September --Vegatable Lamb of Tartary

[Matt Costa]

Vegetable Lamb of Tartary

This month we celebrate the legend of not a mythical animal but a plant that grows an animal. The Vegetable Lamb of Tartary was a plant indigenous to central Asia that was both animal and plant and whose fruit was thought to be Sheep! Since the 11th century it was believed to be a plant the spawned Sheep because of its fruit was very similar to cotton and not knowing what cotton was, a connection was made that it was wool growing out of these plants. So "logic" told them that this plant must be growing sheep; the plant believed to be the Vegetable Lamb is today known as the Cibotium barometz, a fern of the genus Cibotium.
In the Hebrew legend it fixed itself to trees by a short stem attached to the navel, half hidden within the foliage. Once they have eaten all the vegetation within their reach, they die of starvation. The Vegetable lamb is considered a delicacy as its meat tastes like fish, and its blood like honey. Its bones can be used in rituals to give human beings the power of prophecy. Though no accounts have ever been reported of an actual sheep being "birthed" from the plant it seemed to be a popular belief among Tartary people.






info gathered webhome.idirect.com/~donlong/monsters/Html/Barbary.htm
images from www.compulink.co.uk/~museumgh/veglamb.htm

[aneaglesangel]

Wow! I've never heard of this! What a strange thing to think!! It's funny when you read about things people used to believe, LOL!!

Hmm, wonder if I can find me one of them there plants, I'll grow me a baby sheep!!!

[karlsaves]

That's Kool If i could just find A plant that Grows Cans of Pepsi i Could Die happy

[lildebcc]

Wooo-hoooo new month ;Dnew creature!

Interesting, I have never heard of this one. I like hearing myths and legends from other places. I would not consider it strange, but different. Of course, this prompted me to do my Google Goddess best to check this out. I did find out this little tidbit of information:---------------------"The myth also states that an arrow could be fired at the stalk to free the lamb."

I can only imagine how myths and legends from our lives must look to other people that do not understand us.

Now if this were true, just imagine ------wool clothing and lamb chops would be pretty cheap if they could be grown and harvested all year long.

>^o.o^<

[aneaglesangel]

That's funny lildeb! Imagine bringing someone from that time and bringing them here?? The poor thing would probably have a heart attack within the first minute!!