Plants for Play/Snack: Andean Children’s Knowledge and Exploration of Play/Snack Plants

Here I examine Andean children's knowledge of plants that they use to play and/or as snacks and contrast it with adults' knowledge. I also look at how children's expertise results from their exploration of space and is located in everyday routine. Going on an errand or herding on the hillsides, children are drawn to wander. They take the time to explore their environment, stopping to play and chew flowers or other parts of the plants. Data were collected using participant observation and ethnographic interviews in a Peruvian high-altitude community. Results show the importance of considering children as competent and autonomous botanical informants with expertise in specialized domains (e.g., play/snack plants) that adults do not have (anymore). It also demonstrates that despite their low nutritive value, plants used as snacks have to be taken into account when studying food plants, especially as a child’s delicacy.