prairie turnip
(Pediomelum esculentum)
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Use • Distribution • Taxonomy
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Description |
Prairie turnip is a 4″ to 16″ tall, erect, perennial forb that rises on 1 to 3 stems from a spindle-shaped or round, tuberous-thickened, deep, edible root. The stems are erect or ascending, often zigzagged, and much branched. They are densely covered with conspicuous, spreading hairs. The leaves are alternate and are palmately divided into 5 leaflets. They are on hairy leaf stalks, the larger leaves on stalks 1½″ to 4″ long. The leaflets are narrowly inversely egg-shaped or oblong to inversely lance-shaped and are folded along the midrib. They are ¾″ to 1½″ long and up to about ½″ to ¾″ wide when flattened. The upper surface is mostly hairless. The lower surface is densely covered with long, soft, silky, appressed, white hairs. The inflorescence is a dense, leafy, cone-shaped spike 1⅛″ to 3⅛″ long and about 1″ wide rising on a stout stalk from the upper leaf axils. The flowers are ⅝″ to ¾″ wide and pea-like, with 5 petals organized into a broad banner at the top, 2 narrow wings, and a keel in the center formed by two petals fused together at the tip. The petals are blue. The fruit is a densely hairy, egg-shaped pod with a beak obviously longer than the pod. It contains a single seed. |
Height |
4″ to 16″ |
Flower Color |
Blue |
Similar Species |
Habitat |
Dry. Undisturbed prairies. |
Ecology |
Flowering |
May to July |
Pests and Diseases |
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Use |
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Distribution |
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| 6/5/2024 | ||
Nativity |
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Native |
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Occurrence |
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Taxonomy |
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Kingdom |
Plantae (green algae and land plants) |
Subkingdom |
Viridiplantae (green plants) |
Infrakingdom |
Streptophyta (land plants and green algae) |
Superdivision |
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Division |
Tracheophyta (vascular plants) |
Subdivision |
Spermatophytina (seed plants) / Angiospermae (flowering plants) |
Class |
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Superorder |
Rosanae |
Order |
Fabales (legumes, milkworts, and allies) |
Family |
Fabaceae (legumes) |
Subfamily |
Faboideae |
Tribe |
Psoraleeae (fountainbushes and allies) |
Genus |
Pediomelum (breadroots and scurfpeas) |
Subordinate Taxa |
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Synonyms |
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Lotodes esculentum Psoralea brachiata Psoralea esculenta |
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Common Names |
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breadroot breadroot scurfpea breadroot scurf-pea Indian breadroot Indian turnip large Indian breadroot prairie apple prairie potato prairie turnip prairie-turnip shaggy prairie-turnip |
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Glossary
Axil
The upper angle where the leaf stalk meets the stem.
Palmate
Similar to a hand. Having more than three lobes or leaflets that radiate from a single point at the base of the leaf.
Rhizome
A horizontal, usually underground stem. It serves as a reproductive structure, producing roots below and shoots above at the nodes.
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Dan W. Andree |
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Plant |
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Inflorescence |
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Inflorescence |
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Slideshows |
Pediomelum esculentum |
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About
Native perennial herb, stems erect, highly branched, up to 20 cm tall, herbage glandular punctate but this obscured by hirsute vestiture, flower with sepals 5-7 mm long that continue to elongate during fruit development, pods with 1 seed, inconspicuous and concealed by the calyx, common at lower elevations in grasslands and sagebrush steppe especially in the eastern half of Montana, abundant in rangeland is well managed. |
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Other Videos |
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Man vs. Wild - Yum! Prairie Turnip! |
About
Uploaded on Oct 21, 2008 Check out Bear's Ten SCARY SURVIVAL moments: http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/man-vs-wild-scary-survival-moments/?smid=YTDSC-YTD-PLP Bear Grylls demonstrates how to find and prepare this Native American survival food. |
Wild Foods: Prairie Turnip |
About
Published on Jun 19, 2014 Foraging for wild foods in the Great Plains. The Prairie Turnip or psoralea esculenta is a great food that was very important to the Native American tribes in the area |
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Dan W. Andree |
Location: SNA in Norman Co. Mn. |
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