Water Chestnut

Water Chestnut (Marron d'Eau), the name given in France to the edible seeds of the Trapa natans (see TRAPA). The name water chestnut is also given to the edible tubers of the Scirpus tuberosus, a plant of the natural order Cyperaceæ (q.v., and see BULRUSH), which is cultivated by the Chinese in tanks very abundantly supplied with manure. It is destitute of leaves, except a slender short sheath or two at the base of each culm. It is stoloniferous, and the tubers are produced on the stolons. They are in high estimation among the Chinese, both for food and as a medicine, and are eaten either raw or boiled.