On the Cooking of Wild Grasses from the Viewpoint of Cookery Science(Part II) : Estimation of Inorganic Elements

Inorganic elements contained in thirteen different kinds of edible wild grasses were estimated. Samples were all collected from the field of Yashiro-cho area, Hyogo, Japan. Results of the estimation were summarized as follows. (1) A relatively large amount of calcium was found in the scaly leaf of the Field Horsetail and the leaf of the butterbur (Petasites japonicus Mig.). Both sodium and potassium were abundant in the scaly leaf and sporocarp parts of the Field Horsetail. Leaves of the dandelion (Teraxacum japonica Keidz) and butterbur had a high level of potassium, while the potassium in Acanthopanax sciadophylloides Franch et Sav. was relatively low. A high level of magnesium was evidenced in Acanthropanax sciadophylloides Franch et Sav. and the Horsetail (Equisetum arrense L.). The scaly leaf of the Field Horsetail and mugworth (Artemisia vulgaris L. var indica Maxim) contain large amounts of iron. (2) With respect to the seasonal differences in the inorganic elements, bracken (Pteridium aquillium Kuhn) and mugworth during fall time had larger amounts of potassium and lesser amounts of sodium than those during spring time. The level of iron, on the other hand, remained nearly the same during two seasons. (3) Changes in the level of inorganic elements in relation to the growth of the plant were also evidenced. In the case of bracken, a matured leaf had a high level of calcium, sodium and potassium. A similar result was found for the scorocarp of the Field Horsetail.