Common Purslane

[SewingDiva]

Yup, what everyione said - salad! It might not come back reliably every year,for some reason (in my yard at least) it waxes and wanes. As far as wild forage plants go it's right at the the top of the list for tastiness.

Chickens know a good thing when they taste it.


~Phyllis

 

[keljonma]

Purslane indicates your soil is fertile, for what it is worth. It is also called pigweed or hogweed.

Purslane is the richest source of Omega-3 fatty acids of any green, leafy vegetable. Interestingly, purslane contains the EPA (eicosapentanoic acid) form of Omega-3, which is rare for a plant source of fatty acids. Purslane is also naturally high in magnesium, iron, calcium, potassium, and iron. Purslane is rich in the anti-mutagenic antioxidants betaxanthins and betacyanins. It helps to reduce inflammation, constipation, and is beneficial to the urinary system. And purslane is great for joint health.

100 grams of fresh purslane leaves (about 1 cup) contain 300 to 400 mg of alpha-linolenic acid. One cup of cooked leaves contains 90 mg of calcium, 561 mg of potassium, and more than 2,000 IUs of vitamin A.

The stems, leaves and flower buds are all good to eat. Purslane can be used fresh as a salad, stir-fried, or cooked like spinach, and because of its mucilaginous quality it is also suitable for soups and stews.


The purslane is finally starting in our world. We don't eat a lot of it, but the chickens DO love it.

 

[digitS']

Yesterday, I asked myself for the umpteenth time, "Why does this stuff come back so strongly in my annual flower beds?!?"

A flowering weed is almost never seen in those particular beds (wish I could say that for every corner of the gardens ). Since the ground is cultivated at least once every year and weed seedlings can be killed before many of the plant starts go in - I've eliminated things like quack grass and nearly eradicated any sign of chickweed.
A few bindweeds (morning glory) show up as seedlings but I blame the birds . So . . . where does the seed for this "mat" of purslane come from? I've been cultivating this ground for nearly 15 years!

I pull it and carry out of leave it in the paths where it gets sprayed with herbicide, there amongst the ornamentals. Once I checked on how much time it would take a plant to die sitting in the full sun on a concrete block: Three weeks later, it was still alive and flowering!?! Maybe all these nutrients give it the power to survive just about any treatment. I've found that short of throwing it in the garbage can or spraying it, burying it is the best way to kill the plants. It does a good job as a soil amendment where I've done that .

Eating purslane? I can get a few plants rinsed off during the weeding process and enjoy nibbling on it while sitting out there. I consider it, just desserts.

Steve

edited to say: that plant on the concrete block -- it had been uprooted and turned upside down!

 

[Hattie the Hen]

Hi there: as far as I know it is not called hogweed but there are at least two that are: one of which is very poisonous (WE have to report it here in the UK as it's so dangerous. Here are the references --youcan see that none of them look like Purslane.
[ edited to say I just ran a check on purslane being called hogweed but there was nothing on the net that I can find ]

[later ed:- However I did find a reference to purslane being called " Pig Plant"]

[3rd ed:- I am wrong - you are right !!! There is a very old reference:- http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=...X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5#PPA362,M1

My deapest APOLOGIES / RED FACE etc. etc







http://www.torrens.org.uk/FFF/hogweed.html

http://www.letsgogardening.co.uk/Information/GiantHogweed.htm

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/hogweed

Hope this helps



:rose Hattie :rose