borealmum said

looking for Buffalo / Vanilla grass

Hi , I am looking for a source within the USA or Canada to purchase Buffalo / Vanilla grass . I use Sweetgrass a lot in the teas I make . There are some I really would like to use the Buffalo/Vanilla grass instead as I find it just has a slightly different flavour & sweetness.
This past spring I did find the seeds for Vanilla grass out of Richters here in Canada .It did grow and I have a small patch beginning but not able to harvest yet . we are in MB. Canada so I’m not sure in our growing season how long it will take for a patch to establish into a decent harvest.
So if anyone has info on where one may find these grasses it’d be greatly appreciated .
Thank You
Roxie

11 Replies
Dustin said

Buffalo grass? As in the native Texas grass? Never thought to taste it!

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borealmum said

Dustin the grass I’m looking for is European it is very similar to sweetgrass but not native to NA . so I’m not sure if the grass in TX is sweetgrass maybe or was it the European plant introduced.
Indigenous peoples used sweetgrass in tea form a lot for medicine .I think it is like the green tea of NA as it is a great cleansing tea but also used for coughs & asthma either as a steam or a tea . I find most people only know it now as a smudge .We try and re-intro our sacred medicines to people and sweetgrass is one of them .
When searching for buffalo/vanilla grass all that keeps coming up is the Kusmi tea. Which it is a good tea but I certainly could not afford to buy their tea to make my own large amounts of tea for others .Kusmi is good but so expensive .
If You are able to determine if the TX grass is indeed the same as the European do You have access to it ? I would be willing to purchase or trade if You like .
Thank You so much for responding like I said I have just had no luck or leads what so ever in finding a source .

Dustin said

I have no idea how to determine if the TX grass is the same as what you are looking for, but I have seen seeds at a local nursery for the TX grass. Maybe give them a call and see if they know?
http://www.naturalgardeneraustin.com/

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From a quick search I found two different species that might fit your description:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hierochloe_odorata
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthoxanthum_odoratum

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borealmum said
Dustin it is a different grass now when I see the latin name . I’ve a feeling wherever Buffalo roamed locals must’ve named the grass after the animal lol .

Yes AB it is the second You listed .I know what it is I just cannot find it in cultivated dried form anywhere .We pick sweetgrass every summer for our teas & medicines it is sacred here .The other is the European variety and I only have it myself started from seed but like I said my patch is not established enough to harvest for tea use yet .
here is the seed from Richters
http://www.richters.com/Web_store/web_store.cgi?product=X6600&show=&prodclass=F026&cart_id=7421176.14882

maybe if I do a search under the latin name something will come up . in a way at least I now know once my patch has grown there is a need for someone to supply .

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Dexter said

No idea if this is what you are looking for or not, but there are two blends on the Kusmi site that include buffalo grass…..
http://us.kusmitea.com/our-teas/russian-tea/green-zubrovka.html?p=5
http://us.kusmitea.com/our-teas/russian-tea/zubrovka.html?p=6

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borealmum said

Yes that is the tea Kusmi sells that contains Vanilla grass .I make & sell my own tea blends so I’m looking for a source that just sells the grass in bulk form .While I can buy a small container of the Kusmi as a treat for myself I could not afford to purchase & re-sell. Plus it is blended with other ingredients it is not the pure grass on its own .

Dexter said

Sorry I didn’t notice that you had said that Kusmi had it. I just saw it, and thought someone was looking for it…found this thread and posted it without really reading all the responses… :((

borealmum said

Oh that is okay it is a really great tasting tea ! My cousin in Ottawa got me hooked on Kusmi teas . He treats me with them when he comes to visit .I haven’t found them here in Wpg. yet .Which I guess makes them all more of a special treat only getting them once or twice a year .

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ifjuly said

This is a real stumper, everywhere I look that usually has ANYTHING you imagine in terms of herbs and spices and dried plants for flavor is coming up short (they’ve got dried sweetgrass at Mountain Rose Herbs and an encyclopedia entry for the kind you want, but don’t actually sell it). Makes me wonder if maybe if you contacted certain shops that don’t carry it but carry nearly everything else—Penzey’s, The Spice House, Kalustyan’s, Mountain Rose, Bulkfoods, OliveNation, etc.—they might at least have leads?

borealmum said

That is a good idea ! I have friends who order bulk from Mountain Rose so maybe I will start there . It is so frustrating when searching something that seems so natural and would be abundant yet nothing .not a tea but I was searching for real violet essential oil for yrs or real violet dried flowers .I would still love to find it but gave up everything I came across was synthetic .Yet violet was so common in my grandmother & mother’s time .I love violet flavoured things(I’ve had items from France & MX ) and the scent IS SO WONDERFUL.wE DO HAVE WILD VIOLETS HERE BUT IT’D TAKE ME FOREVER TO HARVEST ENOUGH TO ADD FLAVOUR .
oops sorry about the caps ! Thanks again I will try MR and maybe even Ritchers here in Canada since they sell the seed maybe they may know a source .

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