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Edible native plants
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Posted by hemnancy z8 PNW (My Page) on Mon, Nov 23, 09 at 20:28
| I've been thinking about the plants we grow for food, they are from all over the world and have been selectively bred for perhaps centuries, resulting in palatable vegetables and fruits but not ones that can take care of themselves. They have to be planted, set out, fertilized, and watered every year. I'm realizing that perhaps there are a lot of natives I could be growing instead that would not require all this work once established, and could even provide food in winter, as roots. I'm trying to find out about these plants but have a lot of problems with voles and rabbits, and it's hard to find out which natives with edible roots they would bother and if there are some they would leave alone.
Some plants with edible roots, from the very extensive list below, I'm considering growing are:
Apios americana
Althaea officinalis
Aralia nudicaulis
Asclepias purpurascens, speciosa, tuberosa
Balsamorhiza sagittata
Dalea candida, purpurea
Geum urbanum
Phlomis tuberosa
Psoralea esculenta
Has anyone grown them for food and found them palatable, and can you comment on vole damage? The native onions listed in the link are described as being repellent, so maybe interplanting them with the above roots would help protect them.
Nancy |
Here is a link that might be useful: PFAF roots
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Edible native plants
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| Althaea officinalis - Marsh mallow is a beautiful plant. Pink hollyhock like blooms and at home in the flower garden as well as the herb garden. It's not native but it is very resilient, hardy, and it's never been bothered much by pests in my gardens. I have harvested for medicinal rather than edible use. Aralia nudicaulis - Wild Sarsaparilla is a pretty plant. Here's a picture I took of one while out on a hike: 
I have Aralia racemosa or Spikenard a close relative is in my "woodland" garden. It is a showier plant that has never suffered any pest problems. I think it's too pretty to harvest the one plant I have so no comments on usage. Asclepias tuberosa, edible? Not that I'm aware of. Peterson's edible plants marks it as poisonous. Medicinal, yes it. Edible, no. The only edible milkweed I'm familiar with is Asclepias syriaca. Many like to boil the young shoots in multiple changes of water and eat like asparagus. The folks that eat them, love them. Some eat the flowers and other parts as well. Can't comment on the others. Why not Jerusalem artichokes if you are looking for native, edible roots? While they will spread if the deer don't browse them too much, they are a choice edible. FataMorgana ps....if you want to see the rest of the slideshow that the Wild Sarsaparilla picture is from, you can find it in the link below. Plus there is a wild food slideshow also available in the gallery section of this website. Enjoy! |
Here is a link that might be useful: True Tale of the Beavers Walk Slideshow
RE: Edible native plants
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| Thanks for the link, FataM. I could try Jerusalem artichokes, they grow like weeds at my MIL's, but I tried them once here and they didn't make it. I'm interested in developing some woodsy areas of my yard where the plants won't have to struggle so much with the nasty weed grasses. I love Sarsaparilla, so the Aralias are really intriguing. Last summer I grew some Chinese Artichokes, Stachys affinis, in pots because I was afraid of the voles eating them. I haven't harvested them yet to see how well they did. After a couple of light frosts we still haven't had a killing frost as far as they are concerned. I have to admit I've never like sunflowers very much. |
RE: Edible native plants
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Jeruselam artichokes are delicious, either raw sliced up and used as you would water chestnuts or baked like potatoes, only way tastier! BUTT they are very,very gas producing, so don't let yourself overindulge, which takes restraint.
For fruits, the family of juneberries (serviceberries) are under-utilized, and as or more tasty than blueberries.Avoid the "amelenchier arborea" which is a bit woodier tasting, and aim to find "amelenchier laevis" or really about any of the other species...I buy from Oikos, which has several varieties and good descriptions to guide choices. |
RE: Edible native plants
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