AUGUST 2009

GROWING FOR HEALTH 

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Buckwheat is a member of the Polygonaceae family and is related to Wild Buckwheat (Fallopia convolvulus).  It's not a true grain as such, but has grain-like qualities and uses. It's an easy plant to grow and when grown in ideal conditions can reach about one metre in height. It produces a mass of flowers that are very attractive to insects.   

Young buckwheat seedlings shortly after germination.

Buckwheat is a very versatile plant that is mainly used in the following ways:

• Improvement of Soil Fertility - Buckwheat is most commonly grown as a green manure crop (or cover crop) in order to increase soil fertility and is usually dug in before it flowers at around 10-12 weeks after sowing. The plant material decays rapidly in the soil making nitrogen and mineral constituents available to later-sown crops.
  

• Improvement of Soil Condition  - Buckwheat's extensive network of fine roots seems to improve the soil's tilth. Its roots also help to hold the soil together and to reduce erosion.

• Provides Material for the Compost Heap  - Buckwheat is sometimes grown in order to produce extra material for the compost heap. It can be added to the compost heap even after it has flowered.

• Weed Suppression - Buckwheat is good for suppressing weeds as it grows rapidly producing masses of foliage that helps to smother weeds. However, Buckwheat is not suitable for over wintering as its foliage is killed off by frost and because it's not winter hardy it is mainly useful for suppressing annual weeds in the summer. There is some evidence that it can even out compete and help to control quack grass. I am currently testing this out on my allotment. For example at Cornell University's College of Agriculture web site it states that 'Some perennial weeds, especially quack grass, are weakened by midsummer tillage and recover poorly in a stand of buckwheat'.  Certainly by July 2009 I noticed that very little couch grass had grown back in the bed that contained the buckwheat, although this may be because I managed to dig out all of the couch roots.
  

• Attracting Wildlife - Buckwheat's masses of pink flowers are very attractive to hover flies and also provide nectar for foraging honey bees. Hover flies are especially beneficial to  stock freegrowers because their larvae feed on aphids.  Also when I came to harvest some of the ripe buckwheat grains in July I noticed that the buckwheat seemed to have quite a few unusual yellow spiders living on it as well.
  

Buckwheat in flower

• Buckwheat for Grain Production - If buckwheat is allowed to flower it will go on to produce a crop of edible and highly nutritious buckwheat 'grain' and it is this last aspect of growing buckwheat that I intend to focus on for the rest of this article.   

Sowing:  Buckwheat has dark brown, irregularly-shaped seeds that bear some resemblance to beech nuts. The seeds of this frost sensitive plant can be sown anytime between April and August. However, as it can take around 60 -70 days for the grain to fully develop it really needs to be sown by July if it's being grown for the purpose of grain production.  The seed either can be broadcast or sown in drills about 6" apart. As buckwheat doesn't tend to flower very well in hot weather, it's probably better to sow it later in the season rather than in the spring if you are growing buckwheat in order to produce grain. However, I sowed some seeds in April of this year and still managed to obtain a supply of ripe buckwheat grains by July.    Buckwheat will grow on most soils, including on poor, slightly acidic, low fertility or clay soils, but the soil must be well drained. Avoid adding too much fertiliser or yield will be reduced. Buckwheat makes an ideal second crop when sown after early garden vegetables such as peas. Growth is rapid and flowering can occur in as little as three weeks after planting when conditions are ideal.

Harvesting: Buckwheat is not a high yielding grain crop and because the seeds don't all mature at the same time it can be somewhat difficult to harvest on a commercial basis. However, when growing on a smaller scale this shouldn't be too much of a problem because the seeds can be removed by hand in small quantities as and when they ripen with any unripe green seeds being left on the plant for harvesting at a later date. Alternatively, the whole plants could be harvested with a scythe, or cut down with garden shears at the end of the season when about 75% of the seeds are brown. After cutting down the plants tie them into bundles and hang them up to dry under cover. The seeds should be threshed off in some way when they are dry. Perhaps by shaking the seeds off into a container such as a bucket, by placing the whole plants into a sack and trampling on them, or even by placing the dry plants on clean sheets on the floor and beating them with a broom!

Buckwheat grain harvested in August 2009

Pests and Diseases: Buckwheat has few pests or diseases, but some birds including chickens and pheasants like to eat the seeds so you may need to use some form of protection when the seeds start to ripen.  Animals such as deer and rabbits will also eat the seed.

Processing the Grains:  Once you have harvested and removed the grains, then these need to be processed in some way before use. The simplest way to process buckwheat grain is to grind it into flour. Various tools can be used to do this.  I have made buckwheat flour by passing the grains through the grinding plate of my electric  juicer. It is also possible to use a seed grinder, electric or manual coffee grinder, certain types of blender,  or a pestle and mortar for grinding the grain.  Try to grind just the amount of flour you require directly before use so that the flour is fresh.  However, if you do grind more than you need, then any left-over flour can be stored in the fridge in a screw top jar for a short period. After grinding the resulting flour needs to be sieved in order to remove most of the ground up husks. Rub the flour through a kitchen sieve.  The husk material left in the sieve can be composted. If you produce a large crop of buckwheat and are able to obtain a reasonable amount of flour from your crop, then this could be used to make buckwheat bread or pancakes. Also dehulled, whole buckwheat groats can be used to make cooked dishes like kasha.  However, it is not easy to dehull buckwheat on a domestic scale as most of the equipment available for this purpose is costly and for commercial use only. If you do not wish to consume your buckwheat grain, then the seeds could simply be resown again the following year in order to produce flowers to attract beneficial insects.

Uses: Buckwheat is eaten all around the world, but is especially popular in Russia and in eastern European countries.  It is eaten by Hindus living in the Himalayas on 'Bart' or fast days and is used to make soba noodles in Japan. The dish known as kasha is made from dry roasted and dehulled grains or 'groats'. (The grains are roasted first to give them more flavour.) Buckwheat can also be ground into flour and then used in a variety of recipes - for example in pancakes, bread, griddle cakes, rissoles, noodles, pasta and in breakfast cereals.  Smaller amounts of flour can simply be used for thickening soups and stews.  The leftover dark brown hulls have many commercial uses, being mainly used for stuffing pillows and cushions and Tibetan families use the hulls for fuel, for bedding for farm animals and in packing. Buckwheat grain can also be used to make beer, or distilled into spirit or the unhulled grains could simply be germinated and used to produce trays of buckwheat greens for adding to salads or for juicing.  To produce buckwheat greens: Soak some of the grains overnight in a bowl of water, then sprout them in a jar for one day before sprinkling them onto the surface of some trays of compost. Keep the compost moist by watering it when necessary.  After about seven days the buckwheat greens are usually ready for harvesting. Harvest them with a pair of scissors. 

Health Benefits:   Studies have indicated that buckwheat may have several important medical and health advantages. For example, buckwheat protein may inhibit cholesterol absorption and have hypocholesterolemic effects and consuming buckwheat may also help to lower blood pressure.  Buckwheat is also high in rutin (Vitamin P1), a bioflavonoid that can strengthen capillary walls. Several studies have shown that rutin may be of benefit to patients with Chronic Venous Insufficiency. One such study, looking at the effects of drinking buckwheat tea on leg oedema  in patients with chronic venous insufficiency, concluded that it could have a favourable influence on patients with CVI such that further oedema development is prevented. Another study looking at the use of rutin in the treatment of CVI also concluded that it might be beneficial. In addition, rutin seems to have anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-allergenic and antiviral properties. Buckwheat also contains D-chiro-inositol, an important secondary messenger in insulin signal transduction, which is often deficient in people with Type II Diabetes. Studies are now being carried out to establish whether buckwheat could be of benefit to people with Type II Diabetes because it seems to help to maintain blood glucose levels. Finally, further studies are being done to establish whether buckwheat could be useful in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.

Nutrition: Buckwheat grain is high in fibre, providing about 10g fibre per 100g.  Although it doesn't contain any vitamin A or C, Buckwheat is a good source of protein (12-15%), containing eight amino acids and being a particularly good source of the amino acids lysine, threonine and tryptophan. It also provides most of the B vitamins especially niacin and folate (30mcg/100g) and minerals such as iron (2.20mg/100g), calcium (18mg/100g), phosphorus and copper.  Buckwheat contains rutin (4-6%), a bioflavonoid that is not found in other grains. Rutin  is hydrolysed by intestinal glycosidase to yield quercetin, an aglycone of rutin, which is absorbed from the intestine. Because buckwheat is gluten free, this grain that can be eaten by  people with coeliac disease or gluten allergies.

Further Reading:

• Backyard Buckwheat
  

Mail Order Suppliers of Buckwheat Seed Include:

• Organic Gardening Catalogue  (Also supplies buckwheat seed especially for producing buckwheat greens.)
• Suffolk Herbs 
• Tamar Organics 
• HehlisHolistics - Sells a range of electric and hand operated grain mills for making flour.  However, some of the manual grinders use bee's wax, although an alternative may be available for vegans. Please contact the company via the web site.