Which South Florida plant could be used to create a starch for baking, but if prepared incorrectly, was poisonous?

(___________. Credit: Quilt block by Claudia Van Essen. HistoryMiami, Miami Centennial Quilt)

 

Pioneers who moved to South Florida encountered a variety of new foods. One abundant food in particular could be poisonous if prepared the wrong way. The new residents learned from the Seminoles the process of preparing this plant. The crop was used as a cash crop by many of the settlers, who sold one of its products, starch, in Key West.

A. Comptie