Euryale ferox.
Botanical name:
Euryale ferox Salisb. Nymphaeceae. Gorgon. Prickly Water-Lily.
East India and China. This aquatic plant is frequently cultivated in India and China for its floury seeds. In China, it is said to have been in cultivation for upwards of 3000 years. The fruit is round, soft, pulpy and the size of a small orange; it contains from 8 to 15 round, black seeds as large as peas, which are eaten roasted. The pulp is also eaten. Smith says, in China, it is much cultivated for the stems, rhizomes and seeds, all of which contain much starch and are eaten.
Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World, 1919, was edited by U. P. Hedrick.
