Can anyone tell me where I can find out which NZ wild greens/weeds can be eaten!They don't have to be native - more grasses and weeds. Thanks.
antoniab,
Mar 12, 2:53pm
You can eat chickweed, I think its really nice :) and most gardens have it
stevee6,
Mar 12, 3:22pm
Puha, macropiper excelsum(pepper tree). There's a book called a Field Guide to Edible Native Plants - probably available in your local library.
pinto11,
Mar 12, 3:40pm
Is there a book that talks about greens other than natives also!Every book seems to be aimed at the native ones that we can eat, but their are a lot of other greens that are edible that I would like to know about.Thanks antoniab and stevee6 for your contributions.I'll check them out.
maclad,
Mar 12, 3:52pm
A few I know of are dandelion, fat hen, fennel and apparently gorse can be used in cookery and I think to make tea. Read about the gorse in a book a while ago but can't remember it's uses.
oh_hunnihunni,
Mar 12, 4:08pm
Gorse blossom makes a nice wine, and is good in salads, and as a flavouring in teas. They look wonderful too tossed into any vegie dish at the last minute.
In the mountains you can eat the red and white berries that grow amongst the tussock.They are called snowberries and Kea's love them also.
shimmygirl,
Mar 12, 6:29pm
Yes a fab book.author is Andrew Crowe
shimmygirl,
Mar 12, 6:30pm
A very interesting link.thanks for that!Definitely worth book marking if your into foraging.
venna2,
Mar 12, 7:09pm
Puha is also known as rariki (not sure of spelling).
You can make tea from kawakawa leaves. And you can eat borage flowers - a Japanese friend of mine makes beautiful jelly desserts which she decorates with these edible flowers.
Lots more - I must look at the link given above.
crackerjack19,
Mar 12, 7:14pm
Of course the outstanding'weed' that is watercress from a clean stream.
pinto11,
Mar 12, 8:08pm
You guys are great.Thanks for your suggestions.and by no means stop if you have any more suggestions.I only have dial up here so it surfing the net is not a very quick option for me.Will look into the plants you've mentioned and try them out.THANKS
bev00,
Mar 12, 11:06pm
love foraging
lilyfield,
Mar 13, 6:16am
while you are at it- learn all the wild fungi- their are at least 10 delicious wild varieties.
venna2,
Mar 13, 6:23am
Seaweed too, from unpolluted waters. I used to love bishop's necklace (Neptune's necklace).
And the inside of young supplejack.
mkbooks,
Mar 13, 10:08am
You can use the stems + leaves of borage as well-peel the hairy skin-tastes like cucumber
oh_hunnihunni,
Mar 13, 10:21am
Daylilies, violets, marigolds,lavender, roses, nasturtiums, bean flowers, courgette flowers, feverfew flowers = all useful pretties for salads, and some have medicinal properties too.
daleaway,
Mar 13, 10:46am
I know someone who used to make broom tea for her arthritis. She died. Not of arthritis, though. Maybe not of broom tea either!
macandrosie,
Mar 15, 9:18am
Cress grows in creeks, but you'd want to make sure the water was clean & there was no nasties going in up stream!
bestgames,
Mar 15, 2:08pm
pine needles are a big source of vit C. A Finnish special forces guy I met when I was bugger all told me about that one -he made tea with it.
I'm interested in edible fungus - mushies have a protein value near meat and can be used for a lot of cooking as a replacement for meat so as I am off to the country with the wife I thought this would finalyl be the time to step up my bush skills and do some fungus Phad Thai or Mee Goreng.
surfinjonny,
Mar 20, 1:14pm
Pikopiko young frond from ferns, Horopito our other pepper tree IMOtastes like peaches at first then fire second. You can eat the seeds of a thistle
verrans,
Mar 20, 3:50pm
Alot of weeds are herbs. Try getting hold of a book on herbs with pictures in, and which parts are used. Public libraries should have some
Clevers is meant to taste similar to cucumber and is good for urinary tract/bladder.
A herbal encyclopedia would be a good place to look. Also maybe a maori edible plant/medicine book. Double check things all the same, as I remember a program on tv in the past few years and a man was saying you could eat the young fronds of bracken fern, but I've just googled that and it says its toxic to humans and animals and can cause tumors.
The roots of dandelion can be roasted and made into coffee like drink too, but that also has now been linked to cancers, so do be very careful and double/triple check everything, with the latest information you can find
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