If You Had to Choose... Your Top 5 Plants to Have, in a "Desert Island Scenario"

in #food8 years ago (edited)

You know the classic thought experiment...

(Although when we were kids we never said "thought experiment". ;)


"If you were stranded on a desert island..."


island-1285147_1920.jpg

If You were stranded on a desert island

- and you could only have 5 plants to live from -

Which plants would you choose, and why...?


We're not really considering animals here, but for the sake of the thought experiment, let's assume there are no land animals on this island, at least none worth eating, probably some insects though, and of course, if you are skilled enough to fashion something to fish with, well, you're surrounded by fish!


Ok, Back to the plants...

Here are my top five plants to have

...if I were stranded on a desert island!

beach-1281680_1920.jpg

#1 - Coconut Cocos nucifera

In Sanskrit, the coconut palm is known as kalpa vriksha, which means, "The tree that supplies all that is needed to live."

So for the industrious ones among us, (and let's face it, if you were stranded on an island you'd get pretty industrious!) this alone could provide you with cordage, fresh water, coconut 'meat', shelter, and you could even make a ferment if you want to get a little drunk, and drown your sorrows.

Coconut is loaded with beneficial properties. Immune boosting antiviral, antifungal, antimicrobial saturated fatty acids. Coconuts help increase nutrient absorption, improve digestion, increase metabolism and help regulate the endocrine system. Topically, coconut oil is very replenishing to the skin and hair.

So, off to a good start, just with the coconut tree alone one could pretty much sustain life.

#2 - Hemp Cannabis Sativa

Ok, I know what you might be thinking, but honestly, that's probably the 7th reason to have some hemp with you on a desert island. Let's take a look.

Hemp is pest and disease resistant. Hemp has great fiber, and can be used to make cordage and paper. Hemp oil has also been used for fuel. Hemp seeds contain all the essential amino acids and fatty acids needed to sustain life, and is more readily absorbed than animal proteins. It also doesn't need to be cooked. Hemp seeds also boost the immune system and are rich in a whole host of vital minerals.

Of course, assuming you can create fire, and a coconut bong or something, there might be some flower buds for you to smoke as well. Hopefully you don't get to this before you've finished building your shelter, and making yourself comfortable. ;)

#3 - Cacao Theobroma Cacao - Literally, Food of the Gods

Cacao is the seed (nut) of a fruit which grows inside of these magnificient pods (pictured above) of a jungle tree known as Theobroma Cacao. This is where all chocolate comes from, and I'm not going to be stranded on an island without a few of these glorious trees to keep me company!

Where to even begin!? Cacao seeds can be eaten raw, and are delightfully rich, bitter, and chocolatey delicious. They are the number one source for magnesium, and loaded with iron, chromium, manganese, zinc, copper, vitamin C, and essential Omega-6 Fatty acids.

So if you're going to be stranded on an island, after a while you're going to get pretty depressed. This is where cacao will save you! Cacao contains a whole cocktail of mood enhancing chemicals to help you survive the long wait for rescue, or to keep your spirits up while building your hemp-powered coconut palm sailboat, or whatever. ;)

Cacao contains Anandamide, aka. the 'Bliss Chemical', a cannabinoid endorphin that the human body naturally produces after exercise. Phenylethylamine (PEA), a class of compounds which we produce in our body when we fall in love. PEA's also increase focus, alertness, and suppress appetite. Tryptophan, an essential amino acid critical for the production of serotonin. Serotonin, a primary neurotransmitter. And last but not least, Theobromine, which is the caffeine-like, cardio-protective, antibacterial stimulant. There's so much to be said about Cacao, but I have to stop.

If you have never tried raw, unprocessed cacao beans, you owe yourself a try. Many of the wonderful chemicals listed above are destroyed through heat and machine processing, and the fats turn rancid, before you ever get a chocolate bar to your lips.

bee-tulsi.jpg
Tulsi flowers with bee, from my garden

#4 - Tulsi Ocimum sanctum - Holy Basit - Queen of Herbs - The Incomparable One

Tulsi is a plant much revered throughout the world, but especially in India, where it is traditionally grown at the entrance to one's home. Tulsi is mentioned repeatedly in sacred texts of India as far back as 500BC as one of the main pillars of herbal medicine.

The Padmapurana states:

Leaves, flowers, fruits, root, branches
and the main stem and everything about Tulsi
is sacred; even the soil under the Tulsi plant is holy.
(Padmapurana 24/2)

I should spend an entire post on Tulsi, and I probably will, but here I will just mention a few of its remarkable qualities.

Tulsi is considered an 'adaptogen', that is, an herb which induces a state of non-specific increased resistance of the organism to stress. It is warming and helps with digestion at every level, (physical, mental, emotional). It is a bi-directional herb which brings the body and mind back to balance. If you are stressed out, Tulsi will calm you down, if you are run-down and exhausted, Tulsi will pick you up. It is remarkable in it's ability to help one recover from fatigue. It is anti-aging and immunomodulating.

The leaves have significant amounts of vitamin C, A, and Calcium, in an easily digestible form.

Tulsi has been shown to protect the liver from oxidative stress, is anti-ulcer, antidiarrheal, antiasthmatic, anti-inflammatory, and antipyretic.

The range of Tulsi's medicinal properties is remarkably vast. It is recommended for treating a great many disorders and is widely taken for promoting general health.

I drink Tulsi as tea, almost daily, and prepare it fresh when it's in season. I wouldn't want to do without it either on land, or castaway on a desert island!

Turmeric.JPG

#5 - Turmeric Curcuma longa - Kanchani "The Golden Goddess"

Last but not least... I would not want to be without turmeric!

Turmeric has a broad spectrum of actions. Turmeric is the glorious orange spice which enlivens Indian curries. Many herbalists would choose turmeric if they had but one plant to rely on for maintaining health.

Turmeric's primary uses are to purify the blood and remedy skin conditions. The principal organs it treats are skin, heart, liver, and lungs. Turmeric also excels at soothing pain and inflammation. The primary constituents responsible for turmerics healing powers and by far the most researched, are the 3 alkaloidal Curcumins, these are the gold substances in turmeric, but there are many other compounds in Turmeric which are responsible for its wide range of action.

I have practiced martial arts and yoga on and off for over 20 years, and I cannot begin to describe the difference I feel when practicing with turmeric. Turmeric allows one so go deeper into stretches with less risk of injury. Where the bruises and aches of martial arts practice begin to show, turmeric has cut my recovery time in half.

Turmeric is a profound anitoxidant and antimicrobial, and it has been widely researched for its anti-cancer properties. With respect to cancer, Turmeric provides a triple actioin: turmeric neutralizes substances and conditions which promote cancer. It helps cells maintain integrity when threatened with carcinogens. And if a tumor grows, curcumin can destroy the tumor.

There's so much more to be said about this remarkable plant. It is to me, the spice of life, and I wouldn't want to live without it.
Least of all, in the rough life of a castaway.

closeup_of_Turmeric.JPG

This was all just a trick, you know...

I just wanted to tell you about some of my favorite plants!

The desert island can wait!

You should really consider incorporating these profoundly nutritious and healing plants in your daily life! And I hope you do. =)

If you want to share your thoughts on what plants YOU would take to your castaway island, please do so in the comments, or, feel free to create your own post with the tag #desertislandfive which I noticed while researching this article had already been started by @samstonehill in this article: What is your selection of desert island essentials? 5 items only!

To Your Health!

@lovejoy


References:
David Wolfe - Superfoods
Drs. Singh, Hoette, Miller - Tulsi - The Mother Medicine of Nature
Prashanti de Jager M.S. - Turmeric: The Ayurvedic Spice of Life

Sort:  

Nice post and well worth a reply. Short and sweet and similar.......... Weed but it would have to be Jack Herer's "BIG bud" Yes it is an amazing plant with so many uses eh hmmm ....cordage....air freshener...did I say cordage?............ Turmeric of course....... I put it in every meal I cook and use it daily. Huge anti cancer medicinal among lots of other attributes. Coconuts absolutely for the electrolytes and replenishment of fluids. Just the taste alone. The last two spots came down to a choice of three for me and they're all foods to go along with all the fish and seafood I'd be a eatin'. Sweet potatoes, ass paragas, and red skinned grapes. Out of these for my last two I'd choose the grapes because they are a humans perfect food and all you need. Then oh boy.... hmmmm.......... too tough.......uhhhhh.......... sweet potatoes! Super good for the body and tasty to boot! They would compliment seafood meals or be good all by themselves. Those are my five and I'm stickin to it! Great post! Enjoyed!

You like that Jack Herer eh? ok ok.. ;) Mmmm, sweet potatos, yes.. I didn't really include anything starchy did I, but it's just so hard with only 5 choices! Thanks for the great comment! =) Cheers!

I agree with you on Hemp 100%. Just that plant alone you may be able to find a way to survive off of. I'd say Aloe plant as well would be AWESOME.

Aloe is great, and another one that almost made the list.. but alas, it got bumped, and the coconut would have to suffice for the skin healing. Aloe really an amazing superfood and herb though! Thanks for your comment! =)

Never heard of Tulsi...thanks for the informative post @lovejoy!

Can we add just one? ...Some aloe maybe for the Sunburns!

Aloe is way up in the list, yes :)

I hope you get to know Tulsi, she'll take good care of you! =) Thanks for your comment!

Hemp! Great read.

Glad you enjoyed! :)

Good post and pictures - you done fine

Thanks! :)

Very beautiful post, all these plants are remarkable and useful to our survival, I can not choose, I take them all. Bravo.

They are all truly remarkable plants, I'm so glad they're here with us! Thanks for the comment. Much appreciated. :)

Good question.. :))

Thanks! :)

you are welcome :)

This was such a wonderfully informative post! Can you tell me where you buy Tulsi? I would love to incorporate it into my diet! Also, how do you use Turmeric? I have some organic Turmeric but am not sure how to take it or how much to take daily. Thank you for posting! Upvoted, Followed you.

Tulsi is available from Banyan Botanicals or on amazon.com
I take 1 1/2 teaspoons a day of powdered Turmeric. Adding black pepper increases Turmerics' benefits manyfold.

Thanks a lot! I looked on Amazon and found the powder. Is that what you use? I was about to order some of the tea bags but if the powder is better I will get that.

I have an ayurvedic lifestyle and use herbs as churnas (powders) where the taste is an important aspect of the experience.
Using the tea is good too, however you also get the non-soluable benefits when taking the whole herb.
I hope his helps @ indmissbl

Oh my goodness! I just listened to a podcast interview with Dr. Kulreet Chaudhary and today I bought her book, "The Prime!" Have you heard of her? I am thrilled that this tea is good for the ayurvedic lifestyle! SO COOL that I met you! I ordered the powder and I will start taking the Turmeric and black pepper too! I look forward to reading your other posts. Thanks so much!

You are entirely welcome @indmissbl. I'm unfamiliar with Dr. Kulreet Chaudhary however ayurveda has saved me many times over the last 30 years.
I'll admit to goofing off just reading and commenting. Soon I start posting, talkin' story of my eclectic life. :-)

I so look forward to hearing some of your stories! :) I can see the turmeric glow in your skin, now that you mention it!

Although I am really interested in healthy living, I had never even heard of ayurveda until a few days ago when my husband sent me a link to an interview he had heard on the radio. He knew I would be interested and of course, I am. I look forward to reading the book (actually I bought the Audible audio version) and learning more about it.

That's great @indmissbl. I am glad you discovered this amazing science of life. Ayurveda goes way back, probably more than 6 millenia.
If you are enjoying what you are hearing and learning;
I will recommend a couple amazing resources on youtube:
John Douillard , his website is: lifespa.com and
Khabir Southwick, his website is: NaturalHealingWest.com

Yes, taste is an important component of Ayurvedic medicine. Do you take your triphala in hot water at bedtime? mmmmmm... I love giving this to friends and watching their faces. ;)

At times, not regularly, To those not accustomed, it is a bit knarly, including squinchy faces. lol

I get all my ayurvedic herbs from Organic India. My mentor, Prashanti de Jager, is one of the cofounders.

Prashanti is cool, I recently found him on youtube. My introduction to Ayurveda was in the early 90s by Dr Vasant Lad'book. I use Banyan Botanicals and sometimes Vedaliving.com for harder to find herbs.

Awesome. yeah, I will approach him about joining Steemit. When I was first becoming interested in Ayurveda I found the Dr Vasant Lad book on the side of the road in San Francisco, and I asked Prashanti, is this a good book on Ayurveda? I just found it on the street. He looked at me with a curious gaze and said, "That's the book on Ayurveda" hah.. quite an auspicious find. That was 2003, and it's been an incredible journey ever since. I'll check out vedaliving.com, I've used banyan botanicals before, they are also good. :)

Yes invite Prashanti. An auspicious synchronicity in your finding the book.
It appears as if universe favors awakening humans.
Great to meet you @lovejoy, another ayurvedic steemian :-)

It appears as if universe favors awakening humans

~:)

And yes... Ayurvedic steemian.. there's quite a lot to unpack there! hah! Great to meet you too.

Many of the benefits of Turmeric are greatly benefitted by taking it with a good fat of some kind, as it is not particularly water soluble. Many use milk, ghee, ginger, and honey... licorice can also help with assimilation. It's what you see referred to as 'golden milk', and it's an excellent way to deliver the medicine of turmeric deep into your body. Oils act as a delivery system and can reach deep into the body. The normal dose of turmeric is 1-2 grams per day, but you can take much more in the case of recovery from an injury such as a sprain, or any case where there is a lot of inflammation that needs to be reduced.

I am glad to know about the oils acting as a delivery system. It makes sense but I didn't know this before. Do you have a particular way you prefer to take Turmeric? Although I like most herbs and spices, Turmeric is one I have not acquired a taste for yet.

On taking turmeric, I heat some ghee and or coconut oil in a small skillet low heat and add ground spices, including coriander ,turmeric, cumin, fennel, cardamon, and ceylon cinnamon and roast the mix while stirring. This only takes a minute. Then pour it over my veggies, cooked grain or whatever is my main dish. The amounts vary but usually 1/4 teaspoon of each with more of the turmeric and coriander. Turmeric around 3/4 t. and coriander 1 t.
I use more coriander because my ayurvedic constitution is Pitta which is hot and coriander is cooling and helps to balance me.
I grind some black pepper and put on food as it increases the effectiveness of the turmeric.
Sweet pickles and prepared mustard have turmeric in them. So if you like those you probably won't have too hard a time adapting to the taste.

I copied and pasted your ingredients into my notes so I can refer to it later. Thanks! I haven't gotten to the point of figuring out my ayurvedic constitution yet.

You're welcome, I'm glad to help you @indmissbl.
There are many free ayurvedic constitution quizzes online. I will recommend http://www.joyfulbelly.com/. A very comprehensive and amazing site.
Take some quizzes and find your body type, get recommendations on diet and even a personalized book tailored for you. The prices are quite reasonable and worth it. Lots of free stuff like checking herbs. There are charts with foods/herbs and each constitution type and the effects on each body type, very informative and useful. I hope you fine this useful and f you have any questions hit me up :-)

Thank you so much! I found one test on line but it was very brief`. I believe there is one in The Prime but I haven't gotten to it yet. Thanks again, will check out that site! I have begun making some changes suggested in The Prime and I already see a difference. Quite remarkable! Thanks again!!!

You're entirely welcome :-) I'm so glad you follow your intuition.
The changes move more quickly as you transition towards the ayurvedic lifestyle.
Pace yourself and feel the process, no hurry , no worry.
I attribute my good health and longevity to ayurveda.

nice...u deserve resteem and upvote...

Ahhh! Much appreciated! And you deserve a follow. :)

u r welcome...thanks..

awesome post, those are really some awesome superfood plants ;)

Some of the best... had to leave out aloe, spirulina, goji berries, maca, all manner of medicinal mushrooms... but with only five to choose..!? Thanks for your comment! :)

yeah you are right there are so many awesome plants and mushrooms ;)