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wild harvesting

Plant Identification- not Garlic Mustard

Posts: 21

Location: Now: Oregon - Early 2013: Missouri Homesteading

posted 13 years ago

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I have these growing like crazy in a few of our garden beds, they have been thriving since late fall all through winter- they are low to the ground, they are small- have juicy stems, and leaves- tiny hairs cover the stems and underside of the leaf. To me they look similar to lemon balm, or garlic mustard, the main difference being the flavor and scent. It has NONE! No flavor, no scent. It's like a wild lettuce. Can anyone identify this for me? (((thanks in advance)))

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Jamie Yvonne

Posts: 21

Location: Now: Oregon - Early 2013: Missouri Homesteading

posted 13 years ago

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ok, so it has a very subtle mushroom, dirt or potato taste

very very mild flavor, almost reminds me of chickweed, but chickweed is sweeter. If I don't get sick from eating it, I'm throwing it on salads, as now I'm craving them covered in my homemade Italian dressing

mmmm

Jamie Yvonne

Posts: 21

Location: Now: Oregon - Early 2013: Missouri Homesteading

posted 13 years ago

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here it is in its natural habitat (aka my garden bed, lol)

this is a shot with my girl, Henny-Penny, kindly helping with perspective of this Winter Green of Mystery, by posing for us, she is so cute!

tel jetson

steward

Posts: 3715

Location: woodland, washington

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posted 13 years ago

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looks like red deadnettle (Lamium purpureum) to me. not a big fan, myself. there are folks who like it as a salad green or stir-fried, but the smell and taste both nauseate me. that said, it won't hurt you, so if the taste is agreeable to you, eat up.

the only reason I don't tear all of ours up is that it flowers in relatively cold weather, so it's a decent source of nectar and pollen for honey bees and other critters when there isn't much else available for them. good source of pollen in early Spring, when it's particularly important for feeding honey bee brood. once other flowers are out, though, I start pulling it up or knocking it down.

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tel jetson

steward

Posts: 3715

Location: woodland, washington

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posted 13 years ago

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and it looks like there's a formatting error in your first post. the pictures aren't showing up.

find religion! church
kiva! hyvä! iloinen! pikkumaatila
get stung! beehives
be hospitable! host-a-hive
be antisocial! facespace

Jamie Yvonne

Posts: 21

Location: Now: Oregon - Early 2013: Missouri Homesteading

posted 13 years ago

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tel jetson, thank you! I am beyond excited at this discovery! So thankful I posted here about it

I live in a very busy city suburb of Portland Oregon, I've been looking for nettle in this area to no avail. Little did I know I had her Sister growing right under my nose

Thank you again!

tel jetson

steward

Posts: 3715

Location: woodland, washington

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posted 13 years ago

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Jamie Yvonne wrote:tel jetson, thank you! I am beyond excited at this discovery! So thankful I posted here about it I live in a very busy city suburb of Portland Oregon, I've been looking for nettle in this area to no avail. Little did I know I had her Sister growing right under my nose Thank you again!

slow down just a little bit. deadnettle is named for it's superficial resemblance to stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) and lack of nettle's sting (the "dead" part of the name). the relation doesn't go much further than that. doesn't mean your deadnettles aren't going to be a great ally for you, but nettles they are not.

if you want some actual nettles, I know right where to find them. stop by sometime and I'll dig up a couple of roots for you to take home.

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Matt Smith

Posts: 181

Location: Central Ohio, Zone 6A - High water table, heavy clay.

posted 13 years ago

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I think it's Creeping Charlie (Glechoma hederacea), not Red Deadnettle. Note the proliferation of runners.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glechoma_hederacea

Where I am it's extremely aggressive. This stuff comes in like an army wherever it can find a tiny bare spot, and has choked out smaller less vigorous plants in my garden beds.

When I pull it out, it comes up in big clumpy patches. You can almost roll it up like a carpet if it's thick enough. I'd also advise making a 100% positive ID before you eat a bunch of it:

"Glechoma hederacea is known to contain terpenoids; terpene-rich volatile oils are known to irritate the gastrointestinal tract and kidneys. The volatile oil also contains pulegone, a chemical also occurring in pennyroyal that is a known irritant, toxic to the liver, and also an abortifacient. "

Matt Smith

Posts: 181

Location: Central Ohio, Zone 6A - High water table, heavy clay.

posted 13 years ago

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Also, if you're seeing a lot of it, it may indicate a Boron deficiency... the stuff is sensitive to Boron and thrives especially hard when Boron is lacking in the soil. This is a common soil deficiency in your area as I understand it, and one I share on my property.

This becomes important to know because some fruiting trees and bushes require Boron.

Jamie Yvonne

Posts: 21

Location: Now: Oregon - Early 2013: Missouri Homesteading

posted 13 years ago

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Thank you Matt

Interesting about the 'boron deficiency'- I'll be looking in to that. I'm pretty sure tel is correct about it being lamium purpureum, or red dead nettle, it is a member of the mint family and is a traditional nourisher and medicinal herb. I feel confident in this because now that I've looked into this I remember seeing the purple stalks and flowers of the mature plants last year

It looks like the link you posted about Glechoma hederacea is also part of the mint family with many of the same medicinal and nourishing properties. Thank you both so much!

It's a tiny ad only because the water is so cold.

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