10 Unusual Edible Plants --notes

Here are my notes from a podcast recommended by hubby on "10 Uncommon Edible Plants for Every Backyard" see link at the bottom for full

Orach -- spinach substitute, red color, (what else?)

Calendula -- marigold family, medicinal properties, good for bees/pollinators, needs part sun in Texas,

Sunberry -- like garden huckle berry, similar to tomato plant, good for mock blueberry pie--not proven in Texas

Ground Cherry -- tomato like plant, grows waist high and busy with little paper lanterns hanging on it. Small fruit with tomatillo like skin. Good for munching. pineapple like flavor. small edible seeds. Very similar to tomato culture, so keep separated

Huzantle -- Mexico native, red aztec spinach, young leaves used as salad green, good in heat, seeds heads can be cooked and eaten like broccoli. Annual in north, could be perennial in far south. Very pretty red color, grows waist high

Asian Long Beans-- (green asparagus beans/yard long bean, Chinese red noodle) big pretty purple flowers loved by mason bees and hummingbirds, did great in heat, grows 14 feet long, (good for our arbor?) bad in frost, grows fast in heat, can grow sucessive generations in a single growing season, don't keep as well as green beans--not good blanched and frozen, eat as you grow fresh bean,

New Zealand Spinach -- good spinach substitute, high in iron, high in folate, good in heat, easy to seed/save seed/germinate/direct sow, looks and tastes more like traditional spinach than other spinach substitutes.

Amaranth -- superplant, used as green when young, very nutritious leaf veggie, many varieties, grows everywhere, 4-7 feet tall or taller, easy to harvest grains - no seed casing, high in protein as a grain, gluten free flour, whole grain as a cereal or mix into bread as a whole grain, some varieties can be used like popcorn, huge plant for mulch or compost when done with grain, deep root system good for soil nutrition, Hopi Red Dye version can be used as dye, mixed with honey--the grains can be used to make form able clay which can then be eaten,

Lambs Quarters -- widespread weed, good spinach substitute, high protein--especially seeds, seed can be added to flour, not good used alone as flour,

Buckwheat -- easy to grow at home, lots of biomass -- busy profile for mulch or compost, not a legume, leaves high in nitrogen for soil additive, great for bees and buckwheat honey, deep root system, easy to harvest grain, more protein than wheat, good for flour to make flatbread, plant after high nitrogen crop like peas (this will work well for us this year), can get second crop after harvesting first one in long summer areas,


other notes:
Amarath and long beans for three sisters style gardening


Source: http://www.thesurvivalpodcast.com/episode-383-10-uncommon-edible-plants-for-every-backyard?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+survivalpcast+%28The+Survival+Podcast%29