Selah

An Evolution Of Ethnobotany, by Eloise Corlett
('Selah' is Hebrew for Pause… )

Pause to reflect. Pause to rethink. Pause to restore.

Latin name / Yugambeh Aboriginal name/ Common name.

Acacia melanoxylon/ Jumaw/ Blackwood

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Aboriginal uses- bark used as herbal medicine for rheumatism, with honey to make toffee, boomerangs and coolamons made from timber. Seed cooked fresh in pod or roasted on hot stones and pounded into damper flour.
Colonial uses- wood used in cabinet making, boat building, railway carriage panelling, coach construction and beer barrel construction.
Modern uses- rich in tannins and saponins. Contains anti HIV, anticancer, antibacterial, antidermatitic and pesticide activities. Chefs use wattle seed in chocolates, coffee, salads. Not all wattle seeds are edible and toxins need to be removed prior to eating.

eleysfoodforest.mp3
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E-mail: elysfoodforest@hotmail.com

Funded by Queens Trust for Young Australians

Regional Arts Development Fund

Australian Geographic Society

Alphitonia excelsa/ Meeamee/ Red Ash

Aboriginal uses-Bark, roots and leaves were used as an infusion for medicinal purposes. Crushed leaves were added with enough water to make lather with hands as a disinfectant for sores, pustules, rashes and ringworm.
An infusion of the bark and wood was used for stomachache, warm water added to crushed leaves for headache, sore eyes, head and body pain.

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Colonial uses- drought fodder, lather used to wash dishes. Timber used.
Modern uses- high in saponins, contains 4% tannin, bark contains 447mg sodium, 740mg calcium and 544mg potassium. Leaves contain 347 mg magnesium. Therapeutic activity is detergent antiseptic. Good revegetation species, also attractive to birds.

Archontophoenix cunninghamiana/Bigabihn/ Pikkabeen

Aboriginal uses- Leaf sheaths used for pikki’s or vessels- both ends tied up and a long stick passed length-wise down centre for handle, kept in place by string.
Colonial uses- Leaf sheaths used for children sleighs through forest paths and tree used as shady garden specimen.

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Modern uses- Pollen useful for honey production, as a garden ornament and in understorey revegetation of rainforest.

Araucaria cunninghamii/ Bimbul/ Hoop Pine

Aboriginal uses- the sap of Hoop Pines was collected and rubbed between hands to make supple then used as cement for axe handles etc.
Colonial uses- the resin contains some essential oils as well as diterpenoids such as dundathic acid and was used in the treatment of kidney complaints and in stricture causing urine retention

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. An important timber for softwood cabinetwork. Match manufacture, plywood and boat building.
Modern uses- Plywood is still used today due to its ease of peeling.

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