Koeberliniaceae

Junco Family

Allthorn

FAMILY: Junco family (Koeberliniaceae) – Koeberlinia genus. The junco family was traditionally part of the caper family (Capparaceae).

SPECIES: Allthorn, junco, crown of thorns, or crucifixion thorn (Koeberlinia spinosa Zucc.).

TO UTILIZE AS FOOD: Allthorn berries are edible, but they’re not very appealing. They taste more like vegetables than fruits. To make matters worse, the berries are painfully difficult to gather and often infested with bugs. Allthorn shrubs are a mass of thorns. The name is a perfect description. Tongs and gloves will be needed for gathering these berries, except for people who enjoy acupuncture! The spine-tipped branches can cause itching and dermatitis in susceptible individuals. Developing berries turn from green to red and finally to black. Orange or purple phases are normal. Mature berries contain 2-4 seeds that comprise about 90% of the volume. The remaining volume is juicy, slimy, bitter, foul-tasting pulp covered by thick skins. A trace of sweetness similar to grapes is also present. Unappealing aspects are mainly due to the seeds. Boiling does little to improve the flavor. Sugar is about the only solution for allthorn berries. With enough sugar almost any wild food can be rendered palatable. Allthorn berries may require an extra heap! Mature berries often split open naturally. These splits are nothing to be concerned about, but tiny round holes should definitely be a concern. Allthorn berries are susceptible to pests, diseases, and rotting. Tiny holes are a sign of infestation. Considering all the problems, lack of safety information, and scarcity of references to the edibility of allthorn berries, foragers should be wary of this wild food.

NOTES: Similar-looking shrubs commonly called crucifixion thorns (Canotia holacantha and Castela emoryi) could be mistaken for allthorn. Wendy Hodgson (p. 198) notes that although some authors have indicated fruits of crucifixion thorns were occasionally utilized as food, they may have been referring to allthorn fruits rather than the dry, woody, inedible fruits of crucifixion thorns. All these shrubs have a similar form, but they can easily be distinguished by observing the fruits. Only allthorn produces fleshy berries. The allthorn berries I sampled were from various locations in southern New Mexico. Although Betty Derig, author of “Wild Berries of the West,” described allthorn berries as sweet and edible, the ones I gathered tasted unappealing whether under-ripe, ripe, or over-ripe. Sweetness was definitely present, but it was swiftly overrun by various unappealing aspects. Many factors can affect the flavor of wild foods, so it’s likely that some populations of allthorns produce better-tasting berries than others.

IDENTIFICATION: The Koeberlinia genus is represented by 1 species with 2 varieties in the United States. Allthorn is a native shrub found only in the Southwest, and its name alone is a perfect description of what it looks like.

Description of allthorn (Koeberlinia spinosa): FORM spiny shrub about 0.5-3 meters tall; STEMS green, rigid, intricately branched, and spine tipped; LEAVES simple; alternate; deciduous; blades tiny and scale-like; FLOWERS regular, perfect, ovary superior, and arranged in clusters; sepals 4, free, and 1-2 mm long; petals 4, free, white to light greenish-yellow, and 3-4 mm long; stamens 8; FRUITS berries black, shiny, globe-shaped, and 3-5 mm in diameter; each with 2-4 seeds inside; HABITAT deserts; southern California to southern Texas; blooming May to June.

REFERENCES: Allthorn (Koeberlinia spinosa): fruits Derig (p. 26).