FOOD AND VITAMIN-BEARING PLANTS
Cultural food and vitamin-bearing plants cultivated in Kyrgyzstan are well-known. They are sufficiently described in specialized literature, and therefore the main focus below will be on wild useful plants.
The natural flora of Kyrgyzstan contains many wild food and vitamin-bearing plants. A particularly large number of them can be found in the South, in the belt of nut-fruit forests, where wild apples, pears, cherries, currants, raspberries, apricots, walnuts, pistachios, almonds, barberries, jujubes, plums, and others grow. However, there are also many wild food plants in the rest of Kyrgyzstan. These include wild garlic, sorrel, rhubarb (sour grass), Meyer currant, wild strawberries, hogweed, blackberries, sea buckthorn, Gmelin's pea, and many other plants.
Kyrgyzstan also has mushrooms (boletes, milk caps, champignons) that are eagerly collected by the population. However, the most valuable wild food plants in the republic are as follows,
Sivers Apple Tree. This is a small tree 5-6 m tall with reddish-brown bark. The apples are of various shapes and colors, but more often they are spherical-flattened and greenish-reddish. This species of apple tree is widely distributed in the Western Tien Shan, especially in the Chatkal and Fergana ranges. There are also small stands of it in the western part of the Central Tien Shan.
The Sivers apple tree forms apple forests with a rich floristic composition. It blooms in April-May and bears fruit in July-August. The fruits contain organic acids, sugar, vitamins, and are quite pleasant to taste.
They are consumed fresh, made into dried fruits, canned, and used for making juices and wines.
Nezduetsky Apple Tree. It also grows in the belt of nut-fruit forests. It is distinguished by its dark purple bark and fruits with reddish flesh. I.V. Michurin used it to breed apple varieties with reddish flesh.
Apple forests and sparse forests occupy about 13,000 hectares in the republic. Annually, an average of up to 5,000 tons of apples and plums are harvested from them.
Plum, or Sogdian Plum. It grows as a small bush in the belt of nut-fruit forests, mainly in river valleys and on slopes. The fruits are round or slightly oval, smooth. Ripe fruits are yellow, pink, red, or black.
The shape of the fruits varies. There are more than 14 varieties of plums that differ in color, shape, and taste. The best of them are used as breeding material. The Sogdian plum is widely distributed along the edges and in the underbrush of deciduous forests in the Chatkal, Fergana, Turkestan, and Kyrgyz ranges and forms its communities, from which hundreds of tons of fruits are harvested annually.
The fruits of the Sogdian plum are rich in organic acids (up to 7% citric acid), sugars (about 7%), vitamins (C); in addition, they contain up to 15% pectin substances.
The Sogdian plum is of interest not only as an excellent food plant. It is of great value for selection. It is widely used as a rootstock for the propagation of many stone fruit plants.
Meanwhile, the natural thickets of the Sogdian plum have been significantly altered by human economic activity, especially along river valleys and on terraces, on gentle easily accessible slopes of the Chatkal and Fergana ranges.
In these places, one often encounters miserable bushes of plums with broken branches; natural regeneration of the species is extremely weak. There is a possibility that due to such an attitude towards the regeneration processes of the Sogdian plum by economic and scientific organizations, we may forever lose this valuable plant, especially those growing in gorges where numerous poorly organized tourists and vacationers pass.
Pear. The valuable food plant is the pear. In Kyrgyzstan, the main species is Korzhinsky Pear. Its trees reach 10-12 m in height. The fruits range from broadly pear-shaped to spherical. It blooms in May-June and bears fruit in July-August. It can be found on dry slopes and among shrub thickets at altitudes of 1200-1700 m in the Chatkal and Fergana ranges of Kyrgyzstan.
Another species is Regel's Pear. This is a tree 5-6 m tall with thorny and gray branches. The fruits are pear-shaped or flattened-spherical. It blooms in May-June and bears fruit in August-September. It is found singly on grassy slopes among shrubs in the forest belt of the Western Tien Shan, in the Fergana, Ataynik, and Chatkal ranges.
Regel's and Korzhinsky pears are recommended for creating forest gardens on dry foothills and mountain slopes. More attention should be paid to the protection of wild pears, as well as apple trees.
Apples and pears are harvested and widely used for making dried fruits, juices, jams, pastes, and other food products. However, hundreds of tons of fruits remain in the forest. There are many shortcomings in the harvesting of wild apples and pears that need to be addressed. Conservation measures should be implemented for them, as these species constitute a valuable gene pool.
Barberry. In Kyrgyzstan, there are five species of barberry: Kashgar, multi-stemmed, elongated, whole-edged, and coin. The most widespread is the elongated barberry, which grows along river valleys and on rocky slopes of mountains in all geographical regions of Kyrgyzstan. Its fruits are widely used by the local population for making kissels, compotes, and tinctures. Natural thickets of barberry have also been significantly altered by economic activity, which requires planning and organization regarding this plant.
Apricot. In Kyrgyzstan, in addition to cultivated varieties, wild apricot or dried apricot also grows. However, uncontrolled and unregulated use has led to a sharp reduction in natural apricot thickets, which are now in a state of degradation.
Currently, only individual trees or small thickets can be found among apple-nut forests.
Common Raspberry. It is a valuable food plant. It is distributed not only in the south—in the belt of nut-fruit forests—but also in other regions. In the Kyrgyz range, there is even a so-called Raspberry Gorge, where it is particularly abundant. Wild raspberry is not only a nutritious, vitamin-bearing but also a medicinal product. Therefore, it is actively harvested in accessible places. However, there are hard-to-reach gorges in the republic where raspberry is practically not used by the population, and its fruits are lost every year.
Currant. There are many species of wild currants in Kyrgyzstan. But particularly valuable are Yanchevsky currant and Meyer currant. These two species have fruits that, in terms of taste and vitamin content, are close to cultivated currant varieties. However, for some reason, they are used very little. Only private entrepreneurs collect them for making jams and kissels. As a result, a lot of currants are lost every year.
Yanchevsky Currant grows in the south of Kyrgyzstan in the belt of nut and fir forests. Meyer Currant is found in almost all regions of Kyrgyzstan, among fir, juniper forests and sparse forests—between shrubs, along river valleys, and on mountain slopes.
The valuable food and vitamin-bearing properties of currants should be more widely utilized—making jams, kissels, and other food products.
Walnut. One of the most valuable food plants. Its fruits contain up to 71% fat, vitamins, and other beneficial substances. I.V. Michurin called the walnut the bread of the future—he valued the qualities of the nut highly. The walnut in the Chatkal, Fergana, and Uzun-Akhmat ranges forms unique forests. Up to 3,000 tons of walnuts are harvested annually in Kyrgyzstan. However, it should be noted that the regeneration of walnuts in forests is weak, which necessitates measures for the protection and reproduction of this valuable plant.
Pistachio. It grows mainly in the south of Kyrgyzstan—in the Chatkal and Fergana ranges, but in recent years it has also been cultivated in other regions—such as the Kyrgyz range. The fruits contain up to 57% fat, up to 22% protein, vitamins, and other beneficial substances. It is important to emphasize that pistachios yield small harvests (up to 80 kg per hectare) and also have periodicity in fruiting. However, despite this, up to 250 tons are harvested annually in the republic. Pistachio is of great importance not only as a food plant but also as a phytomeliorative plant.
Spiny Almond. This is a shrub up to 2 m tall. It grows in the south of Kyrgyzstan in the Chatkal and Fergana ranges. The fruits contain very valuable fatty oil, which is mainly used in medicine, perfumery, and the food industry. In addition, almonds can be used as a rootstock for cultivated almonds.
Other species of almonds found in Kyrgyzstan (Bukhara, Petunnikova) also contain various beneficial substances in their seeds. However, they are hardly used in the economy.
Cherry. There are many species of wild cherries in Kyrgyzstan, but the most valuable among them are the Tien Shan cherry and the Magolep cherry.
Tien Shan Cherry. This is a shrub up to 2 m tall. It grows on rocky-gravelly slopes, is unpretentious to growing conditions, and is quite promising for the development of poorly suitable lands in Kyrgyzstan. Its fruits have excellent taste qualities, contain sugar, organic acids, and vitamins. The cherry bears fruit abundantly and should be more widely used for feeding the population.
Magolep Cherry. It grows in the south of Kyrgyzstan in the belt of nut-fruit forests. It is mainly used for breeding purposes. It is used as a rootstock for the propagation of stone fruit plants.
Sea Buckthorn. It is widespread in Kyrgyzstan. It grows along the banks of rivers and lakes. In some places, it forms impenetrable thickets, which are called chychyrkanak or dzherganak by local residents. This is a very valuable food plant that the population eagerly uses for making jams, juices, and for medicinal purposes. However, the attitude towards sea buckthorn bushes is not careful—not only from the unorganized population that harvests it but also from institutions, collective farms, and state farms. It has been noted in the local press that along the shores of Issyk-Kul, collective farmers cut down this valuable plant, although sea buckthorn also has phytomeliorative significance and constitutes a valuable gene pool.
Kyrgyzstan has many valuable food herbaceous plants.
Katran Kochi. A perennial herbaceous plant up to 2 m tall. The roots are thick and fleshy, containing a lot of starch. The leaves are quite large, juicy, up to 35 cm long and 50 cm wide. The flowers are small, collected in a sprawling panicle. It blooms in March-May and bears fruit in May-June. It grows on clay-gravel slopes in the Chui Valley, Talas, Alai, and Inner Tien Shan. Young roots, juicy stems, and leaf petioles are consumed.
They are used as a filling for candies, marmalade. The leaves are good fodder for animals. The flowers are quite honey-bearing.
However, in Kyrgyzstan, katran is used poorly, although it would be advisable to use it more widely in nutrition. Katran is promising for the development of clay and rocky-gravel lands, as it is unpretentious to growing conditions. From the roots of katran, alcohol, molasses, and starch can be obtained. From the seeds—fatty oil suitable for food.
Rhubarb Vitrocca (in Kyrgyz "yskyn"). A perennial plant found in all geographical regions of Kyrgyzstan in the forest-meadow belt. Young stems and petioles are used in food under the name Katran Komi "sour grass." In spring, private entrepreneurs bring whole carts of this plant to the market, ruthlessly exterminating its natural thickets. This fate also befalls Maximovich's rhubarb and heart-leaved rhubarb.
It is urgent to regulate the use of thickets not only of rhubarb but also of other wild food plants. Only decisive measures for their protection can safeguard these plants from extinction.
Cut-leaved Hogweed. Several species of hogweed grow in Kyrgyzstan. Cut-leaved hogweed is often used by the population for preparing various dishes. This is a large umbrella plant with deeply dissected large juicy leaves, which are used in food—especially in spring and early summer. It grows in tall grass meadows and in some places forms hogweed meadows. However, these meadows are far from cities, and therefore hogweed is poorly used as a food plant.
Unfortunately, we do not have the opportunity to stop for a more detailed characterization of food plants in Kyrgyzstan. However, it is important to emphasize that many wild food and vitamin-bearing plants in the region are still used very weakly for feeding the population: many valuable food plants remain practically unused.
Speaking of vitamin plants, it should be noted that almost all food plants contain certain vitamins. However, Kyrgyzstan also has many plants that are not consumed but are vitamin-rich and serve as raw materials for vitamin extraction. These include various species of rose hips, especially Begger's rose hip, shiryash or Olgi's eremurus, common reed, camel thorn, and others. In the city of Jalal-Abad, there is even a special factory that produces vitamins from rose hip fruits.
Despite the fact that wild food plants have less significance compared to cultivated ones, their role in the national economy of the republic remains enormous.
In Kyrgyzstan, wild raspberries, blackberries, sea buckthorn, apples, pears, plums, cherries, barberries, currants, sour grass (rhubarb), and other food plants are harvested annually. But the role of wild food plants is not limited to their consumption. Many fruit plants, such as apple trees, pear trees, cherry trees, and plums, are of great importance for breeding new, higher-quality local varieties of fruit plants.
In addition, wild food plants are significant in the formation of phytocenoses.
Using them without considering regeneration processes can harm the national economy and, most importantly, lead to the degradation of the communities they form. All this compels us to treat wild plants more carefully, to care not only for their use but also for their protection.
However, to implement the Food Program, wild food plants should be used more widely, especially Meyer currants, Yanchevsky currants, Tien Shan cherries, katran Kochi, cut-leaved hogweed, Gmelin's pea, and others—taking into account their regeneration and protection.