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IntroductionIn the last two decades several comprehensive surveys and reviews were performed in many European countries on wild plant use. Wild plants formed important parts of our ancestors' diet in a multitude of ways (e.g. as bread ingredients, vegetables, fruits, spices, snacks or beverages); essential in severe times, supplementary otherwise [1][2][3]. Revitalization of traditional practices is timely for ecology, economy and nutrition biology. Nevertheless, even though Hungary is no poorer in traditions of wild plant use than other parts of Europe, no broad-scale review has been undertaken for Hungary in this respect, yet.Information on the human consumption of wild plant species is widely scattered among the ethnographic and botanic literature, mostly in Hungarian language. Publications on gathering economy, traditional nutrition, shepherding, forest goods utilization, and on the hunting-fishing-gathering "pákász" lifestyle in the former wetlands of the floodplains of the large Hungarian rivers are known from the end of 18th century on (e.g. [4]), and they became frequent from the second half of the 20th century. Publications of traditional research on medicinal uses of plants [5][6][7][8] and ethnobotany [9-11] also mention wild food plants, but a review concentrating on wild food plants is still missing.In this work we systematically review and compile information on the utilization of wild food plants in the Hungarian speaking regions of the Carpathian Basin from the Hungarian ethnographic and ethnobotanical publications. Our study aims at compiling a knowledge base on wild food plants consumed in Hungary and by the Hungarians living in other countries of the Carpathian basin, containing information on the species, as well as the modes of use. As the Carpathian Basin is dominated by alluvial floodplains located on the margin of the vast Eurasian steppe regions, Hungarian traditional plant use might also include previously undocumented usage of wetland and steppe plant species, which can potentially add some new aspects to the existing knowledge on traditional plant use in Europe. Material and methods Flora, vegetation and history of the Carpathian BasinThe Carpathian Basin is the contiguous floodplain area of the Danube and Tisza Rivers encircled by the Carpathian

In this article we review the use of tree saps in northern and eastern Europe. Published accounts by travellers, ethnologists and ethnobotanists were searched for historical and contemporary details. Field observations made by the authors have also been used. The presented data shows that the use of tree sap has occurred in most north and eastern European countries. It can be assumed that tree saps were most used where there were extensive stands of birch or maple trees, as these two genera generally produce the largest amount of sap. The taxa most commonly used have been Betula pendula, B. pubescens, and Acer platanoides, but scattered data on the use of several other taxa are presented. Tree sap was used as a fresh drink, but also as an ingredient in food and beverages. It was also fermented to make light alcoholic products like ale and wine. Other folk uses of tree saps vary from supplementary nutrition in the form of sugar, minerals and vitamins, to cosmetic applications for skin and hair and folk medicinal use. Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are the only countries where the gathering and use of sap (mainly birch sap) has remained an important activity until recently, due to the existence of large birch forests, low population density and the incorporation of sap into the former Soviet economic system. It is evident that gathering sap from birch and other trees was more widespread in earlier times. There are records indicating extensive use of tree saps from Scandinavia, Poland, Slovakia and Romania, but it is primarily of a historical character. The extraction of tree sap in these countries is nowadays viewed as a curiosity carried out only by a few individuals. However, tree saps have been regaining popularity in urban settings through niche trading. © The Author(s) 2012

21 6 Cattle herder, 5321 Kunmadaras, Széchenyi u. 7., Hungary 22 7 Shepherd, 4251 Hajdúsámson, Liszt Ferenc u. 9., Hungary 23 Abstract 29Wetlands are fragile, dynamic systems, transient at larger temporal scales and strongly affected 30 by long-term human activities. Sustaining at least some aspects of human management, particularly 31 traditional grazing, would be especially important as a way of maintaining the "necessary" 32 disturbances for many endangered species. Traditional ecological knowledge represents an important 33 source of information for erstwhile management practices. Our objective was to review historical 34 traditional knowledge on wetland grazing and the resulting vegetation response in order to assess 35 their relevance to biodiversity conservation. 36 We studied the Pannonian biogeographic region and its neighborhood in Central Europe and 37 searched ethnographic, local historical, early botanical, and agrarian sources for historical traditional 38 knowledge in online databases and books. The findings were analyzed and interpreted by scientist, 39 nature conservationist and traditional knowledge holder (herder) co-authors alike. 40 Among the historical sources reviewed, we found 420 records on traditional wetland grazing, 41 mainly from the period 1720-1970. Data showed that wetlands in the region served as basic grazing 42 areas, particularly for cattle and pigs. We found more than 500 mentions of habitat categories and 43 383 mentions of plants consumed by livestock. The most important reasons for keeping livestock on 44 wetlands were grazing, stock wintering, and surviving forage gap periods in early spring or mid-late 45 summer. Besides grazing, other commonly mentioned effects on vegetation were trampling and 46 uprooting. The important outcomes were vegetation becoming patchy and remaining low in height, 47 tall-growing dominant species being suppressed, litter being removed, and microhabitats being 48 created such as open surfaces of mud and water. 49 These historical sources lay firm foundations for developing innovative nature conservation 50 management methods. Traditional herders still holding wetland management knowledge could 51 contribute to this process when done in a participatory way, fostering knowledge co-production. 52 53 3 Keywords: effect of livestock grazing, knowledge gap, knowledge co-production, traditional 54 ecological knowledge, vegetation structure 55 56

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