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TheWaterbug
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As I was weeding the garden . . .

I noticed how rapidly the weeds grow, even with very little water. Whenever my drip system turns on, the initial burst of pressure causes the hoses to spray a small stream of water about 3' long, for about a second. I frequently find tracks of weeds growing along this little path that got dribbled on.

And they're incredibly robust. I'll cut them off with the stirrup hoe, and they'll re-root themselves where they land.

Weeds are like the perfect plants.

And then it occurred to me--why don't we just eat the weeds?!?!?

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Fig3825
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That would be a good idea...if they were tasty!

I feel your pain regarding weeds. When we pull weeds all we can feel is that were taking a step forward while traveling 2 steps back. It's impossible to keep up... :roll:

orgoveg
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Actually, I do eat the weeds (and many others do, as well). Purslane, dandelion, sow thistle, lamb's quarters, garlic mustard, amaranth, black mustard, stinging nettle, etc, etc. They're tasty, nutritious, and free!

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rainbowgardener
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https://www.amazon.com/Eat-Weeds-Ben-Charles-Harris/dp/0879836261

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TheWaterbug
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orgoveg wrote:Actually, I do eat the weeds (and many others do, as well).
Just curious--if you start eating the weeds from your garden, do they figure out that they're "vegetables" now and get all temperamental, fragile, and demanding?

orgoveg
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TheWaterbug wrote:
orgoveg wrote:Actually, I do eat the weeds (and many others do, as well).
Just curious--if you start eating the weeds from your garden, do they figure out that they're "vegetables" now and get all temperamental, fragile, and demanding?
Funny you mention that. Yes, they do! Well, some of them, anyway. Most are very easy to cultivate and grow without any help, whatsoever. Others act finicky like most vegetables.

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gixxerific
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I wish crabgrass was a hot commodity, I be stinking rich I tell you.

Look out Bill Gates. My crabgrass dynasty isn't anything you can mess with. :lol:

orgoveg
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I believe that crabgrass seeds are edible, but I don't think they would be worth the effort to collect them. No nutrition - just minimal calories, and you'd need a boatload for a side dish.

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Fig3825
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Speaking of weeds...we had a weed that popped up all over the place and when you touched it it pretty much fired it's seeds out! I stepped into a bunch of them having no idea what they were and they almost put my eye out! Anyone know what this weed is?

Once one of them popped, it typically hit another...and another....and so on until there was a miniature seed firework show going in. They flew EVERYWHERE! Happened to me twice around that time...once in Maryland and once in Virginia in my backyard. I didn't take the time to go back and find out what it was. I was too busy digging seeds out of my eyes.

DoubleDogFarm
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Shotweed. Look it up!


Eric

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applestar
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There are three kinds of weeds in my garden that shoots their seeds: Yellow Wood Sorrel, Jewelweed, and one other that I'm pretty sure is upland or bitter cress. Oh wait 4, common vetch also pretty explosively scatter their seeds.

I eat weeds too. 8)

DoubleDogFarm
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bitter cress
Cardamine oligosperma Nutt.
little western bittercress

Shotweed, spitweed, Pop-in-the-eye Weed, Wild cress, Western Bittercress, and Little Bittercress.

All the same weed.

Eric

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digitS'
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Weeds are only "free" if they are outside the garden. Otherwise, they are taking up space, sunlight, water, and nutrients that could go to other plants . . . like, the ones in the catalog pictures you spent all those winter months admiring.

Outside the garden, I like how the dandelions grow nice and lush where the neighbor's sprinkler hits them! I've made good coffee with roasted dandelion roots on a 1:1 ratio with the standard grind. And, at the price for a better quality decaf that I've been mixing in, why I haven't gone back to roasting roots, I can only see as a personal failing!

The volunteer purple orache that I encourage is almost a weed and its similarity to spinach, makes it a desirable one. The similarity of orache to lambs quarters just means that I have more unconventional choices just a few feet in most any direction.

Redroot pigweed is real tasty as a potherb, too.

Steve

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TheWaterbug
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DoubleDogFarm wrote:Shotweed. Look it up!
I looked it up on YouTube, and there's some [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAuUJrzaJJY&feature=related]high-speed footage of the pods exploding[/url]and spraying shrapnel everywhere.

Pretty amazing.

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TheWaterbug
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orgoveg wrote:Actually, I do eat the weeds (and many others do, as well). Purslane, dandelion, sow thistle, lamb's quarters, garlic mustard, amaranth, black mustard, stinging nettle, etc, etc. They're tasty, nutritious, and free!
Unless it's labeled the "Field Greens Salad" at a swanky restaurant. Then it's $15.00 :)

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soil
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even though I have a big giant garden. full of fruits and veggies. I can go out and harvest more nutrition from my "weeds" than I can my crops.

check out the youtube channel called eattheweeds. hes got over 100 videos for identifying eatable weeds.

greenheirloom
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Bleh....not tasty at all. And for the most part, very little nutrient value. They are the bane of my existence.

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Fig3825
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I bet we watched the same video, I did the same.



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