Ark of Taste, Australia
Queensland bunya nut
THE bunya nut was a traditional food of the Australian aboriginal people in a limited area of rainforests, predominantly in south-eastern Queensland, and especially in part of the Great Dividing Range now known as the Bunya Mountains national park. The nut resembles a chestnut and is equally tasty, maturing in summer. Hostilities were suspended as Aborigines travelled long distances to feast on the nuts. Their native habitat was mostly cleared, but some early white farmers planted bunya pines for household use. There is renewed interest in bunya nuts among the Australian Aboriginal and settler population. In 2002 a Bunya symposium was held at Queensland’s Griffith University. The large population increase in south-eastern Queensland during the next 20 years is likely to reduce the number of bunya pines.
The nuts come from a conifer in the genus Araucaria which dates back to the Jurassic era 180 million years ago. When Gondwana separated into different land masses 45 million years ago, the bunya pine continued to grow in small defined areas of Australia. The bunya pine is closely related to the monkey puzzle tree A. araucana, a native of South America. Nuts from both trees were an important food for indigenous tribes and the monkey puzzle nut is an important food source in Chile to the present day.
Bunya pines are majestic trees towering above some rainforests in Queensland. The football-sized green bunya pine cones are hidden in the tree canopy. Mature trees at 12-15 years produce cones with crops being exceptionally good every two to three years. The mature cone weighs 5-10 kilograms and contains between 30 and 100 nuts. The cones will fall from the tree when mature and should be harvested and frozen or processed within a week.
The wedge shaped nuts, when removed from the fleshy cone, are encased in a wooden shell. The nuts can easily be removed from wet cones. The nut is removed from the wooden shell using secateurs or careful use of a strong sharp knife. They are easier to remove when hot after cooking in the shell. Nutritionally they are similar to chestnuts, being starchy, not oily. Each nut weighs about 15 grams and contains 130 kilojoules (32 calories) with more starch and protein than the average nut. The raw nuts have a dry crunchy texture and taste similar to a chestnut with overtones of pine. When boiled in their shell for 20-30 minutes the texture becomes waxy and can be easily sliced or pureed.
Aboriginal people traditionally ate the nuts raw or roasted and they also buried the nuts in mud for some months to improve the flavour. Raw nuts, stored in their shells in the refrigerator in a sealed container for several months, have a much sweeter taste, probably similar to the nuts immersed in mud. European settlers in Australia in the early nineteenth century used to boil the nuts in the shells with their corned beef. Nuts were also kept in their shells in wet bags until sprouts formed in about a week. When the sprouts were about 5-10 cm long the sprouted nuts – still in the shells – were boiled for 20-30 minutes then removed from shells and served hot. Currently the nuts are eaten fresh, boiled or roasted in shell. Boiled nuts – whole, sliced or pureed – can be used in a variety of sweet and savoury dishes. Dry cooking methods harden the flesh and make it inedible. Bunya wood is excellent for smoking meat or fish.
The bunya pine occurs naturally in two areas in south-eastern Queensland, mainly between Nambour and Gympie and west to the Bunya Mountains, plus a small area in north Queensland at Mt Lewis and Cunnabullen Falls. The nuts have poor dispersal because animals digest the nuts and tubers, and the trees only spread by seeds falling near trees which occasionally grow into mature trees. Much of this historic area is now farmland with a few mature trees on many of the old farms. In 1908, more than 9000 hectares on the Bunya Mountains were reserved as a national park to protect the bunya tree from timber-getters. The Bunya Mountains are considered a very sacred place with similar status to Uluru for the Aborigines of south-eastern Queensland.
Bunya nuts were highly prized by tribes which travelled up to 300 kilometres to the Bunya Mountains in the bunya season between January to March. Here they participated in ceremonies and feasted on the nuts. Many trees were owned by individual families who cut notches on the tree trunks to climb up to 40 metres to collect the cones in the crown of the tree. The tribes from the mountains shared the nuts with coastal tribes who reciprocated by providing seafood when visited by the mountain tribes. These ceremonies ceased with European settlement. Tom Petrie, the son of a free settler, was the only person of European descent to travel with 100 Aborigines from Brisbane to one of these feasts. This is described in Tom Petrie’s Reminiscences of Early Queensland, published 1904. Currently aboriginal people are keen to restart the bunya festivals.
Area of production
Bunya Mountains National Park
South-eastern Queensland
Contacts
Anna Haebich
Associate Professor
School of Humanities and Queensland College of Art
Griffith University, Brisbane
T 07 38757175
Email
Len Sivyer
Assistant Regional Manager
Department of Primary Industries [Forestry]
Gympie, Queensland 4570
Tel 5482 0810
Email
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We have six or so very old Bunya pines on our property in Milla milla NQ & this year we have possibly got the most nuts on the trees that we have ever had ! so far I have collected 25 nuts with possibly another 15 yet to fall. I once sold some to a restraunt in Cairns but they are not interested this time. Do you have any suggestions as to what I could do with them or contacts of anyone that may bew interested in them.
Regards Debbie
Must be a good season for nuts this year. We too have a couple of young maturing bunya trees from which we have gathered 4 nuts over the weekend. I’m tossing up how to use them. Eat or propagate??
we visited the bunya mts for a walk and we had a meal at the cafe and they had a sauce made from the bunya nuts which where smoke then made into the yummy gravey… we all wanted to know how to make it. They told us it was made in their kitchen..not sure what the cafe was called but in was in the mts. not even shore if it is still open as its been long time since we where there. all I can say the gravey was wonderful
We have recently purchased a property which is approx 150 years old and it has a huge bunya pine growing in the garden as a focal tree in the front garden. Unfortunately, the top 1/3 or the tree has little foliage on the branches. I think this may be a result of white cockatoos which may be eating the foliage?? Does anyone know :
1. How to discourage the cockatoos from perching in the tree?
2. If the tree will recover from the damage done?
There appears to be life in the branches as I can see a couple of green twigs randomly along the branch or at the end. The tree is about 3 – 4 metres in diameter. I would love to be able to save this tree.
I am looking to buy some bunya nuts to try. Im in Byron Bay if anyone has any for sale. I noticed this site http://www.australianproduce.com.au that sells bunya nuts. Debbie Savage you may like to contact them as you were enquiring about selling them.
We bought Bunya nuts today at the Mullumbimby Farmers Market
They are common in Rookwood Cemetery here in Sydney. Two weeks ago I notice about a dozen at the base of two trees. They were even falling on the roadside verge. There must have been at least 50. However they are all gone now. I guess they are well known in the community and those who know knew when they would drop. I did get one myself only as a curiosity item but now I will try some.
There are many magnificent bunya bunya pines in the Fitzroy gardens in East Melbourne near the MCG. I was thrilled to find a massive 3 kg nut two days ago.
Very exotic for a Melbournian. I think I will try propagation with a few seeds and feast on the others. We have planted 6 of the pines each one metre high on a small farm near Swanpool in North Eastern Victoria. The avenue of honour at Swanpool is made up of Bunya Bunya Pines
@ Marie: I have approximately 12 nuts, and am more than happy to give you some, if you can get to Toowoomba or have someone who can pick them up.
How to get my phone number to you without it appearing here??
I have some bunya nuts if your interested Marie an I’m not far from Byron.
And if anyone else is interested as well
Debbie Savage @ Milla Milla, I might be a bit late but if you still have bunya nuts I’m sure the organic shops in Cairns like http://www.wyhm.com.au/ would take them. I bought some last week at Rusty’s on a Real Food Network stall $12kg.
http://www.realfoodnetwork.com.au. They have tableland connections I’m sure.
It is definitely a good year for them. There is a single tree near me in Toowoomba that usually doesn’t bother to set and this year I collected seven cones.
I have some Bunya nuts and sprouting bunya nuts for people in the Sydney area who would like to propogate them.
It must be something to do with Cemeteries! Palmdale Memorial Gardens & Crem at Ourimbah NSW ( north west of Gosford) have about 10 fully mature trees alone the road to the Cemetery. They are all on public Property and they are thrilled for anyone to collect them as they are otherwise thrown away! I collected a big 7kg one today with part on another ( must have originally been over 10kg as the circumference of the broken one was at least half as big again as the full one. I think the parrots had been into the broken one but it did mean that I did not have to get it broken open. The pine segments were soft enough to just peel away from the nuts inside! I was thinking of popping the full large one into an open fire?
Hi Debbie, I live in Melbourne and I’ve been searching high and low for a place to purchase Bunya nuts. I’m very happy to take/buy the nuts off you if you name your price. The only problem is that the nuts will have to be shipped to Melbourne. I look forward to a reply.
Hi @Nathalie,
I also live in Melbourne, last year I tried looking for the Bunya nuts at Fitzroy Gardens and was a bit disappointed because while I found the trees, there were no nuts. They take 3 years to grow. I had contemplated driving into the mountains to find them but that wasn’t practical so I began to lose interest… Until yesterday!
I was strolling through Queens Park in Moonee Ponds with my boyfriend when I couldn’t believe it, it was a bunya nut in its green casing, the more I walked the more there were and it was amazing. It’s like you read about it, but you never think you’ll actually see it. So while I didn’t find a whole big nut, I found many, many, many single ones strewn across the lawn under a Bunya Tree with barricade tape around it and this was just one tree. Looking around I could see more Bunya Tree tops in the park but we had gathered enough, it must’ve been 3, 4, 5kgs worth of nuts.
Not quite sure how people eat it raw (I found it quite yuk), but I read boiling them in water for half an hour was the best way to start. I’ve tried a few and it’s somewhat starchy with a fruity or flowery smell. Not as tasty as a chestnut but I’ve read it’s times more nutritious. I’m going to try making them into cakes and stews… So keep your money and head down there
Hi everyone, my kids and I have just discovered the Bunya Pine and visited two sites in Perth to see them. One site is in a local park and unfortunately the trees are constantly pruned to stop nuts from growing. The other one is locked up at a lovely heritage site and the caretaker doesn’t know when the tree will fruit again as it didn’t fruit on its 3 year cyle??? So we could have a long wait there.
We are desperate to purchase Bunya nuts so if anyone knows of Perth contacts or how we can acquire them, via post from other states, we would be very, very, grateful for any information. Not very computer literate so not sure how this works as there are no contacts listed here so as I don’t have a website this is my contact No if you could pls txt or phone me on 0428393653.
I checked out australianproduce.com but came up empty. And I have just sent msgs to the other links. Thank you and eagerly awating a response before season ends.
9-3-12
We were at Benalla Show Grounds,
yesterday. Behind our car was a very large old gaint Bunya Tree.
On the ground was 3 large big green pineapple seed pods and hundreds of seeds laying on the ground, we came home with a hat full of clean seeds there were plenty of the covered seeds.
Now I have to work out how to propagate the seeds.
well mmmkay i think my nuts arent really ripe yet mmmkay ive been doing some drugs though.. drugs are bad… mmkay you shouldnt do drugs, drugs are bad mmkay, my fridge is full of bunya nuts mmkay its cool mmkay yeah mmkay.
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@debbie savage – are you willing to post them to Sydney? Me and I’m sure a few other brazilians around here would love to try some. Bunya Nut is a “cousin” of a nut typical in the south part of Brazil, also from the Auraucaria tree. Let me know… cheers, Aline
If you wish to purchase Bunya nutts call 08-92492866,we sell to the service industry, as well public.. based in perth WA
WE SELL TO THE PUBLIC… BUNYA NUTTS , LILLI PILLI , NATIVE RIBERRIES, ILLAWARRA PLUMS, MUNTHARI BERRIES , WATTLESEED, BUSH TOMATO, WILD LIMES , LEMON ASPEN , LEMON MYRTLE , And more in the bush food categories, as well all Australian game meats … visit….. mcd.com.au
wat does it taste like?????????
Hi,
I am a journalist from an online publication called Reportage and am very interested in your experiences growing, cooking or picking the bunya nut. I’d like to find out more about how you became interested in the plant and your favourite bunya nut recipes for an article I’m writing.
If you’d like to get in contact with me and share some of your bunya nut stories I can be reached on 0420 801 554 or on charmaine.y.wong@gmail.com
Thanks,
Charmaine Wong