Buckwheat has a long history of cultivation that began thousands of
years ago in Asia and later spreading to Europe and the Middle East.
Because the seeds look like smaller versions of beech nuts, the plant is
sometimes referred to as beech wheat.
In the late 1800s, buckwheat was an important, fast-growing cover crop
in the United States, with more than a million acres dedicated to its
cultivation. In addition to its use in weed control and to improve
potassium levels in the soil, the seeds were used to make flour and the
flowers to help bees to produce a nutrient-dense, dark honey. The plants
prominence in the 19th century landscape was referenced in a fable told
by Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm, also known as the Brothers Grimm. In
the story, a patch of buckwheat boasts to a nearby willow tree that its
beauty of flower and graceful stature will enable it to withstand
staring directly into the light of the sun, but is punished for vanity
by being struck by lightning and consequently laid to waste.
Today buckwheat is grown commercially to produce flour for making pastas
and breads, a suitable alternative to wheat for people with coeliac
disease or gluten intolerance because it is gluten-free.
The plant is also considered a late season honey crop because bees are
attracted to its flowers in late summer and early autumn when other
sources of nectar become scarce. It is also used as an organic cover
crop to enrich the nutrient content of existing soil and to prevent
erosion.
Buckwheat groats, or hulled seeds, are cooked and eaten like bulgar or
porridge, while the outer seed hulls are used as stuffing material for
pillows and various upholstered products.
Buckwheat hulls are favored for pillows because they are a
natural material that doesn’t retain or reflect heat as synthetic fibers
do. They are also hypo-allergenic and resist dust mites and other pests,
including bed bugs. In addition to household use, buckwheat hulls are
traditionally used to fill putuans or zafus, the round pillows that Zen
Buddhists sit upon during meditation.
