The use of wild plants as food in pre-industrial Sweden
This paper is a review of the actual gathering and use of wild edible plants in the 18th and 19th centuries, with a brief concluding discussion on the present day use of wild plants as food within Sweden. The peasants and the nomads in pre-industrial Sweden utilised very few wild plant taxa as food....
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Polish Botanical Society
2012-12-01
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| Series: | Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://pbsociety.org.pl/journals/index.php/asbp/article/view/1032 |
| _version_ | 1819041766961053696 |
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| author | Ingvar Svanberg |
| author_facet | Ingvar Svanberg |
| author_sort | Ingvar Svanberg |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper is a review of the actual gathering and use of wild edible plants in the 18th and 19th centuries, with a brief concluding discussion on the present day use of wild plants as food within Sweden. The peasants and the nomads in pre-industrial Sweden utilised very few wild plant taxa as food. Many even despised the wild fruits and green plants. Some plants and fruits were earlier mostly eaten fresh on the spot, or gathered for consumption in bread, gruel or soup. Other fruits were dried or preserved in other ways. In times of food shortages the amount of wild plants increased in the diet, but still the peasantry and nomads were often able to use fish and game to provide enough nutrients.
With access to cheap sugar in the early 20th century wild fruits (Vaccinium myrtillus L., V. vitis-idaea L., and Rubus chamaemorus L.) increased in importance, especially among urban-dwellers and within food industry. In the last few decades fungi have also become part of the urban diet. Fifty years ago working class people gathered only Cantharellus cibarius (Fr.) and occasionally Boletus edulis Bull. Nowadays more taxa are utilised within the Swedish households, and especially the easy to pick Cantharellus tubaeformis (Pers.) has become very popular recently. Harvesting fruits and mushrooms in the forests is a popular pastime for many urban people, but also a source of income for immigrants and especially foreign seasonal labour. The only traditional green wild food plant that is regularly eaten in contemporary Sweden is Urtica dioica L. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-21T09:30:13Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-35e4676bece2454b82ec50d2e4bef22d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2083-9480 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-21T09:30:13Z |
| publishDate | 2012-12-01 |
| publisher | Polish Botanical Society |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae |
| spelling | doaj.art-35e4676bece2454b82ec50d2e4bef22d2022-12-21T19:08:45ZengPolish Botanical SocietyActa Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae2083-94802012-12-0181431732710.5586/asbp.2012.039975The use of wild plants as food in pre-industrial SwedenIngvar Svanberg0Uppsala Centre for Russian and Eurasian Studies, Uppsala University, Box 514, 751 20 UppsalaThis paper is a review of the actual gathering and use of wild edible plants in the 18th and 19th centuries, with a brief concluding discussion on the present day use of wild plants as food within Sweden. The peasants and the nomads in pre-industrial Sweden utilised very few wild plant taxa as food. Many even despised the wild fruits and green plants. Some plants and fruits were earlier mostly eaten fresh on the spot, or gathered for consumption in bread, gruel or soup. Other fruits were dried or preserved in other ways. In times of food shortages the amount of wild plants increased in the diet, but still the peasantry and nomads were often able to use fish and game to provide enough nutrients. With access to cheap sugar in the early 20th century wild fruits (Vaccinium myrtillus L., V. vitis-idaea L., and Rubus chamaemorus L.) increased in importance, especially among urban-dwellers and within food industry. In the last few decades fungi have also become part of the urban diet. Fifty years ago working class people gathered only Cantharellus cibarius (Fr.) and occasionally Boletus edulis Bull. Nowadays more taxa are utilised within the Swedish households, and especially the easy to pick Cantharellus tubaeformis (Pers.) has become very popular recently. Harvesting fruits and mushrooms in the forests is a popular pastime for many urban people, but also a source of income for immigrants and especially foreign seasonal labour. The only traditional green wild food plant that is regularly eaten in contemporary Sweden is Urtica dioica L.https://pbsociety.org.pl/journals/index.php/asbp/article/view/1032ethnobiologyplant gatheringwild food plantsfamine food |
| spellingShingle | Ingvar Svanberg The use of wild plants as food in pre-industrial Sweden Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae ethnobiology plant gathering wild food plants famine food |
| title | The use of wild plants as food in pre-industrial Sweden |
| title_full | The use of wild plants as food in pre-industrial Sweden |
| title_fullStr | The use of wild plants as food in pre-industrial Sweden |
| title_full_unstemmed | The use of wild plants as food in pre-industrial Sweden |
| title_short | The use of wild plants as food in pre-industrial Sweden |
| title_sort | use of wild plants as food in pre industrial sweden |
| topic | ethnobiology plant gathering wild food plants famine food |
| url | https://pbsociety.org.pl/journals/index.php/asbp/article/view/1032 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ingvarsvanberg theuseofwildplantsasfoodinpreindustrialsweden AT ingvarsvanberg useofwildplantsasfoodinpreindustrialsweden |