Common plants that are edible and beautiful!. COVID has increased the cost of everything and groceries are no exception. You can enjoy a delicious and very nutritious meal by exploring your own back yard. Nature will always provide for us as long as we provide for her. Let’s take a look at some of the plants in your neighbourhood and how to eat them.
Hostas
Yes, they are edible and quite delicious! The best time to harvest is in the spring when the shoots are young. Your plant will develop new shoots, so please don’t worry about destroying it. Cook as you would asparagus. The flowers are also edible in a salad.
Fiddleheads
Fiddleheads are the early spring shoots of your ostrich ferns. They are harvested in the spring and can be frozen for later use. Harvesting will encourage new growth. Simply boil or steam your fiddleheads until soft, then saute with a little butter, garlic & onion.
Allium
As a member of the onion/garlic family, these gorgeous plants are a tasty treat. You can eat the entire plant! Chives, garlic, onion & shallots are all part of this family and grow much the same way. The flowers store the seeds, so if they are not removed, the seeds will spread.
Solomon Seal
 The young edible shoots are an excellent vegetable when boiled and eaten like Asparagus. The root is edible after boiling in three changes of water or sun baked, and is a good source of starch. (Do not eat the berries).
Herbal tea: To 1 tsp. dried herb add 1 cup boiling water, steep for 10 min. sweeten to taste, take in the morning as laxative.
The roots, when crushed can be applied to injuries to minimize bruising.
Day Lily
Daylilies are not only edible, they are spectacular. After sampling the flowers, flower buds, young stalks and root tubers, I’ve come to the conclusion that they’re so tasty I may grow them as a food crop.
Most sources say to sauté the unopened flower buds or the tubers with a little butter or oil and call it a day.
Milkweed
Although milkweeds are poisonous raw, the young shoots, leaves and seed pods are all edible cooked. When placed in cold water, brought to a boil and simmered till tender, milkweeds are said to be delicately flavored and harmless.
Milkweed Buds with Soy and Ginger
Serves two
Ingredients:
- 12 milkweed buds with stems
- Water
- Salt
- 1 tablespoon unscented oil
- 1 thumb-sized piece of ginger, peeled and sliced into very thin matchsticks
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ½ teaspoon sugar
Boil enough salted water in a saucepan to cover the milkweed. Blanch the buds and stems for a minute. Drain and refresh under cold water and roll dry in a dishcloth—the buds absorb a lot of water.
In a saucepan over medium heat, heat the oil. Add the ginger and sauté gently for a few minutes until cooked through. Increase the heat and add the soy sauce, lemon juice, and sugar, stirring briskly to dissolve the sugar. Add the blanched milkweed. Cook for a couple of minutes, until just tender. Eat at once.
You can learn more about edible plants here.
We are Permaculture Market Gardeners which means, we that we work with nature to improve the health of our planet, ourselves and our community. Enjoying the abundance that naturally surrounds us includes eating some uncommon edible plants. The health benefits of these plants will astound you!!
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