My father has always railed against what he calls yard clipping salads, a.k.a.
any salad that isnt made of romaine or iceberg.
(And theyre usually free.)
Lets explore some of the edible weeds, ferns, and flowers that can be found outside your door.
The video below has some great tips for dandelion prep, cleaning, and cooking.
What they look like:You know what these guys look like (see above.)
Dandelion leaves can be harvested year-round, but taste sweetest in the early spring.
Young shoots are apparently used to make beverage called nettle beer, whichisalcoholic so thats nice.
Thin catkins of tiny green flowers grow from the leaf axils.
Oh, and the whole plant is covered in tiny, stinging hairs.
Spurges leaves dont have a succulent quality to them and purslanes are always free of fuzz.
Spurge also contains a milky sap, which is absent in purslane.
(Its a plant.
Its good for you.)
The problem is thatallferns go through a fiddlehead stage, and eating random rolled-up fronds may make you sick.
They taste best when theyre around four to six inches high.
Photos byDavid DeHetre,Robert Taylor,Paul Huxley,Forest Farming, andHarry Rose.
