There has been a resurgence of edible yard gardeners. Dandelion tea is known for boosting the immune system. The tea is high in vitamin A, vitamin C, and vitamin K which helps bone health. You can find the greens at many farmers’ markets.
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By Jessica Timm
While out on a walk or working in your yard, do you ever look at a plant and think it looks like something from your salad? Maybe you remember a grandparent possibly pulling a plant from the yard to soothe a bug bite or burn? How well do you know what is growing in your yard or neighborhood and what hidden benefits might those ‘weeds” have?
In short, the plant life in your front yard that you are often taught to identify as weeds is often both editable, as well as, holds other benefits such as first aid remedies. You may have even seen a few in your local grocery store in the vegetable aisle.
Dandelions are not just for bees and making crowns! The greens and flowers from the plant, while on the bitter side, can be added to salads or sauteed for your dinner. And the roots are often used in teas. Dandelions are rich in vitamins A and D, as well as, minerals iron and zinc, and are thought to help with your liver health. If you are looking to make a salad from items in your yard, wood sorrel, oxalis, and clover can also be found in Zone 5, check your city for your planting zone via the internet or your local library.
Similar to others, I find that the sorrel has a nice lemon flavor and adds a sort of fresh flavor to the salad, especially if I do have some more bitter greens present. Wood sorrel is believed to be a good blood cleanser and may be helpful when dealing with a urinary tract infection. Clover leaves do not have much taste to them but they are rich in antioxidants. The flowers can be sweet and added to your salad as well. You may have had coffee with chicory and while it adds great flavor, it is packed with beta-carotene and is a natural anti-inflammatory.
Plant first aid for most of us comes from our elders. There were plenty of summers in my youth when a grown-up used plantain leaves for our bug bites or yarrow for bleeding scraped knees. In both situations, you are looking past the fact that said adult chewed the plant up and spit it into their hand before applying it to the wound the outcome was helpful nonetheless. If you have ever grown mint in your yard, you know it will multiply quickly and tea is an easy way to put some of the surplus to use. Mint tea is especially helpful with an upset stomach. Some people think that can help ease a common
cold or stomach issues but we can all agree that it certainly helps with bad breath! Aloe will not thrive outdoors year-round in Zone 5. Aloe is a popular houseplant that is used to treat burns and kept on hand for such purposes. Lastly, garlic mustard, while known to be invasive, is another edible plant and is suspected to lower cholesterol.
The bees will thank you for skipping the weed killer on your lawn this year and you just might find that you have a taste for things easy to forage from right there in your yard. Make sure you do your research and consult with a doctor to make sure that none of the natural remedies interfere with your health or medicine.
Jessica Timm is an avid indoor/outdoor gardener and knows plenty about Michigan plants and Hardiness Zone 5. She is also the administrator of a private Lansing Plant group on Facebook which has over 1k local members.
To contact her about this article or ask a question, email info@tncpnews.com.
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