Freamhor - Golden Root

The most abundantly produced crop among the Ogres is Freamhor, or Golden Root, named so for its rich color and high nutritional value. It possesses a more nutty flavor than its cousin cassava, owed in part to the higher mineral and protein content it develops during a two year growth cycle. This long production cycle can increase the acreage dedicated to its production for a growing population, but in most climates does not reduce productivity when compared to other vegetable crops due to the density of mature Freamhor roots. Harvests in the first year can be performed in times of need, but at the risk of underwhelming yields.   Freamhor is most often boiled or roasted to produce a mildly savory mash that takes a central role in ogre diets, particularly among the physically larger castes. Its starchy pulp readily takes on the flavors of the items it is cooked with, and absorbs flavorful fats and oils. As a nutritious filler freamhor is used to make a wide variety of cakes, puddings, and stews to stretch flavorful fruits, meats, and more strongly flavored herbs or vegetables it is blended with. From the pots of the lowest orange laborers to the banquet tables of red princes, golden root can be found in many forms.   Other races make use of freamhor as well, although its association with the ogres frequently diminishes its status. A significant portion of the limited trade between the ogres and dwarves is agricultural produce exchanged for the fine crafts of the stout folk. The dwarves have developed brews from the starch rich tubers that are potent and widely popular, and use the abundant waste biomass from its processing as feedstocks for their cavernous fungal groves. As it requires some processing to be made edible, freamhor is not widely consumed by the elves, but most tribes have maintained small plots of it for generations in many of the regions they have taken from the ogres which may then be traded with the dwarves or other races, or used by the elves as feed or bait for their own limited livestock. Among humans freamhor is often cultivated as a failsafe against famine, and has a tainted reputation in some cultures due to its association with their former ogre masters. Humans most often use the starchy tuber as a livestock feed, and reserves of it may be kept in forts and cellars alike.