BIBLIOGRAPHIC DATA SHEET

In addition to general overviews on edible wild plants within the Republic
of South Africa, research has focused, too, on specific beverage plants and
their potential for economic development. Cheney and Scholtz (1963) identify
ten species, three most important in the manufacture of "Rooibos Tea"; Aspalathus
contaminatus, Aspalanthus tenuifolia, and Cyclopedia genistoides. Such plants
have very high values for ascorbic acid and are low in tannins. Whelan and
Whitaker (1952) report on Helichrysum nudifolium guinquenerve as a traditional
beverage plant.
Dietary use of wild plants also poses potential toxic problems. Steyn
(1941) provides the basic introduction to toxic plants in South Africa, noting
that within the Transki, among the Xhosa, species of Senecio are commonly used
as food and medicine, often with adverse toxic effects (see also Rose, 1972).
Basic information on the nutritional composition of wild and domesticated
plants common to the Republic of South Africa are included in Fox and Goldberg
(1944) and Fox (1966), with important information on how to prepare edible wild
fruit and leaf samples for analysis as documented by Strydom and Wehmeyer (1969).
Most research has been directed towards understanding the protein content of
edible wild leaves. A major monograph by Claassens and Potgieter (1971) in­
cluded important contributions to understanding the nutritional value of leaf
protein concentrate, work that may be traced to Leavy et al. (1936). Lewis et
al. (1971) identified four species for potential research and determined that
two (Amaranthus hybridus hybridus and Asystasia schimperi) were excellent amino
acid complements to maize. Shanley and Lewis (1969) examined protein balance
of wild plants set against braditional maize diets consumed by Zulus, noting
that twelve species of wild plants -- if mixed with maize at the same meal -­
could improve significantly the biological quality of Zulu diet (Table 27).
57.