Hymenocallis pimana
Laferr.
Pima spider-lily
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Eric Hough, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Eric Hough
gbif· cc0
President and Fellows of Harvard College
Summary
Source: WikipediaHymenocallis pimana is a member of the genus Hymenocallis, in the family Amaryllidaceae. Common name in English is Pima spider-lily; in Spanish it is cebollín. It is endemic to a small mountainous region in the Sierra Madre Occidental, straddling the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sonora. Many of the people of the region are of the indigenous group known as the Mountain Pima or Pima Bajo. Type locale is the small village of Nabogame, approximately 18 km northwest of Yepáchic, Chihuahua and about 10 km east of the frontier with Sonora. This is at elevation of approximately 1800 m (6000 ft).
Description
A bulbous plant from the amaryllis family (Amaryllidaceae) native to tropical regions, used as a famine food.
This description is brief — help expand it
Edible Uses
The bulbs are edible but require extensive and specialist processing to remove poisons before they can be safely eaten.
Traditional Uses
The bulbs need extensive and specialist processing to remove poisons before being eaten.
This uses section is brief — help expand it
Known Hazards
The Pima peoples of the region report that these bulbs provided an emergency food source in years past, during famines that followed crop failures. They say that the bulbs were boiled in lye to remove toxic alkaloids before consumption. This is the only known instance of any people utilizing any member of this genus as food.
Distribution
It is a tropical plant.
Where It Grows
Mexico, North America,
Other Information
It is a famine food.
Nutrition
| Part | Moisture | kJ | kcal | Protein | Vit A | Vit C | Iron | Zinc |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulb | — | 389 | 14.3 | — | — | — | — | — |
Also Known As
Cebollin
References (3)
- Kermath, B. M., et al, 2014, Food Plants in the Americas: A survey of the domesticated, cultivated and wild plants used for Human food in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean. On line draft. p 429
- Laferriere, J. E., 1998, Native detoxification of bulbs of Mountain Pima spider-lily (Hymenocallus pimana, Amaryllidaceae). Economic Botany, Vol. 52, No. 2, pp. 207-208
- Laferriere, J. E., et al, 1991, Use and Nutritional Composition of Some traditional Mountain Pima Plant Foods J. Ethnobiol. 11(1):93-114 (Figures on dry weight basis)
