Proboscidea parviflora - double claw. dried seed pod

Description:

Description: English: Proboscidea parviflora -a very important traditional edible and useful indigenous plant of the southwest United States, once widely cultivated. Shown, one dried seed pod. When green and tender, they can be cooked as vegetables in various recipes in traditional indigenous cuisine and modern cuisine. Green, their distinctive shape earned them the name 'unicorn plant.' When drying, the green outer pod sheds and the drying fibers inside split apart symmetrically along the spine and form the hooked dramatic shape that earned them the names, 'double claw,' 'devil's claws' and 'ram's horns.' This shape allows the dry seed pods to hook on anything passing by to distribute seeds. The seeds are edible and nutritious, in traditional cuisine, can be ground into flour or crushed to extract a nutritious edible oil. The long horns or hooks can be soaked and split again lengthwise to make very strong cords that were and remain highly prized by Native basket weavers in the southwest. These cords provide strength and a contrasting dark color for making designs in the baskets. Date: 10 September 2017. Source: Own work. Author: T.K. Naliaka.