This flowering vine has one of the most aromatic flowers in the flower kingdom.... it has what some say is the scent of a Violet. The name, Groundnut, refers to a pear shaped tuber that grows on underground shoots. They can be boiled, or fried, the same way a potato is prepared for comsumption, and the Groundnut has three or four times more protein than the potato. Henry David Thoreau turned to digging up Groundnuts to supplement his failed potato crop. The Indians taught the Plymouth pilgrims about them, and the pilgrims used them to survive the first winter in Massachusetts. It is always such an adventure searching for flowers ... and not just in the woods. Sometimes the discovery is in a book or on the Internet. Just a few minutes ago I was searching on line to see if there was anything of interest about the Groundnut and I found an article by a Prof. of Biology at the University of Massachusetts. In it he talked about how someday the Groundnut could be a future food source and that in the near and distant future we maybe able to buy them in the grocery store. He went on to say that until then we would have to dig them up ourselves. At this point in his article he said, which surprised me, ........" but be careful in Southampton, Ma., they take their groundnut seriously!" I live in Southampton, Ma. and I am wondering what he meant by that............ Where I found it : near a river bed......
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