In early spring, the Coast Salish peoples of British Columbia gathered the thick, pale bases of this grass-like plant as a seasonal food.
Around April or May, they would pull the inner leaf bases from the bottom of the plant.
Although the plant is hermaphrodite, people preferred the younger, non-flowering plants—what they called the “female” ones.
Some believed that eating from the “male” flowering plants could cause headaches. Others didn’t seem to mind and ate the inner parts of both.
The leaf bases were usually eaten raw. At the right stage, they had a mild, slightly sweet taste.
The Kaigani Haida, though, preferred to boil them, often changing the water three times to remove any bitterness.
For a long time, people gathered these bases in large amounts and preserved them in jars for winter.
The plant became known as ‘goose tongue,’ an English name that stuck.
There’s also a record from 1906 that says the Blackfoot of Montana parched and ate the seeds.
But a word of caution—arrow-grass contains cyanide-producing compounds and has poisoned livestock in the past.
That said, the young spring shoots seem to have very low levels of these toxins.
Indigenous people who harvested them didn’t report any problems.
It’s also worth knowing that this plant easily absorbs metals from the soil and is sometimes used in phytoremediation to clean up polluted land.
Because of this, it’s important to only gather it from clean, unpolluted areas.
The mature leaves and flower stalks should not be eaten.
Knowledge like this wasn’t abstract—it was grounded in careful observation and direct relationship with the land.