I’m very much aligned with your passion for this knowledge.
It might interest you to know about my project to save the ancient traditional knowledge of the Motu people of PNG (part of my ethnic heritage).
In order to save it, i need to learn it myself, so your work is inspiring.
You might like to visit my website.
That’s a worth while project. Have you considered making videos of this culture (similar to what I did- no modern tools and starting from scratch) and uploading them to YouTube? It may generate some income for the Motu people if they need it- paying them to practice their culture. Thanks for the comment.
Definitely need to generate income for them this way. Money talks. I dont know how to do it via Youtube though. Any pointers would be appreciated. To save space on your Blog I’m happy for you to email me:
tomasflamenco at gmail dot com.
Peace
It is a bit involved. Go into you tube and go to sign in. If you don’t have an account they will prompt you to set up one (it’s free). There will be an upload button in you tube. Upload any videos you’ve made. Then become a YouTube partner and monetize the videos (all done online). When you do this they prompt you to set up an ad sense account. It takes a long time for the money to come after the setup period but it will come (2 months I think). Thanks.
Go the Cowboys.
Sorry. Thought I would start with that one.
Great job mate. Proof that stuff like that can still be done. You’d have to be up Atherton or Mission Beach way by the look of that. Or Port Douglas way.
Excellent work on the Moretown Bay Chestnut, especially the persistence in pushing beyond the initial slimy/sour bits to make them palatable, as well as nutritious. I’m on the other side of the planet, but I’m now itching to find a few of the nut/seeds to plant a little tree. It would be a fascinating curiosity, and probably never fruit, but still. Neato.
I grew some Oaxacan green dent corn this year, and one thing I’m eager to explore is the nixtamalization process, using lime water to radically enhance the nutritive value of corn. That & grinding my own meal. Cheers : -)
Thanks Mosaica. If I had to go to the trouble of growing them I’d probably grow some other food plant instead. But it would be a good curiosity. Also you may plants in your location that can be processed in a similar way. Cycads for example- though know that there poison is more deadly than black bean. The best crop to grow, with highest edible energy produced per unit space and time of any plant is ordinary sweet potato. It grows on marginal soils and is fertilized with wood ash to produce more tubers. Thanks.
Nice work resurrecting some practices of the past! So much primitive technology has been lost even among the traditional inhabitants – sadly.
Did you get your inspiration from “The Confessions of a Beachcomber” by E. J. Banfield 1908 ?
BTW, I also live in FNQ and am working on documenting bush food and survival techniques.
Thanks for keeping the forgotten crafts alive. I have done my own bits and pieces with knapping stone and researching foods, but nothing this involved.
Acorn flour was a failure for me- didn’t have the proper time to put into it, or good tools. Up here in W Tennessee the starch crops other than acorns don’t need such extensive processing. They aren’t poisonous but they’re usually small and labor-intensive to farm or harvest.
Along a related thread, have you looked into making musical instruments? That goes under sustenance for the human spirit in my book. I’ve messed around with pipes and flutes mostly- stringed instruments are trickier. It’s not worth looking into for everybody. That’s why we live in tribes, haha. Some make the food, some make the houses, and some make the music that makes all the other jobs more fun.
Thanks RK. My first attempts at processing black-bean were labor intensive and yielded little. When you practice a bit you tend to streamline the process and workout how to do it better. But I agree- it’s better to grow crops. I haven’t looked into instruments yet but it would be interesting. I could make a pipe from clay and I can make string ( the first harp was a bow and arrow). Music is good and also stimulates all parts of the brain- learning a musical instrument apparently trains the part of the brain involved with mathematics of all things.
Do you have acorns in the area? I have tried grinding them with a mortar and pestle which took a long time and was tiring especially to the forearms. They leech quicker if they are meal or flour, and if u needed to survive u would need a quick way to make them. Then there is also the boiling method that takes many hours. I wonder how you would do them.
I don’t have acorns here as it’s Australia. Ancient people used a sort of grinding stone that they’d crush and grind the acorns with a sort of back and forward motion. Could you steam them in a pit oven, slice them finely and put them in a stream like I did with these Moreton bay chestnuts?
primitivetechnology.wordpress.com 
I really thought this video was interesting. Do you plan to do any future videos related to getting food?
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I’d Like to eventually but have to learn more first. Thanks.
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Have you had a chance to read these notes> Survival bush foods 2016.pdf 6.8 MB
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0ZkJ41wKplXMFlRSzg0NHpidm8/view?usp=sharing
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Early release > Survival bush foods 2017.pdf 7.3 MB
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0ZkJ41wKplXQzlDbFkwSjBLOVk/view?usp=sharing
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Update2>
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0ZkJ41wKplXRDVKOUZkcmotcjA/view?usp=sharing
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You rock. I’d love to work beside you to learn from you. How did you learn all this amazing stuff? You seem well practiced at it all too. Cheers.
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Thanks. It’s just lots of trial and error. Also I research skill first before testing them.
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I’m very much aligned with your passion for this knowledge.
It might interest you to know about my project to save the ancient traditional knowledge of the Motu people of PNG (part of my ethnic heritage).
In order to save it, i need to learn it myself, so your work is inspiring.
You might like to visit my website.
Peace.
LikeLike
That’s a worth while project. Have you considered making videos of this culture (similar to what I did- no modern tools and starting from scratch) and uploading them to YouTube? It may generate some income for the Motu people if they need it- paying them to practice their culture. Thanks for the comment.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Definitely need to generate income for them this way. Money talks. I dont know how to do it via Youtube though. Any pointers would be appreciated. To save space on your Blog I’m happy for you to email me:
tomasflamenco at gmail dot com.
Peace
LikeLike
It is a bit involved. Go into you tube and go to sign in. If you don’t have an account they will prompt you to set up one (it’s free). There will be an upload button in you tube. Upload any videos you’ve made. Then become a YouTube partner and monetize the videos (all done online). When you do this they prompt you to set up an ad sense account. It takes a long time for the money to come after the setup period but it will come (2 months I think). Thanks.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s very helpful, thank you.
LikeLiked by 1 person
WOW! This is truly amazing! You said something about Aborigines? That means you’re Australian like I am! What state do you live in?
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FNQ, Australia. Thanks.
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Go the Cowboys.
Sorry. Thought I would start with that one.
Great job mate. Proof that stuff like that can still be done. You’d have to be up Atherton or Mission Beach way by the look of that. Or Port Douglas way.
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Thanks Dan.
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Excellent work on the Moretown Bay Chestnut, especially the persistence in pushing beyond the initial slimy/sour bits to make them palatable, as well as nutritious. I’m on the other side of the planet, but I’m now itching to find a few of the nut/seeds to plant a little tree. It would be a fascinating curiosity, and probably never fruit, but still. Neato.
I grew some Oaxacan green dent corn this year, and one thing I’m eager to explore is the nixtamalization process, using lime water to radically enhance the nutritive value of corn. That & grinding my own meal. Cheers : -)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Mosaica. If I had to go to the trouble of growing them I’d probably grow some other food plant instead. But it would be a good curiosity. Also you may plants in your location that can be processed in a similar way. Cycads for example- though know that there poison is more deadly than black bean. The best crop to grow, with highest edible energy produced per unit space and time of any plant is ordinary sweet potato. It grows on marginal soils and is fertilized with wood ash to produce more tubers. Thanks.
LikeLike
Nice work resurrecting some practices of the past! So much primitive technology has been lost even among the traditional inhabitants – sadly.
Did you get your inspiration from “The Confessions of a Beachcomber” by E. J. Banfield 1908 ?
BTW, I also live in FNQ and am working on documenting bush food and survival techniques.
LikeLike
I’ve read that years ago while researching Blackbean. I wasn’t inspired by it but is was part of my research. Thanks.
LikeLike
Thanks for keeping the forgotten crafts alive. I have done my own bits and pieces with knapping stone and researching foods, but nothing this involved.
Acorn flour was a failure for me- didn’t have the proper time to put into it, or good tools. Up here in W Tennessee the starch crops other than acorns don’t need such extensive processing. They aren’t poisonous but they’re usually small and labor-intensive to farm or harvest.
Along a related thread, have you looked into making musical instruments? That goes under sustenance for the human spirit in my book. I’ve messed around with pipes and flutes mostly- stringed instruments are trickier. It’s not worth looking into for everybody. That’s why we live in tribes, haha. Some make the food, some make the houses, and some make the music that makes all the other jobs more fun.
LikeLike
Thanks RK. My first attempts at processing black-bean were labor intensive and yielded little. When you practice a bit you tend to streamline the process and workout how to do it better. But I agree- it’s better to grow crops. I haven’t looked into instruments yet but it would be interesting. I could make a pipe from clay and I can make string ( the first harp was a bow and arrow). Music is good and also stimulates all parts of the brain- learning a musical instrument apparently trains the part of the brain involved with mathematics of all things.
LikeLike
Do you have acorns in the area? I have tried grinding them with a mortar and pestle which took a long time and was tiring especially to the forearms. They leech quicker if they are meal or flour, and if u needed to survive u would need a quick way to make them. Then there is also the boiling method that takes many hours. I wonder how you would do them.
LikeLike
I don’t have acorns here as it’s Australia. Ancient people used a sort of grinding stone that they’d crush and grind the acorns with a sort of back and forward motion. Could you steam them in a pit oven, slice them finely and put them in a stream like I did with these Moreton bay chestnuts?
LikeLike
Thanks! I’ll give it a try!
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