It's that time of year again - the bunya nuts are in season. If you live on the east coast of QLD or northern NSW then chances are there are some growing nearby you. Even in Brisbane they are easy to find. Check underneath the trees for large pine cones. The nuts in them can be roasted on an open fire or a BBQ, or boiled, peeled and used in cooking. Remove the green husks first.

The trees can be identified by the characteristic dome shape of the crown. This photo is of a younger one, so the crown is still a bit pointed:



A cone that has been broken open:



These nuts are a great 'whole food' and can be used as a cheap alternative to pine nuts. I've used them in pesto and also add them to stir fries and most other meals.

Interesting to read about these trees. In relation to their survival in colder climates, we have a number of old trees growing at 350m alt. in the ranges behind Berry, south of Sydney .They have grown tall and strong, and don't appear to be as prone to lightning strike as other species! A large crop of nuts is produced albeit very irregularly, definitely not producing every year, maybe not even every third year.

just moved into new home that has a massive bunya tree in back yard in perfect shape and contn dont know anything about them .  please advise me about it as nextdoor want it down.  the tree looks fab and is bigger than anything in this area....... mac fields south of sydney.....thanks

No, the tree is approx. 1.5m from the fence. Their house is just on the other side. They mentioned they find the fruit to be dangerous when dropping and did not like having to pick up the prickly leaves. The tree also has a slight lean to their side. I just want to find out more about them so I can weigh up the legal ramifications. I would also like to know how I can estimate it's age.

Hi sprint, I would be interested to get some contributions from you for the gardening section. I'm trying to do the same thing.

Peter, the cones are dangerous and would damage a roof if they fell from a significant height. They dent corrugated iron no problem. Not sure if you would be liable, but your neighbours probably do have reasonable grounds to want it cut down. Maybe it is worth it just to stay on good terms with your neighbour. It is still a shame though.

Alternatively, you could offer to pick up the branches for them and toss them back over the fence, and fix any roof damage. I think the branches only fall during fruiting season and they stay in one piece.

They are dropping again. Might be agood season with all this rain.

I have come up with some new techniques for shelling them. You can cook them in a microwave if you put them in some water (they explode without the extra water). I think they cook a lot quicker this way. I think the easiest technique is to put the uncooked nuts on a block of wood and chop them in half with a machete (or a meat clever, tomahawk etc). Obviously, do not attempt to hold the nut while doing this. I then use a deeply serrated steak knife to get the two halves out of the shell. Then use the raw nut in cooking.

http://www.ozpolitic.com/gardening/trees/bunya.html#cooking-shelling

We have them here and when I happen to walk past the trees I pick cones up and bring them home. I clean, roast and grind them, they are exelent when added to parsley and tomato salad.

freediver wrote on Oct 21^st, 2008 at 2:33pm:


I use oven after I clean them but a local koorie told me that they can be roasted in ashes before cleaned, never tried that myself though.

I'll take pictures when next time near them.