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Avena_nuda - L.

Common Name Naked Oat
Family Poaceae or Gramineae
USDA hardiness Coming soon
Known Hazards None known
Habitats Dry wasteland, cultivated ground and meadows, especially on heavier soils[200].
Range S. Europe.
Edibility Rating    (4 of 5)
Other Uses    (2 of 5)
Weed Potential No
Medicinal Rating    (0 of 5)
Care (info)
Well drained soil Moist Soil Full sun
Avena_nuda Naked Oat


http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Daderot
Avena_nuda Naked Oat
http://www.biolib.de/

 

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Summary


Physical Characteristics

 icon of manicon of flower
Avena_nuda is a ANNUAL growing to 0.9 m (3ft) by 0.1 m (0ft 4in).
It is not frost tender. It is in flower from June to July, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Wind.
Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in heavy clay and nutritionally poor soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.

UK Hardiness Map US Hardiness Map

Synonyms

Habitats

Edible Uses

Seed - cooked[2, 22, 46, 61, 171, 177]. The seed ripens in the latter half of summer and, when harvested and dried, can store for several years. It has a floury texture and a mild, somewhat creamy flavour. It can be used as a staple food crop in either savoury or sweet dishes. The seed can be cooked whole, though it is more commonly ground into a flour and used as a cereal in all the ways that oats are used, especially as a porridge but also to make biscuits, sourdough bread etc. The seed can also be sprouted and eaten raw or cooked in salads, stews etc. The hull is incompletely attached to the grain, yielding a naked seed easily upon threshing[183]. The roasted seed is a coffee substitute.

References   More on Edible Uses

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.


None known

References   More on Medicinal Uses

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Other Uses

The straw has a wide range of uses such as for bio-mass, fibre, mulch, paper-making and thatching[171]. Some caution is advised in its use as a mulch since oat straw can infest strawberries with stem and bulb eelworm.

Special Uses

References   More on Other Uses

Cultivation details

Succeeds in any moderately fertile soil in full sun[200]. Prefers a poor dry soil[134]. The naked oat is occasionally cultivated for its edible seed which is easily separated from the husk by threshing[183]. It is therefore suitable for cultivation on a small scale, though its yields are lower than conventional oat species[183]. There are some named varieties[183]. Oats are in general easily grown plants but, especially when grown on a small scale, the seed is often completely eaten out by birds. Some sort of netting seems to be the best answer on a garden scale.

References   Carbon Farming Information and Carbon Sequestration Information

Temperature Converter

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Propagation

Seed - sow in situ in early spring or in the autumn. Only just cover the seed. Germination should take place within 2 weeks.

Other Names

If available other names are mentioned here

Native Plant Search

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Found In

Countries where the plant has been found are listed here if the information is available

Weed Potential

Right plant wrong place. We are currently updating this section. Please note that a plant may be invasive in one area but may not in your area so it’s worth checking.

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants Status :

Related Plants
Latin NameCommon NameHabitHeightHardinessGrowthSoilShadeMoistureEdibleMedicinalOther
Avena nudaNaked OatAnnual0.9 -  LMHNDM402

Growth: S = slow M = medium F = fast. Soil: L = light (sandy) M = medium H = heavy (clay). pH: A = acid N = neutral B = basic (alkaline). Shade: F = full shade S = semi-shade N = no shade. Moisture: D = dry M = Moist We = wet Wa = water.

 

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Expert comment

Author

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Botanical References

5074

Links / References

For a list of references used on this page please go here

Readers comment

james hobbs   Sat Feb 3 2007

it is a very good and imformative page,and i personly think naked oats aro tasty and filing food to eat

Donald   Tue Sep 23 2008

How is this used as a coffee substitute? Does anyone use it as such? Could you post the method? thanks

Caroline   Thu Jan 1 2009

Does anyone know where you can buy the seed for this? (Other than realseeds.co.uk, who don't have any this year). Thanks.

Chickadee Laverne   Sat Mar 7 2009

Fedco carries the seed (www.fedcoseeds.com)

Fedco Seeds

James B. Wooley Jr   Fri Apr 10 2009

Does anyone know where to point me to farm level growers or principal first level processor/distributors of Naked Oats?. Any help would be appreciated--Thanks.

Will Coleman   Wed Apr 22 2009

Here in Cornwall the naked oat was known as 'pillas' and is widely attested to in old folklore collections, placenames etc. We would like to have a go at reintroducing, growing (and milling)what was once a staple. So, same question as James, above, who is currently doing it? Thanks

Kathy Ismond   Thu Oct 15 2009

I just saw a farmer from Manitoba on TV who is growing avena nuda. He was on Dragons' Den trying for investors in his product. The owner of Boston Pizza agreed to invest with him.

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