but quite exclusive about where they live – so we are lucky to share their neighbourhood with them! The Bunya Pine was and still is an important part of the traditional owner’s culture and economy providing a huge crop roughly every 3 years. This bumper crop provided a great excuse for a big party, family reunions, making of law and so much more. Recent settlers have also been taught the benefits of this great tree and we are lucky to have this knowledge and this resource in our neighbourhood.
Bunya Trees are a Blackall Range icon and easy to grow. The starchy Bunya nut sends a root deep into the ground where it forms a thick tap root (like a radish) from which the tree shoots. They are a little bit slow to start off with but once they get going can grow a metre or two per year and can be fruiting at 12-15 years -just don’t plant them near your driveway, garage, shed, water tank, house etc. for what I hope are obvious reasons…
Cooking with Bunya Nuts: boil for twenty minutes, then let them cool down enough to handle, the next bit is tricky and very, very important – don’t cut your fingers off! The husk on each individual nut is quite tough and requires a sharp knife and an equally sharp operator. Once you get the knack you’ll get a taste for bunya that’s hard to keep up with your cutting abilities!
