A Deliciously Edible Common-Weed

[Guest audiowizard]

Consider the possibility of genetically crossing a plant such as a weed, which naturally grows everywhere it can, and an edible vegetable such as spinach or romaine lettuce. With the desired result being a delicious and edible vegetable that grows everywhere naturally.

 

I will pass this idea on to as many involved in genetic science as I can.

Thank you

Lee Fernandes

[Phi for All]

I'm not a hortoculturist, but I'm pretty sure the things that make a weed tenacious and prolific also make them fibrous, tough and vile-tasting.

 

Good luck with that, though.

[d22k]

hmm, i would say that a "weed" was a human term.

 

Thus if its useful to you, it isnt a weed.

 

Even a fennel plant, for example, in the middle of your cabbage patch is a weed...

[Phi for All]

Even a fennel plant, for example, in the middle of your cabbage patch is a weed...

True, but for the OP's purposes, weed means tenacious and capable of growing with little to no maintenance. Perhaps "delicious" is the term we need to define. Taste for various vegetables is often acquired.

[d22k]

forgive me, but "OP"?

 

Starchy and sweet tasting would probably be a good bet.

Why would this be a good thing though? I cant see this solving the food chrisis, many edible plants and veggies are very easy to grow...

[Phi for All]

forgive me, but "OP"?

Opening Post, or Poster.

Starchy and sweet tasting would probably be a good bet.

Why would this be a good thing though? I cant see this solving the food chrisis, many edible plants and veggies are very easy to grow...

Actually, I think the food crisis is more of a distribution crisis, which makes it an energy crisis. There is plenty of food to go around, it just costs too much to quickly get it where it needs to go.

 

Now if you could use weeds for fuel....

[Mokele]

Dandelions are not just edible, but also quite nutritious. Not that I've eaten them, but apparently they are human-safe food, and also good for vegetarian reptiles like iguanas.

 

Mokele

[d22k]

my mum has been known to put dandylions in salads

[Bettina]

My dad said for years he was using poison to kill the dandelions in our lawn until his GP told him he would be healthier if he ate them and put away the poison.

 

Edit: So he does.....I don't.

 

Bettina

[Douglas]

My next door neighbor used to make dandelion wine.

[greentea]

sounds interesting, but do you really consider dandelions weed?

[the tree]

Sometimes when they are interupting a wash of lush green grass, they can be considered weeds but only in an asethetic way, they hardly compete with any other plants.

 

Dandilion flowers make a good relish, I would not advise trying to eat the stalk.

 

The thinking with genetic enginering is not that far off of what Audiowizard was saying, making certain crops more resistant to desiese by introducing genes from another plant would make those crops lower maintance.

[YT2095]

you can make "Coffee" from roasted dandelion root too, I`ve had it many times and it still never ceases to impress me how much alike it is.

 

Wheat is just an ordinary grass too, and can stiffle most weeds by denial of Light, it`s pretty hard to get rid off also when it sets in, I grow wheat myself, and not only is it usefull for obvious reasons and those mentioned above, it makes great straw/green manure for other veg too

[d22k]

just outta interest, is there a difference between compost and green manure?

[atinymonkey]

Compost is biodegraded material, or mulch. Green manure is plant matter that can be tilled back into the soil without preparation, for instance pea plants (they have nodules that collect nitrogen iirc).

[Martin]

Consider the possibility of genetically crossing a plant such as a weed' date=' which naturally grows everywhere it can, and an edible vegetable such as spinach or romaine lettuce. With the desired result being a delicious and edible vegetable that grows everywhere naturally.

 

I will pass this idea on to as many involved in genetic science as I can.

Thank you

Lee Fernandes[/quote']

 

I think that it is a good idea. there are problems to think about of course.

 

it would change wild habitats

 

the deer might multiply

around here the deer are already a problem, there is a regional park where there is essentially no new growth because they browse the tender new stuff. just too many of them.

 

suppose you invented a weed that had a bad taste (so deer wouldnt benefit from it and have a population explosion) and you engineered this bad taste so that it would go away with cooking. so you have this very nutritious wholesome weed that tastes bad to deer but which, when you cook it, the heat makes it taste very good to humans.

 

now suppose this weed is very hardy and robust and takes over on all the unused land, suppose it drives out the wild grass. then what will the gophers and fieldmice and wild turkeys eat? they are unable to cook, so they cant eat this stuff.

 

I am not saying that it is a bad idea. it is a very good idea. but it is not a simple proposition---you'd have to work out the details and find ways to keep the weed under control and all that.

 

another genetic engineering approach would be to modify people so they have green skin and can photosynthesize

so then instead of living off this weed you invented they can get their calories by laying around in the sun with as much skin exposed as decently possible.

 

maybe the weed could taste like a margarita, so people could lay around bare-ass with green skin and grazing on margarita-weed, in harmony with nature, as the saying goes.

[Martin]

what i wish is that weeds were a good source of fuel for my wheels,

gasoline is getting expensive at the pump

[Phi for All]

maybe the weed could taste like a margarita, so people could lay around bare-ass with green skin and grazing on margarita-weed, in harmony with nature, as the saying goes.

And this is why Martin is our newest Expert and makes the really big bucks.

 

Bravo, Martin.

[d22k]

Compost is biodegraded material, or mulch. Green manure is plant matter that can be tilled back into the soil without preparation, for instance pea plants (they have nodules that collect nitrogen iirc).

 

 

thank you

[Martin]

And this is why Martin is...

 

Oops, I had better be dignified and not joke around too much or they will take my star away.

 

actually, buffoonery aside, audiowizard was proposing a very interesting idea---a lot could be done with wild-growing landplants (and water plants)

[bascule]

I'm not a hortoculturist' date=' but I'm pretty sure the things that make a weed tenacious and prolific also make them fibrous, tough and vile-tasting.

 

Good luck with that, though.[/quote']

 

There are several decent tasting edible weeds, such as Lamb's Quarter or Pokeweed

[Phi for All]

There are several decent tasting edible weeds, such as Lamb's Quarter or Pokeweed

I had some Lamb's Quarter bread many years ago, made from the ground seeds. Not bad. I didn't realize it was a weed (I was pretty sure it didn't come from sheep).

 

Being an organic vegetable supporter, I will have to look into edible weeds. I see the lack of pesticides and depleted soils as a big plus for including them into my diet. The flavors are pretty exotic as well, I'll bet.

[Dave]

Now I have images of going out into the back garden, pulling and eating weeds from the patio. Hmm, I'm not entirely sure those are supposed to be eaten

[Phi for All]

Now I have images of going out into the back garden, pulling and eating weeds from the patio. Hmm, I'm not entirely sure those are supposed to be eaten

Patio weeds are great in salads. But they're better in brownies.

[Dave]

Mmm... brownie weeds   *drool*