Grocott's Mail
    Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Saturday, June 21
    Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Grocott's Mail
    • NEWS
      • Courts & Crime
      • Features
      • Politics
      • People
      • Health & Well-being
    • SPORT
      • News
      • Results
      • Sports Diary
      • Club Contacts
      • Columns
      • Sport Galleries
      • Sport Videos
    • OPINION
      • Election Connection
      • Makana Voices
      • Deur ‘n Gekleurde Bril
      • Newtown… Old Eyes
      • Incisive View
      • Your Say
    • CUE
      • Cue Archives
    • ARTSLIFE
      • Makana Sharp!
      • Visual Art
      • Literature
      • Food
      • Festivals
      • Community Arts
      • Going Places
    • OUR TOWN
      • What’s on
      • Spiritual
      • Emergency & Well-being
      • Covid-19
      • Safety
      • Civic
      • Municipality
      • Weather
      • Properties
        • Grahamstown Properties
      • Your Town, Our Town
    • OUTSIDE
      • Enviro News
      • Gardening
      • Farming
      • Science
      • Conservation
      • Motoring
      • Pets/Animals
    • ECONOMIX
      • Business News
      • Entrepreneurship
      • Personal Finance
    • EDUCATION
      • Education NEWS
      • Education OUR TOWN
      • Education INFO
    • EDITORIAL
    Grocott's Mail
    You are at:Home»OUTSIDE»Gardening»The power of shared identity… and imifino!
    Gardening

    The power of shared identity… and imifino!

    Grocott's Mail ContributorsBy Grocott's Mail ContributorsSeptember 26, 2017Updated:November 3, 2017No Comments3 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

    By Phumlani Cimi

    People are encouraged to celebrate their cultural traditions in the wider context of the great diversity of cultures, beliefs, and traditions that make up the nation of South Africa.

    In an address marking Heritage Day in 1996, former President Nelson Mandela stated, “When our first democratically elected government decided to make Heritage Day one of our national days, we did so because we knew that our rich and varied cultural heritage has a profound power to help build our new nation.”

    Heritage Month recognises aspects of South African culture which are both tangible and intangible: creative expression such as music and performances, our historical inheritance, language, the food we eat as well as popular memory.

    Amaranthus hybridus. Photo: Supplied

    The history tells us that before colonisation there were no shops to get food from. Through trial and error, people managed to select nutritional plants as food.

    There were no hospitals and surgeons to go to when people were sick. People depended entirely on indigenous plants that were available in their environment. Some of this information has been documented but is still scattered while much remains undocumented. Some information is only available through word of mouth among the older generation, shared with their children and grandchildren. This information should be brought together. This heritage knowledge is an intergenerational knowledge.

    Bidens Pilosa. Photo: Supplied

    I grew up eating indigenous food (imifino) from wild plants such as Amaranthus hybridus (utyuthu), Sonchus oleraceus (ihlaba), Bidens pilosa (umhlabangubo), Solanum nigrum (umsobosobo), Urtica urens (irhawu) and Chenopodium murale (imbhikicane).

    Yet, in my school days these were not mentioned during nutrition lessons. We were instead taught about cabbage, spinach, and carrots, while imifino was often referred to as weeds.

    The research I have done in the Eastern Cape shows that people still know and use wild plants as food, medicine and cosmetics regardless of the fact that past government educational policy and curriculum design did not recognise indigenous ways of knowing.

    Chenopodium Murale. Photo: Supplied

    I have developed a booklet with some recipes on how to cook indigenous food (imifino). This booklet is also available in braille and includes how and when to collect these wild plants. To get this information, come to the herbarium at the Albany Museum, where I work. I also provide scientific evidence which shows that these wild plants have higher nutrient content than other vegetables such as cabbages which we buy in the market. All this information is free of charge.

    • Phumlani Cimi is the Selmar Scholand Herbarium Botanist at the Albany Museum.
    Solanum nigrum Tharfield. Photo: Supplied
    Urtica urens. Photo: Supplied
    Previous ArticleThe rise of the electric car
    Next Article Water planning gets under way
    Grocott's Mail Contributors

      Grocott's Mail Contributors includes content submitted by members of the public, and public and private institutions and organisations - regular and occasional, expert and citizen, opinion and analysis.

      Comments are closed.

      Code of Ethics and Conduct
      GROCOTT’S SUBSCRIPTION
      RMR
      Listen to RMR


      Humans of Makhanda

      Humans of Makhanda

      Weather    |     About     |     Advertise     |     Subscribe     |     Contact     |     Support Grocott’s Mail

      © 2025 Maintained by School of Journalism & Media Studies.

      Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.