Cordyline indivisa, Cordyline terminalis.

Cordyline indivisa Steud. Liliaceae. Dracaena. Ti.

New Zealand. The berries are eaten by the New Zealanders.

Cordyline terminalis Kunth. Dracaena. Ti.

Tropical Asia and Australia. This plant, common in the islands of the Papuan Archipelago, is there cultivated. In the Samoan Islands, some 20 varieties, mostly edible, are distinguished by name. The thick, fleshy roots contain large quantities of saccharine matter and, when baked, become very agreeable to the taste. The baked ti root, says Ellis, macerated in water, is fermented and then a very intoxicating liquor is obtained from it by distillation. The large, tuberous roots are eaten by the natives of Viti. The tuberous root often weighs from 10 to 14 pounds and, after being baked on hot stoves, much resembles in taste and degree of sweetness stock licorice. The Fijians chew it, or use it to sweeten puddings. The root is roasted and eaten.


Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World, 1919, was edited by U. P. Hedrick.