Martyniaceae

Unicornplant Family

Unicornplants

FAMILY: Unicornplant family (Martyniaceae) – Proboscidea genus.

SPECIES: #1 yellow unicornplant, devil’s claw, or ram’s horn (Proboscidea althaeifolia (Benth.) Decne.). #2 purple unicornplant, devil’s claw, or double-claw (Proboscidea parviflora (Wooton) Wooton & Standley).

TO UTILIZE AS FOOD: The seeds and immature fruits of both species listed above are edible. Differences between these species are minor in regard to edibility.

Immature fruits of both species listed above serve well as vegetables, tasting like a combination of okra, zucchini, and aspen bark. No harsh overtones compromise the flavor, except for some mild bitterness. The texture is soft, fleshy, and mucilaginous up until the fruits reach full length. After that point, they become impossibly tough, woody, and spiny. Young fruits are green, mild, covered with sticky hairs, and filled with tender white seeds. The sticky hairs pose no problems, but they tend to attract dirt. Peeling the skins is unnecessary. Developing seeds are barely noticeable. Unicornplant fruits are suitable for soups or stir-fries. The charred accent imparted by sautéing masks any bitterness. Marinating the fruits in vinegar, sugar, and herbs is another good option. Gathering the fruits is easy, but they tend to hide under the leaves and blend in with the stems. Unicornplants are abundant on poor-quality soils periodically inundated by seasonal floodwaters. They provide a good source of fresh vegetables toward the end of summer and early autumn. Overall, immature fruits of unicornplants are well worth the effort of gathering.

Seeds of both species listed above are contained within woody, spiny, long-clawed seedpods. Each plant produces numerous seedpods, and each seedpod contains numerous seeds. The seeds are soft, nutritious, delicious, and white with black coatings. The texture is chewy and bran-like. Nothing else in the wild produces similar seedpods, so misidentification is unlikely. The long claws are sharp enough to serve as fishhooks and effectively become tangled in anything that passes by. Merely walking through a field attaches a supply of seedpods to a forager’s legs. Since the seedpods are designed to split open naturally, prying them apart is easy. Seeds deep within the chambers may be difficult to obtain, but the majority of them readily fall out. Overall, seeds of unicornplants are a decent wild food available sometime in autumn.

IDENTIFICATION: The Proboscidea genus is represented by 5 species in the United States, all of which are found in the Southwest. Seedpods alone can verify the identity of unicornplants. This feature combined with sticky leaves and showy flowers is a sure sign of these desert natives.

Description of yellow unicornplant (Proboscidea althaeifolia): FORM low-growing perennial plant from a tuberous root; surfaces densely covered with sticky hairs; stems thick; LEAVES simple; alternate or opposite; stalked; blades 3-7 cm wide, generally rounded in outline with palmate lobes; FLOWERS irregular, perfect, ovary superior, showy, and arranged in terminal racemes; sepals 5, fused; corollas bell- or funnel-shaped, 2-lipped, 5-lobed, yellow, spotted, and striped; pistils 1; styles 1; stigmas 2; stamens 4, free, and attached to the corollas, all fertile or 2 sterile; FRUITS capsules 5-10 cm long, black, spiny, and tapering into long claws; seeds white with rough-textured black husks; HABITAT deserts, washes, and fields, especially in flat areas that flood periodically; primarily southern Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas; blooming in summer.

Description of purple unicornplant (Proboscidea parviflora): FORM robust, low-growing, annual plant; surfaces densely covered with sticky hairs; stems thick; LEAVES simple; alternate or opposite; stalked; blades 5-18 cm wide, generally rounded in outline with palmate lobes; FLOWERS irregular, perfect, ovary superior, showy, and arranged in terminal racemes; sepals 5, fused; corollas bell- or funnel-shaped, 2-lipped, 5-lobed, light to deep purple, spotted, and striped; pistils 1; styles 1; stigmas 2; stamens 4, free, and attached to the corollas, all fertile or 2 sterile; FRUITS capsules 5-10 cm long, black, spiny, and tapering into long claws; seeds white with rough-textured black husks; HABITAT deserts, washes, and fields, especially in flat areas that flood periodically; primarily in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, southern Nevada, and California; blooming in summer.

REFERENCES: #1 yellow unicornplant (Proboscidea althaeifolia): immature fruits and seeds Moerman (p. 194). #2 purple unicornplant (Proboscidea parviflora): immature fruits and seeds Moerman (p. 194).