Rock morning glory facts for kids
The Bush Potato (scientific name: Ipomoea costata) is a special plant that grows naturally in Australia. People also call it rock morning glory. You can find it in the northern parts of Australia, including Western Australia, the Northern Territory, and Queensland. This plant is famous because its underground parts, called tubers, are a type of food known as bush tucker. For many Aboriginal peoples, these tubers are an important food source, often called bush potato or karnti by some groups like the Ngururrpa people in Western Australia.
Quick facts for kids Bush potato |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Ipomoea
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| Species: |
costata
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Contents
What the Bush Potato Looks Like
The Bush Potato plant can grow in two ways. It can spread out along the ground, or it can climb up to 3 meters (about 10 feet) high. It is a perennial plant, which means it lives for more than two years.
Flowers and Leaves
This plant has beautiful flowers that are purple, blue, or pink. You can see these flowers from February all the way to November. When the plant is young, it looks like a vine. As it gets older, its stems become woody, like a small shrub, but it still has parts that look like vines. Its leaves are wide and feel a bit tough, like leather. They are usually between 4 and 9 centimeters (about 1.5 to 3.5 inches) long.
The Tubers
The most important part of the Bush Potato plant is its tubers. These are rounded, underground storage parts, similar to a potato. They can be quite large, usually 12 to 20 centimeters (about 5 to 8 inches) long and 5 to 18 centimeters (about 2 to 7 inches) wide. One single Bush Potato plant can grow up to twenty tubers!
Where the Bush Potato Grows
The Bush Potato plant likes to grow in certain types of soil. You will often find it in sandy or rocky areas. It especially likes places where there is limestone underneath the soil. It also grows in wide, flat areas called sand plains, where a spiky grass called spinifex often grows. These areas are mostly found in northern Australia.
How People Use the Bush Potato
The Bush Potato is a very important bush tucker food for Aboriginal people. They have been eating it for a very long time.
Cooking the Bush Potato
To cook bush potatoes, people traditionally place them on the warm ground. Then, they cover them with hot coals from a fire. This way of cooking slowly bakes the tubers. Once they are cooked, the skin can be easily peeled off, and the soft inside is ready to eat.
Aboriginal Names for the Bush Potato
In Central Australia, different Aboriginal language groups have their own names for Ipomoea costata:
- Alyawarr: anaty
- Anmatyerr: anaty or anek
- Eastern Arrernte: anatye
- Western Arrernte: natye
- Pintupi: ala or yala
- Warlpiri: karnti or paparda
