Collecting and growing Edible Weed seeds

[delmar]

I have been collecting dandelion seeds with a shop vac. This seems to work really well as long as I leave the filter out of the shop vac. It sucks up the seed head, drops the seeds in the hopper and shoots the white fuzz out the other side.
I first tried jar sprouting them but they clump together sort of the way chia and flax seeds do, but not to that extreme.
Next I tried mixing them with moist millet seed. the way I sprout flax.. http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?68020-Flax-sprouts-made-easy
...The millet sprouted and I though I saw some of the dandelion seeds sprouting, but if they were they were growing way slower than the millet.

So I tried putting them on a damp piece of flannel and keeping them moist, by misting them with a spray bottle twice a day. They have been on the tray for a week. Still no sprouts! Any ideas?

edit: I tried to change the title of this thread to include edible weeds in general because this thread is evolving beyond just dandelions.

[Raw Angel Mom]

Wow, this is very interesting

All the best!

[sport]

http://www.atomicshrimp.com/st/content/mini_dandelions
I never thought to do this. Thanks for the prompt.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

http://www.atomicshrimp.com/st/content/mini_dandelions
I never thought to do this. Thanks for the prompt.

Excellent find. Would be one of the finest foods you could sprout. Can't do much better than weed seed sprouts. l'll be visiting the farm tomorrow for weeds, so hopefully i'll be able to find some weed seeds.

[sport]

http://www.brombeerwald.com/2010/06/13/sprouting-dandelion/
This guy planted them in soil.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

http://www.brombeerwald.com/2010/06/13/sprouting-dandelion/
This guy planted them in soil.

Excellent link. This thread has made my month.

Eventually l want to sell up everything and live in the bush and live entirely off weeds like this bloke who lives in Australia. He has never been inside a bank in his entire life and brought his kids up as raw vegans. A friend interviewed him recently:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddtNV5VdCPQ

He lives alittle bit out of town in a bush hut and comes into town occasionally. Some of his best interviews are not even released online. He is a very smart man too...very well connected with nature and the cosmos.

People work in jobs as slaves nearly all their waking lives, but they still don't have much to show for it [because they pay highly inflated prices for material possessions and pay too much tax] (illuminati enslavement of the masses) and are generally not very happy. Living like this fellow means being free and not having to work a lifetime for stuff you don't need, but most importantly, it gets you out of the `matrix' and starves the illuminati of funds.

l've talked the bloke who interveiwed him (a fruitarian) to become a recluse and lives off weeds also. He is setting off for Kangaroo lsland to live off weeds in the bush for 12 months. l suspect he won't sleep for the entire 12 months, he'll just meditate the entire year. When he stayed with me recently with another friend, both of them hadn't slept since Easter (an entire month). One of the guys who was going to stay with me (almost breatharian and a certified living Saint, and probably a Buddha [perfect 5th level human being that is master of the universe]) hasn't slept in many many years. There are about 2,000 perfect human beings around in the world...can't be improved in any way possible. In many ways l was glad the Saint never stayed at my place, because he would have known everything l have done in this life and all my thousands of previous lives...it's a scary thought.

[MysticTree]

I'd sow them in soil.off topic a bit. I met someone the other day who obsessively germinates apple pips. He does this on moist kitchen paper towels and then plants them in pots once they have a "tail". The ones that don't germinate are discarded. Saves on space that way I guess.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

One of the hardest and most inefficient things to sprout is Walnut greens. You need to put the walnut in soil and cut the shoots off only and disregard the entire nut. So, in order to make walnut green juice you would need a big sack of walnuts to get a glass of juice. Pretty silly.

l've tried sprouting walnuts in sprouting trays, but it is very very difficult. After four months of careful attention l managed to get one or two walnuts to crack the shell, but that was as far as l could get it.

Tomatoe seeds would be good for sprouting, but l haven't bothered doing that. Maybe l could try it as an experiment.

[Living Food]

I have been collecting dandelion seeds with a shop vac. This seems to work really well as long as I leave the filter out of the shop vac. It sucks up the seed head, drops the seeds in the hopper and shoots the white fuzz out the other side.
I first tried jar sprouting them but they clump together sort of the way chia and flax seeds do, but not to that extreme.
Next I tried mixing them with moist millet seed. the way I sprout flax.. http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthrea...outs-made-easy
...The millet sprouted and I though I saw some of the dandelion seeds sprouting, but if they were they were growing way slower than the millet.

So I tried putting them on a damp piece of flannel and keeping them moist, by misting them with a spray bottle twice a day. They have been on the tray for a week. Still no sprouts! Any ideas?

I know that the link said it probably wasn't necessary, but did you pop them in the freezer for a while beforehand? And did you soak them? Can't imagine why they wouldn't grow otherwise (they do for me), but sometimes they do take quite a while to germinate.


In many ways l was glad the Saint never stayed at my place, because he would have known everything l have done in this life and all my thousands of previous lives...it's a scary thought.

Nothing to be afraid of; at that level he wouldn't be judgmental at all, he would just want to help you along on the path to enlightenment. Judgment, ego, etc are all traits of unenlightened beings. I'd love to have an opportunity to meet someone like that.

[delmar]

I know that the link said it probably wasn't necessary, but did you pop them in the freezer for a while beforehand?
I have not put them in the freezer, but I am not opposed to the idea, if it will help.


And did you soak them? I didn't soak them because they tend to stick together when you soak them. Might be worth a try though.


Can't imagine why they wouldn't grow otherwise (they do for me), but sometimes they do take quite a while to germinate.


Here are the possible reasons, that have crossed my mind, why they are not sprouting.
1.Perhaps they need to dry out more, before they are ready to sprout.
Possible solution, throw them in the food dehydrator.
2.Need a dormant stage first.
Possible solution, throw them in the freezer for a while, but for how long?
3. Seeds need more moisture to germinate.
Possible solution, experiment with soaking times. Then spread them on the cloth.
4. Perhaps collecting seeds with the vacuum cracks the seeds so that they don't germinate. This seems unlikely because none of the seeds are germinating. It would seem like some of the seeds would remain undamaged. If this turned out to be the problem perhaps using a low power cordless vacuum would solve the problem. I do want to go to a cordless system to harvest the seeds but I was hoping to get make sure I know how to sprout them before I spent any money. Perhaps I will try sprouting some seeds I collected by hand before making that investment.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

Nothing to be afraid of; at that level he wouldn't be judgmental at all, he would just want to help you along on the path to enlightenment. Judgment, ego, etc are all traits of unenlightened beings. I'd love to have an opportunity to meet someone like that.

Very very true. He is a monk and worked directly for `the Master C.H' for over 10 years. He has had the opportunity that millions would love to have, and is one of only about 8 monks who have had the privaledge. Master C.H ordered him to enter the real world again, and that's how l have come to know him.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

I have not put them in the freezer, but I am not opposed to the idea, if it will help.I didn't soak them because they tend to stick together when you soak them. Might be worth a try though.Here are the possible reasons, that have crossed my mind, why they are not sprouting.
1.Perhaps they need to dry out more, before they are ready to sprout.
Possible solution, throw them in the food dehydrator.
2.Need a dormant stage first.
Possible solution, throw them in the freezer for a while, but for how long?
3. Seeds need more moisture to germinate.
Possible solution, experiment with soaking times. Then spread them on the cloth.
4. Perhaps collecting seeds with the vacuum cracks the seeds so that they don't germinate. This seems unlikely because none of the seeds are germinating. It would seem like some of the seeds would remain undamaged. If this turned out to be the problem perhaps using a low power cordless vacuum would solve the problem. I do want to go to a cordless system to harvest the seeds but I was hoping to get make sure I know how to sprout them before I spent any money. Perhaps I will try sprouting some seeds I collected by hand before making that investment.

Yes, drying out more would be a good idea. l'll do some experiments and get back to this thread on the results. Hopefully l can find some weed seeds this afternoon.

Late edit: l spent the afternoon picking flowers with weed seeds in them, and l also picked a bunch of weeds for dinner. Next week l will spend the entire day picking weed seeds so l have a big container of them for an entire year. l will focus on weed seed sprouts and weed seed greens along with grass, algae, sea vegetables and sunflower greens and sesame seeds. lf l can get to a stage this year where l am almost surviving entirely on weed sprouts, l know l can leave the matrix and live in the bush and have no job.

[delmar]

Yes, drying out more would be a good idea. l'll do some experiments and get back to this thread on the results. Hopefully l can find some weed seeds this afternoon.

Late edit: l spent the afternoon picking flowers with weed seeds in them, and l also picked a bunch of weeds for dinner. Next week l will spend the entire day picking weed seeds so l have a big container of them for an entire year. l will focus on weed seed sprouts and weed seed greens along with grass, algae, sea vegetables and sunflower greens and sesame seeds. lf l can get to a stage this year where l am almost surviving entirely on weed sprouts, l know l can leave the matrix and live in the bush and have no job.I am really interested in seeing what weed seeds you come up with to sprout. I am scheduled to attend a foraging skills workshop (http://www.ediblecommunities.com/michiana/workshops/foraging-skills-workshop-registration.htm) in June and my focus is going to be on identifying plants to save sprouting seeds from. I don't really see myself going the no job route though. My wife simply would not go along with being that far "off the grid" In fact the idea of my not having a cell phone is almost unthinkable to her. Also I can't really see myself going without health insurance until I get this cancer thing a little further in the rear view mirror. I'm not planning to go the chemo route or anything, but it seems important to be able to have the CT scans and stuff.

[SunshineMN]

I'd love to be able to live off the grid in the mountains. I've got plans, but not for anytime soon unfortunately. I need to get healthier first. One thing I would grow though is amaranth. It wouldn't take much to grow them and in many places in the US it's considered a weed, though some grow them as an ornamental flower. From Wikipedia: "As befits its weedy life history, amaranth grains grow very rapidly and their large seedheads can weigh up to 1 kilogram and contain a half-million seeds in three species of amaranth." If you like sweet corn, you will probably like amaranth. It even smells like sweet corn. The young leaves are also good in salads.

I'd like to try dandelion. I might try to grow some in a tray in the house when we get the livingroom done and have room to grow. I've also read that chickory is a really common weed and very good in salads.

[michigan roman]

i grew amaranth back about 15 years ago . and ide suggest if you grow it dont put it in an area where you want other stuff growing such as your garden because all the amaranth seeds get everywhere and become very invasive / a very pesky weed around other plants your trying to grow . i really regreted putting it in my garden . another thing is i didnt like taste of greens from it at all , believe me i wanted to because i had a million plants coming up that took no work / watering at all , but for me the greens were worthless . and i also didnt like taste of seeds , i had saved millions of them and planned on boiling them like rice but didnt like . that said im not a person that likes a wide variety of foods and dislike all kinds of fruit / vegis others like

a plant i do like is NEW ZELAND SPINACH . taste different than regular spinach buts something near it , and when stands too long gets bitter . but its a perrenial thatll come back for alot of years , my neighboors beds like 20 years old even though seed catalogs say reseed every few years . you cut the ready leaves off the plants stems with scissors til the bed gets too mature / bitter . then you cut it down with a lawn mower or weed whip to like 3" high (cutting most of the leaves off stem so plant grows new leaves) , and 30 days or so later next wave of leaves is in . then here in michigan i cut it a second time to get a 3rd wave each growing season . territorial seed co out of oregon is expensive but i can say ive had good succses with their newzeland seed . over winter i cover the bed with straw to insulate roots from cold damage

[delmar]

Good News!
Last night I poured water on the seeds and let it stand for a few min. before draining it off the tray. Today about 1/4 of the seeds have begun to sprout. It would apear that I was erring by not soaking the seeds first.

[Living Food]

It would apear that I was erring by not soaking the seeds first.

Makes sense. All non-mucilaginous seeds should be soaked before trying to sprout them.


l will focus on weed seed sprouts and weed seed greens along with grass, algae, sea vegetables and sunflower greens and sesame seeds. lf l can get to a stage this year where l am almost surviving entirely on weed sprouts, l know l can leave the matrix and live in the bush and have no job.

You'll still need money for the sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, and algae though. I want to go that route myself eventually, but it won't be for a while yet...:sad:

I have so much garlic mustard coming up where I am right now, I could probably live on the stuff lol. Having big glasses of it every day. I might even do a 1-2 day garlic mustard juice fast. I'm going to start collecting the seeds once they start forming, but I'm pretty sure that they have to be grown on soil (mucilaginous). Should be a fun experiment.

[delmar]

Thanks for the heads up on the amaranth. I have been doing some reading up on it and I am sold on trying it already. I already have a sunny spot pick out for it, just south of a grove of trees. I'm going to see if I can find it locally because, while it seems it seems fairly inexpensive, shipping is a killer on what I have found so far!

I'm looking forward to trying NEW ZELAND SPINACH as well but, like Roman said, it is a bit expensive.

[delmar]

I have so much garlic mustard coming up where I am right now, I could probably live on the stuff lol. Having big glasses of it every day. I might even do a 1-2 day garlic mustard juice fast. I'm going to start collecting the seeds once they start forming, but I'm pretty sure that they have to be grown on soil (mucilaginous). Should be a fun experiment. Good for juicing hey? My wife was telling me yesterday that we have garlic mustard growing in the yard. I guess I'll need to give it a try!

[delmar]

Makes sense. All non-mucilaginous seeds should be soaked before trying to sprout them.


I guess I was considering it to be mucilaginous because it balled up and wouldn't jar sprout well. Though I guess it is not as mucilaginous as flax.

[michigan roman]

ive not grown seeds from everwilde farm yet but i ordered newzeland and other from there this year because of good prices .
funny thing though is at link everwilde terms newzeland as annual but my beds go for years til i myself removed them ;

http://www.everwilde.com/store/New-Zealand-Spinach-Seeds.html

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[MysticTree]

To judge by all of the gardens I have ever known dandelions have never had difficulty germinating.

[Living Food]

Good for juicing hey? My wife was telling me yesterday that we have garlic mustard growing in the yard. I guess I'll need to give it a try!

It's a bit strong (pungent would be a better word); unless you're used to concentrated green juices you would do better to just use a small amount of it in your juice and add more over time if you wanted to.

The wonderful thing about mustard garlic is that it's extremely invasive, so it's completely free game. I just rip 'em up and drink 'em down! With other weeds I sometimes just take a few leaves at a time and carefully "tend" them like my garden, but I can eat garlic mustard to my heart's content and know that I'm only doing good things for the ecosystem - although there's so much garlic mustard here I doubt I could eat it all even if I tried, we're practically drowning in the stuff. I love it :)

[delmar]

It's a bit strong (pungent would be a better word); unless you're used to concentrated green juices you would do better to just use a small amount of it in your juice and add more over time if you wanted to.
I have been known to juice my grass clippings when I mow the lawn, if that tells you anything. I used to add carrot or tomato juice to tone it down, but lately I just drink it!

The wonderful thing about mustard garlic is that it's extremely invasive, so it's completely free game. I just rip 'em up and drink 'em down! With other weeds I sometimes just take a few leaves at a time and carefully "tend" them like my garden, but I can eat garlic mustard to my heart's content and know that I'm only doing good things for the ecosystem - although there's so much garlic mustard here I doubt I could eat it all even if I tried, we're practically drowning in the stuff. I love it :)Very cool!

[delmar]

To judge by all of the gardens I have ever known dandelions have never had difficulty germinating.Which is why it disturbs me that it took me 3 attempts to get it to sprout and the 3rd try took more than a week! :D
Truth is there is no shortage of dandelion greens to forage this time of year, so there are only two reasons bother germinating them at all.

1. To learn to germinate dandelions inside when they are not avalable.

2. To grow a large number of them in one location in order to make seed collection more convenient.

[michigan roman]

delmar i was at harbor freight tool company this morning looking for a juice press : http://www.harborfreight.com/6-ton-a-frame-bench-shop-press-1666.html

[michigan roman]

this would remove all doubt , lol . at only $130 , cheaper than any greenstar / omega / champion / etc : http://www.harborfreight.com/12-ton-shop-press-33497.html

[Mary Kay]

Hey Delmar,

You've piqued my interest in the foraging workshop --thanks for giving a link. However, I checked and it's 260 miles away. Darn. I have attended a few local ones and if I didn't know about any of it, might be interested to come. So, would you do us a favor though, and take notes and list the names of the plants that you see there?

There is an intensive day-long one here in Cleveland that I signed up for last yr, but it was cancelled. I think I'll see if they're having any this year.

Thanks again. Haven't gotten my seeds from the dandelions yet! Am excited to do so

Mary Kay!

[delmar]

delmar i was at harbor freight tool company this morning looking for a juice press : http://www.harborfreight.com/6-ton-a-frame-bench-shop-press-1666.html
this would remove all doubt , lol . at only $130 , cheaper than any greenstar / omega / champion / etc : http://www.harborfreight.com/12-ton-shop-press-33497.html

Those are fabulous and will work great if you don't want to mess with building your own frame! I have a grand total of $0 in mine though.

[delmar]

Hey Delmar,

You've piqued my interest in the foraging workshop --thanks for giving a link. However, I checked and it's 260 miles away. Darn. I have attended a few local ones and if I didn't know about any of it, might be interested to come. So, would you do us a favor though, and take notes and list the names of the plants that you see there?

There is an intensive day-long one here in Cleveland that I signed up for last yr, but it was cancelled. I think I'll see if they're having any this year.

Thanks again. Haven't gotten my seeds from the dandelions yet! Am excited to do so

Mary Kay!I understand. I wouldn't travel that far either, but they are holding it at Ox Bow park, which just happens to be less than 5 min from my house. I couldn't really show my face around here if I passed on an opportunity like that!

[delmar]

The next phase in my dandelion collection operation is to rig up a cordless vacuum cleaner. This one plugs into a cigarette lighter and is available for under $20 delivered. The reviews on it say it is pretty wimpy, but I figure those dandelion blossoms are so light it won't take much power.

http://www.promoplace.com/ws/ws.dll/QPic?SN=68260&P=343326012&RS=300
I plan to wire it into the flashlight attachment that came with my cordless drill. I have a couple of spare rechargeable batteries for it.

https://encrypted-tbn1.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTIlXH8eVyVZSNeBUKn1knXHrJUf53Si bhYRYQa6hGxD8fY2erU

[MysticTree]

It seems a heck of a way to collect seeds. Are you only eating them at the just sprouted stage rather than growing them on and eating the leaves? It's not sustainable I think. Even though sprouted foods are really great and I am a big fan of them I don't see how one could support the planet on sprouted foods.

[delmar]

It seems a heck of a way to collect seeds. Are you only eating them at the just sprouted stage rather than growing them on and eating the leaves?
My main interest, for now, is sprouts rather than greens, but that could easily change if I discover that greens are not much more trouble than sprouts.


It's not sustainable I think. Even though sprouted foods are really great and I am a big fan of them I don't see how one could support the planet on sprouted foods.I think that is probably right, unless I developed a seed saving system that really yielded a tremendous amount of seeds! I do know there are vast quantities of edible weeds and weed seeds that are a free untapped resource that are available to anyone who is ambitious enough to find a way to use them.

[delmar]

It's a bit strong (pungent would be a better word); unless you're used to concentrated green juices you would do better to just use a small amount of it in your juice and add more over time if you wanted to.

The wonderful thing about mustard garlic is that it's extremely invasive, so it's completely free game. I just rip 'em up and drink 'em down! With other weeds I sometimes just take a few leaves at a time and carefully "tend" them like my garden, but I can eat garlic mustard to my heart's content and know that I'm only doing good things for the ecosystem - although there's so much garlic mustard here I doubt I could eat it all even if I tried, we're practically drowning in the stuff. I love it :)I didn't even know what garlic mustard was until the day before yesterday when a friend of my wife's posted a photo of it on Facebook along with some uses for it. I was getting really excited this morning on the way to work because I saw lots and lots of it growing along the road. Then when I got to work I realized that the 12 acre woods that my company owns is absolutely full of the stuff! So right before lunch I ran out and grabbed about 5 stocks and made a tossed salad out of that and the millet/ flax sprouts I took to work with me today and I really liked it!
I'm pretty sue I am going to take a shot at trying to save the seeds from that stuff also, but only for sprouts. I am not going to put my self in the position of getting accused of growing that stuff on purpose!

[streetsurfer]

Be careful using the vac this way. When materials pass through the motor (no vac bag or filter), they stand a chance of igniting and being sent out the exhaust as sparks. I can recall a story of a house fire started when a man blew hot pepper powder/flakes into an oven vent duct in an effort to evict a squirrel. I've had personal experience of combustible fumes igniting when passing through a vacuum (with filter attached).

[delmar]

Be careful using the vac this way. When materials pass through the motor (no vac bag or filter), they stand a chance of igniting and being sent out the exhaust as sparks. I can recall a story of a house fire started when a man blew hot pepper powder/flakes into an oven vent duct in an effort to evict a squirrel. I've had personal experience of combustible fumes igniting when passing through a vacuum (with filter attached).It works really well with my big shop vac. Plus I won't be using it inside, in this manor.

[MysticTree]

My main interest, for now, is sprouts rather than greens, but that could easily change if I discover that greens are not much more trouble than sprouts.I think that is probably right, unless I developed a seed saving system that really yielded a tremendous amount of seeds! I do know there are vast quantities of edible weeds and weed seeds that are a free untapped resource that are available to anyone who is ambitious enough to find a way to use them.

I am a keen forager and also teach foraging skills but I recognise that there is a reason people developed agriculture and I tell all my foraging students that they would do well to get a bit of land and forage for wild seeds if they want weeds, and grow them where it suits them rather than expend all that energy trying to find clean areas to forage leaves etc!

[delmar]

I am a keen forager and also teach foraging skills but I recognise that there is a reason people developed agriculture and I tell all my foraging students that they would do well to get a bit of land and forage for wild seeds if they want weeds, and grow them where it suits them rather than expend all that energy trying to find clean areas to forage leaves etc!We are in agreement 100%
I recognize, for example, that if everyone wanted to forage for garlic mustard and dandelions they would soon become less plentiful and would no longer even be classified as weeds. I was, in fact, planning to starting a patch of dandelions on my property, to make collecting the seeds easy. I have, however, decided that if my cordless vacuum works out as well as I think, this will be unnecessary for quite some time. Unless, of course, my seed collecting becomes so successful that it drastically reduces the dandelion population in my neighborhood. I don't see that happening, but I would be very popular if it did!
I have decided that I am going to start some amaranth and I am even thinking I might grow some garlic mustard in the basement this winter under grow lights. It seems like it should be the ideal plant for that since it grows so well in the shade.

edit: Come to think of it, if I am going to mess with the grow lights I might as well put some dandelions in the dirt as well.

[MysticTree]

I really have never liked the taste of Garlic-Mustard. It tastes much better as far as I am concerned if it has been grown in rich damp soil in a shady spot rather than a dry, poor, sunny spot. Have you found that?

[streetsurfer]

Delmar, contact the cook county forest preserve. Each year they have garlic mustard pulls at about this time of year. It is to help clean it from the woods as it competes heavily with native grasses. I thought it was on the noxious weed list for the state but was wrong, I guess. However, they do have pull events at the forest preserves. Another location was River Trail Nature Center on River Road,

Here you are.....
http://www.suffredin.org/news/newsitem.asp?newsitemid=5150

There is contact information in the article. All you want, free for the pickin'.

[delmar]

Delmar, contact the cook county forest preserve. Each year they have garlic mustard pulls at about this time of year. It is to help clean it from the woods as it competes heavily with native grasses. I thought it was on the noxious weed list for the state but was wrong, I guess. However, they do have pull events at the forest preserves. Another location was River Trail Nature Center on River Road,

Here you are.....
http://www.suffredin.org/news/newsitem.asp?newsitemid=5150

There is contact information in the article. All you want, free for the pickin'.I appreciate that but there is way more in the woods at my job than anyone at work could ever use.

[delmar]

I really have never liked the taste of Garlic-Mustard. It tastes much better as far as I am concerned if it has been grown in rich damp soil in a shady spot rather than a dry, poor, sunny spot. Have you found that?I have only picked it yesterday and today, both times in the same shady spot.

[Mary Kay]

Delmar. I like you!

Mary Kay

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

l hope this topic never ends.

Yes, Delmar is different, l like his ways too. l like how he goes about things in unconvenional ways...builds juicers, makes funny weed seed collectors and all that stuff. Definitely an inventer of funny things.

[Living Food]

I appreciate that but there is way more in the woods at my job than anyone at work could ever use.

That's what I love about garlic mustard and other prolific weeds. Another awesome thing: Even if you somehow managed to completely eradicate all garlic mustard in your area before it seeded (impossible), it would still spring up a new crop the next year, and even if you stopped it all from producing seeds that year also then it would appear the next year too. Unlike their much weaker cousins the cultivated crops (although some cultivated crops can probably do this too), weed seeds can remain viable for years and years in the soil, remaining dormant until conditions are right to germinate and produce the next generation. Some weed seeds can remain dormant for 40 years in the soil...good luck running out of that to eat!

Another huge boon is that the more prolific a plant is, the more life energy it carries. Eat the hardiest and most rampant weeds possible for maximum health and vitality.

[MysticTree]

We have wild garlic on our bit of land and I do love that. I also collected some St George's Mushrooms today but they really need to be cooked so I will be giving them to a cooked foods eater and trying very hard not to have any myself as I do like them very much!

[streetsurfer]

That's what I love about garlic mustard and other prolific weeds. Another awesome thing: Even if you somehow managed to completely eradicate all garlic mustard in your area before it seeded (impossible), it would still spring up a new crop the next year, and even if you stopped it all from producing seeds that year also then it would appear the next year too. Unlike their much weaker cousins the cultivated crops (although some cultivated crops can probably do this too), weed seeds can remain viable for years and years in the soil, remaining dormant until conditions are right to germinate and produce the next generation. Some weed seeds can remain dormant for 40 years in the soil...good luck running out of that to eat!

Another huge boon is that the more prolific a plant is, the more life energy it carries. Eat the hardiest and most rampant weeds possible for maximum health and vitality.

I understand about never eradicating it. It was a poor choice of word. Suppress or control would have been better. I am all about integrative pest management, and use cultural practices and natural products as much as possible.

As for a hardy weed, Cannabis/hemp are a fast growers, pest and disease resistant, very hardy, healing, anti inflammatory, and extremely nutritional. It's a shame it's frowned upon.

[Living Food]

As for a hardy weed, Cannabis/hemp are a fast growers, pest and disease resistant, very hardy, healing, anti inflammatory, and extremely nutritional. It's a shame it's frowned upon.

I hear hemp sprouts are one of the most powerful foods you could ever eat...no wonder it's illegal to grow in the US. I've been seriously tempted to do it anyway, but so far have resisted the impulse. Jails are some of the most toxic cesspools that you can find (horrible "food", large amounts of negative energy, little sunlight and fresh air...and we wonder that they come out worse then they went in). But I digress :)

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

My dandelion seeds haven't sprouted. Next time l will increase the soak time from 2 hours to 6 hours and see how they go. l'll keep you updated on my progress, hopefully good things happen this time around.

[MysticTree]

Dandelion seeds germinate best in full light in temperature between 10 & 20 degrees celcius

[delmar]

Dandelion seeds germinate best in full light in temperature between 10 & 20 degrees celciusThat is very interesting. Any idea what is different about the seeds, that makes them germinate better in full sun? I can see why that would be beneficial for a wind blown weed seed I guess!

[delmar]

My dandelion seeds haven't sprouted. Next time l will increase the soak time from 2 hours to 6 hours and see how they go. l'll keep you updated on my progress, hopefully good things happen this time around.I have been thinking a lot about the properties of weed seeds and how they may be different from the seeds we are used to planting. I read for example, that garlic mustard seed can sit in the ground for up to 5 years and still germinate. I'm thinking dandelion seeds are very tough little buggers too! It might well take a bit of trial and error to come up with what works best, but I am up to a challenge if you are!
I am thinking about throwing some in the freezer for a while. Somebody suggested to me that, if there is a little moisture in the seeds this might crack them open bit and mimic what happens to them in nature.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

I have been thinking a lot about the properties of weed seeds and how they may be different from the seeds we are used to planting. I read for example, that garlic mustard seed can sit in the ground for up to 5 years and still germinate. I'm thinking dandelion seeds are very tough little buggers too! It might well take a bit of trial and error to come up with what works best, but I am up to a challenge if you are!
I am thinking about throwing some in the freezer for a while. Somebody suggested to me that, if there is a little moisture in the seeds this might crack them open bit and mimic what happens to them in nature.

l haven't had time to really study the dandelion seeds too closely (been flat out for a week and have hardly slept), but when l cut them up after soaking the answers should be revealed. l get the feeling they are tough also, so a longer soaking time will be required. Some seeds are soft on the outside and inside (chickpeas, lentils), some are grisly (rice, alfalfa, millet), some have hard surfaces that take a bit to break through (brocolli and sesame). All seeds are different. Next week l will study the dandelion seed in detail and work out what type of seed it is, once l do that l will know how to sprout it.

l'll get back to you on the food combining also. Been far too busy to do anything lately. Not even going to bed tonight, and was lucky to get an hour last night.

[delmar]

l haven't had time to really study the dandelion seeds too closely (been flat out for a week and have hardly slept), but when l cut them up after soaking the answers should be revealed. l get the feeling they are tough also, so a longer soaking time will be required. Some seeds are soft on the outside and inside (chickpeas, lentils), some are grisly (rice, alfalfa, millet), some have hard surfaces that take a bit to break through (brocolli and sesame). All seeds are different. Next week l will study the dandelion seed in detail and work out what type of seed it is, once l do that l will know how to sprout it.

l'll get back to you on the food combining also. Been far too busy to do anything lately. Not even going to bed tonight, and was lucky to get an hour last night.I'm not in a big hurry. I would just like to get good at dandelion sprouts before winter.

[delmar]

My 12 volt vacuum arrived today. I have a lot going on this weekend so I am not sure I when I will get around to rigging the power supply but I am really looking forward to it. We have about a 1/2 acre section of the yard that is not visible from the road so I am going to experiment with letting grass and wild clover go to seed and see if this is a good way to collect that as well. I also have plans to start a patch of red clover, specifically to collect seeds from. I really like clover sprouts.

[Mary Kay]

I am grateful to all of you for keeping us apprised as I am following this thread with interest. I haven't even gotten it together to gather any yet, and our farm is full of'em!

Mary Kay, a busy homeschooling mom, who's about to remodel our house and move out into a camper and.....you get the idea....

[Living Food]

I am grateful to all of you for keeping us apprised as I am following this thread with interest. I haven't even gotten it together to gather any yet, and our farm is full of'em!

Imagine one of the most nutritious foods you can possible eat...now imagine that you have loads of this food available for FREE, and all you have to do is spend an enjoyable afternoon in the great outdoors collecting it, which can be very relaxing in its own right...Now go do it!

Don't forget to gather the leaves too, they may not be as good as the sprouts but they're still far better then anything you'll find at the supermarket or even farmer's market.

Life is great - the most nutritious foods you can possible eat are completely free and tend to grow just about anywhere. Pick a half dozen (at first) or so different weeds that are common in your area and learn how to identify them; you'll be surprised how many you'll find.

I love foraging.

[MysticTree]

On the bit of land I live on we have dandelions, nettles, wild garlic, bitter cress, bramble, elder, chickweed, goosegrass and a few other edible plants. The wild garlic is the best of these but will soon be over.

[Living Food]

Dandelions, red clover, plantain and a little oxalis are the only ones that are on my property, but I've got much more variety in the woods just a few minutes from my house. I recently located a small patch of evening primrose and will soon collect the seeds for sprouting (even better source of GLA then spirulina, second only to mother's milk). It's a shame that they are so few.

I can recognize a few dozen different wild edibles, but I still have much to learn and I am sure that there is an even greater bounty of edible plants hiding in plain sight. I'm especially glad that I have large quantities of wild wineberries and (some) pokeberries near me, since I refuse to buy store-bought fruit and don't have any local organic fruit farms.

[delmar]

I got my battery pack hooked up to the mini vac and went out and did my first test. I went out and harvested about 30 dandelion's worth of seeds in just a few minutes. This thing is absolutely the right tool for the job. I haven't tried it with the filter out, so I am still going to need to separate the seed but this really works well!
I'm sorry the photos are so dark. I will try to get some in better light tomorrow and edit this post.

90759076

[Mary Kay]

Delmar --I could see the photos just fine. Yes, a little dark, but we can make them out. Spend some time separating those seeds! LOL, don't worry about the photos!

Living Food -- Thanks for the pep talk! LOL, I DO eat/gather wild edibles EVERY day. Often even in the winter cuz I freeze some--not ideal, but better than nothing! I've even dehydrated some...like lambsquarters.....

Now, I know that commercial dandelion seeds are available and am wondering what the directions on the packet say....and what they do to them (freezing etc) to make them grow ....

Mary Kay

[delmar]

Be careful using the vac this way. When materials pass through the motor (no vac bag or filter), they stand a chance of igniting and being sent out the exhaust as sparks. I can recall a story of a house fire started when a man blew hot pepper powder/flakes into an oven vent duct in an effort to evict a squirrel. I've had personal experience of combustible fumes igniting when passing through a vacuum (with filter attached).Now that I have the mini vac, I understand more clearly what you were talking about. On the mini, the exhaust passes directly through the motor, so I will not be able to operate it without the filter like I do my big shop vac. The big one has a separate blower attached to a motor

Delmar --I could see the photos just fine. Yes, a little dark, but we can make them out. Spend some time separating those seeds! LOL, don't worry about the photos!


OK fine! If anybody can't view the photos, please let me know.

As far as spending a lot of time separating seeds, I don't think I will need to. I still plan to use the big shop vac to separate the seeds. It should be really fast!

[delmar]

I have eaten my first two batches of dandelion sprouts and I liked them pretty well but so far they are taking forever to sprout and I am a bit disappointed in the yield I have achieved so far. I am trying a different approach today. I am doing an all day soak, and I am going to try what amounts to the jar method in a ceramic soup cup. I will cover it with a screen and a big rubber band. After I drain it good, I should be able to take a fork and spread the seeds out over the entire bottom of the cup.

[Living Food]

I take my dandelion seeds, soak them overnight, then put them on soil and grow them as microgreens. It takes a while, but it's worth the wait. I've never tried eating them as just a seed with a tail, maybe I'll do that. The microgreens are more nutritious, though.

[delmar]

This is the first I have heard anyone suggest that micro-greens would be more nutritious than sprouts. What leads you to believe that?

[Living Food]

Micro-greens have more chlorophyll, nutrients and life energy* then sprouts sprouted for only a few days. Micro-greens are still sprouts, they're just sprouted for longer.

Micro-greens are also far easier on your digestion, as they are far more pre-digested. A pea sprout, for example, is far more difficult to digest then a pea shoot. Anything that saves you energy when it comes to digestion allows you to retain far more of the energy and nutrients that it gives you. You can also juice micro-greens and bring things up to the best level possible.

The cereal grasses are all examples of micro-greens being far superior to their younger cousins; wheatgrass beats wheat sprouts hands-down, for example, and that's the case when it comes to oats, barley, rye, spelt, and kamut as well. Buckwheat greens are much better then sprouted buckwheat (in moderation - the greens can be mildly toxic in large quantities), sunflower greens are better then sprouted sunflower seeds, etc. The trick is to eat lots of the micro-greens for maximum nutrition, while still eating enough of the "younger" sprouts to get your calories in (you'll eventually reach the point where calories aren't that important).

*It's a balancing act when it comes to getting the most life energy - seeds sprouted for just a couple of days have more "inherent" life energy, but more mature plants have more energy that they've absorbed from the sun (bio-photons). Micro-greens still have very large quantities of "inherent" life energy, and they also maximize the amount of sun energy that they soak up because they're rapidly growing. I'm pretty sure that plants soak up energy from the air (aether), also, but that's another discussion.

[MysticTree]

I think micro sprouted dandelions make more sense than just sprouted ones too. Nutrition aside, there is the yield issue which you have mentioned now and which I alluded to when I mentioned sustainability.

[delmar]

Testing by the top bioenergetic doctor Dr Hunt has shown microgreens are around 3 times more nutritious than sprouts and around 30 times as nutritious as broccoli and spinach. So baby sunflower greens, buckwheat greens, baby weed greens, pea greens and wheatgrass are the big boys of health....most nutritious land food there is, especially the cerial grasses.
Mr Raw
I hope you don't mind that I moved your quote back to the thread, but it seemed to me too important a part of the conversation to hide away.

So my question now is why does anybody grow sprouts as opposed to microgreens? The simplicity I suppose? Are there some seeds that are just more tasty in the form of sprouts than greens?

At what point in the growth of a plant do greens become not the powerhouse that a microgreen is?

[Mary Kay]

Delmar,

Were you allowing your sprouts to turn green ---and not just using them after they had tails? Like the photos someone gave from another link?

Mary Kay

[streetsurfer]

I'm thinking you'd want to eat them before the first true leaves fully form and the plant begins to elongate. At that point it is drawing strongly on the nutrients left in the cotyledons. When that stage of growth happens, the cot's will begin to lose their thickness and color.

[delmar]

Delmar,

Were you allowing your sprouts to turn green ---and not just using them after they had tails? Like the photos someone gave from another link?

Mary KayThey were about an inch tall and beginning to get a little bit of of green on them but I have not yet had near the success that this guy had in just 6 days. I wish I would have taken a photo of mine, but I think this is the photo you were talking about.
9088


Would most of you agree that the attached photo is just about what I should be shooting for?

[Living Food]

So my question now is why does anybody grow sprouts as opposed to microgreens? The simplicity I suppose? Are there some seeds that are just more tasty in the form of sprouts than greens?

Not all sprouts are edible as micro-greens; I doubt that mung and adzuki beans are edible as micro-greens, for example. All plants that you can eat the greens of can be eaten as micro-greens, but many others can't, although they can still be sprouted. Also, micro-greens provide very few calories compared to the same seed/grain sprouted for a shorter length of time. Walnuts can be sprouted in soil and you can harvest their greens (although I've never tried it, for the following reasons), but can you imagine how inefficient that would be? You could probably get a day's worth of calories from the amount of walnuts it would take to produce a single glass of juice.

The taste matters not at all for me.


At what point in the growth of a plant do greens become not the powerhouse that a microgreen is?

What streetsurfer said.


Would most of you agree that the attached photo is just about what I should be shooting for?

Yup.

[delmar]

Not all sprouts are edible as micro-greens; I doubt that mung and adzuki beans are edible as micro-greens, for example. All plants that you can eat the greens of can be eaten as micro-greens, but many others can't, although they can still be sprouted. Also, micro-greens provide very few calories compared to the same seed/grain sprouted for a shorter length of time. Walnuts can be sprouted in soil and you can harvest their greens (although I've never tried it, for the following reasons), but can you imagine how inefficient that would be? You could probably get a day's worth of calories from the amount of walnuts it would take to produce a single glass of juice.


I think I am going to start a separate thread for the sprouts vs micro-greens topic. Seems like it has a lot of potential.

[NoMoreDeadFood]

I am very interested in growing dandelion greens, I have collected some seeds and was wondering the best way to clean them. And how long should you wait before you try and sprout them? Thanks

[delmar]

I vacuum them up with a shop vac with no filter. The shop vac drops the seed in the hopper and spits the fluff out. Then I run the seed through a screen to clean out the rest of the fluff. The screen I use is a frying pan splatter guard that I got at the dollar store.

9092

I haven't really waited to start trying to spout them, but then I haven't been all that successful so far.

I put some of the seeds in the freezer the other day and I am going to try a side by side test with some seeds that have been in the freezer and some that have not, to see if it makes a difference.

[Traceyraw]

Delmar they look great.

Living foods. I sprouted my mung beans. They started to shoot a green leave out of the other end. We ate them anyway. So does this mean I let them sprout too long. I am new at this.

So far I have done good with lentils. Sunflower soaks. Mung beans. Hard wheat for bread. Will start Wheat Grass soon any tips. I have the tray, growing mat.

I also got a manual juicer for grasses and sprouts.

[Mary Kay]

Delmar,

I don't think? dandelions need stratification (freezing) in order to germinate. But I guess it wouldn't hurt!

Thanks for shaing your findings. I'm going to try one of these days too...I promise!

Mary kay

[SunshineMN]

Living foods. I sprouted my mung beans. They started to shoot a green leave out of the other end. We ate them anyway. So does this mean I let them sprout too long. I am new at this.

I would think that's the perfect stage for eating. I haven't looked at bean sprouts at the store recently, but if I remember correctly most of them have their first leaves on them. And green leaves would mean some chlorophyl which is always a good thing!


So far I have done good with lentils. Sunflower soaks. Mung beans. Hard wheat for bread. Will start Wheat Grass soon any tips. I have the tray, growing mat.

The one thing that I didn't know that people recommended was using a small fan to blow towards the grass as it's growing. It's supposed to help keep mold from growing on it.


I also got a manual juicer for grasses and sprouts.

Yay! I love our manual juicer. Works well with citrus fruits and pineapple also. Baby carrots cut in 1/2" chunks works too, but it's difficult and I wouldn't really recommend it. That just gave me a thought... it should be able to do cucumber without much of a problem. I can't wait for the farmer's market this summer!! :D

[Living Food]

Living foods. I sprouted my mung beans. They started to shoot a green leave out of the other end. We ate them anyway. So does this mean I let them sprout too long. I am new at this

They're good to eat just after they get their cotyledons (seed leaves). SunshineMN is right, it's pretty dang hard to get too much chlorophyll. You can also eat them just before the seed leaves emerge.


Will start Wheat Grass soon any tips. I have the tray, growing mat.

You can space the grains a little further apart then normal if you have mold issues (try it the normal way first), you can soak the wheat in water mixed with food grade hydrogen peroxide (1 teaspoon per 16 ounces water) and mix the same ration of hydrogen peroxide in with the water you give to the wheatgrass - hydrogen peroxide doesn't only kill mold, it actually enhances the growth of plants due to increasing the oxygen content of their environment. You can add a liquid mineral solution or seaweed fertilizer diluted in the water you give to the wheatgrass to promote growth and nutritional content. Wheatgrass has the ability to pick up nearly every mineral present in the soil, so it's best to take advantage of that by providing those minerals for it. Putting it outside helps to prevent mold, as does using a fan like SunshineMN mentioned.


So far I have done good with lentils. Sunflower soaks. Mung beans. Hard wheat for bread.

Nice! You might be interested in trying other sprouts like sesame seeds, peas, chickpeas, amaranth, or quinoa. I would also add a green sprout like alfalfa or clover (and eat it pretty much every day); if you're feeling brave you can even juice them with your new manual juicer.

Ultimately the real power dwells in things like chia and flax greens, sunflower greens, pea shoots, and the grasses. You're doing great already, though, and as you become a more experienced sprouter you can try your hand at these; the principles are pretty much the same as for wheatgrass.

[delmar]

I am really interested in seeing what weed seeds you come up with to sprout. I am scheduled to attend a foraging skills workshop (http://www.ediblecommunities.com/michiana/workshops/foraging-skills-workshop-registration.htm) in June and my focus is going to be on identifying plants to save sprouting seeds from. I don't really see myself going the no job route though. My wife simply would not go along with being that far "off the grid" In fact the idea of my not having a cell phone is almost unthinkable to her. Also I can't really see myself going without health insurance until I get this cancer thing a little further in the rear view mirror. I'm not planning to go the chemo route or anything, but it seems important to be able to have the CT scans and stuff.The foraging skills workshop is tomorrow! I'm pretty jazzed!

[Mary Kay]

I went to a foraging skills workshop a few weeks ago and the two people invited to talk were so passionate about it--it was wonderful. I actually taught a few things, but ended up learning a bit too. Even basic things that I should have known. This was my third formal foraging class. I drove an hour each way to attend and it was worth it!

Let us know how it goes, Delmar.

Delmar, if you don't mind sharing, what kind of cancer do you have and have you seen any improvements? Are you doing the high pH thing?

I did finally commit to going out and gathering dandelion seeds...LOL and most are gone! Figures.

Were you ever successful with any of your batches?

Mary Kay

[delmar]

I went to a foraging skills workshop a few weeks ago and the two people invited to talk were so passionate about it--it was wonderful. I actually taught a few things, but ended up learning a bit too. Even basic things that I should have known. This was my third formal foraging class. I drove an hour each way to attend and it was worth it!

Let us know how it goes, Delmar. I just got back a little bit ago. I think I am going to start a separate thread to talk about the workshop.


Delmar, if you don't mind sharing, what kind of cancer do you have and have you seen any improvements? Are you doing the high pH thing?
I have (or hopefully had) Renal Cell Carcinoma (kidney cancer) Since RCC is highly resistant to chemo and radiation the treatment is to remove the tumor and, if they get it all out, which they believe they did, there is no further treatment unless it comes back or spreads to another part of the body. I am feeling great and have no reason to believe the cancer is coming back. My nutritional efforts are primarily preventative from my point of view.

I did finally commit to going out and gathering dandelion seeds...LOL and most are gone! Figures.

Were you ever successful with any of your batches?

Mary KayLimited success so far! and since I too have run out of dandelions to collect from I have suspended further trails until this winter, when I am really going to need the greens.

[delmar]

I have been watching a stand of red clover that is growing by the side of the road on the way to work. I know that foraging close to the road is not recommended but my plan is to save seeds and plant them on my property. It should then, be safe to harvest seeds from those plants. I have been spending 85 cents/ounce for red clover seed for sprouting so I'm thinking this will be a heck of an investment of my time.

I found an article on saving clover seeds on ehow.com (http://www.ehow.com/how_5579128_collect-clover-seed.html) as well as one as well as one video on youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfF3u92XCOo), but the video didn't really describe how to know when the seeds are ready, and I really didn't get what the article was describing until I saw it for myself. I am a bit of a visual learner.

So anyway am am fairly certain that some of the seeds are now ready and I started collecting on the way home from work today.

9111

In the photo my finger is pointing to a seed head that I am pretty sure is ready. If you compare it to the other two seed heads next to it, you can see that the center portion on those is still green. The core of the one that is ready. on the other hand, has become pale and when you take the seed head between your thumb and finger it pulls off the plant quite easily. I did encounter a few pale seed heads that took a bit of a tug to remove. I decided that those might not be quite ready and left them for next time.

Tomorrow I am going to take my mini vac along, to see if it will suck the seeds off the seed heads that are very ripe, but I would not be surprised if these seeds are too heavy to be collected with such a week vacuum.

[PansyLo]

There's some interesting stuff on this thread!

I'd love to try sprouting dandelions. The sprouts on the link in the first comment look great!

Anything free seems worth trying because at least if you mess it up you haven't wasted any money and have the possible result of free tasty good food.
I'm going on a picnic in the glen tomorrow. If I see dandelions seeding anywhere I'll try and collect some in an empty food bag.

[SunshineMN]

If that doesn't work, delmar, Azure Standard has a lb of organic red clover seeds for $5.70 ($4.58/lb. if you buy 5 lbs.) They sprout really nicely for us.

[delmar]

If that doesn't work, delmar, Azure Standard has a lb of organic red clover seeds for $5.70 ($4.58/lb. if you buy 5 lbs.) They sprout really nicely for us.That is a good deal and I thank you for the heads up, but I am a very stubborn man, and I am going to make it work! I believe the time is coming when I either grow or forage for just about everything I eat!

[SunshineMN]

I completely understand! If I were healthy enough to do that, I would too. Some day I'm hoping to have a huge garden and I would also let some go to seed to save for the next year.

You could just harvest the heads and let them dry out at home. I would think the seeds would be easier to separate if they were extra dry. Letting them completely dry on the plant would allow more loss of seeds. I hope your harvesting works out well, whatever way you decide to do it. :)

[delmar]

If that doesn't work, delmar, Azure Standard has a lb of organic red clover seeds for $5.70 ($4.58/lb. if you buy 5 lbs.) They sprout really nicely for us.Now that I think about it I won't be able to harvest seeds from the clover I plant for quite some time and I need to order some broccoli seeds anyway! I'm pretty sure I'm going to give that deal a go, even though I am going to keep collecting seeds!

[delmar]

I completely understand! If I were healthy enough to do that, I would too. Some day I'm hoping to have a huge garden and I would also let some go to seed to save for the next year.

You could just harvest the heads and let them dry out at home. I would think the seeds would be easier to separate if they were extra dry. Letting them completely dry on the plant would allow more loss of seeds. I hope your harvesting works out well, whatever way you decide to do it. :)It appears as though I can let them get fairly dry without loosing a lot of seeds. One thing I read was that if you harvest them before they mature the germination rate will suffer, so it seems there is such a thing as harvesting too early and too late. The nice thing for me is that I drive past them 5 days a week, so I can check them daily. Also there is a lot more clover along that road than I am ever going to get to so it won't matter if some of the seeds fall before I get to them.

[SunshineMN]

It appears as though I can let them get fairly dry without loosing a lot of seeds. One thing I read was that if you harvest them before they mature the germination rate will suffer, so it seems there is such a thing as harvesting too early and too late.

Now that I didn't know. Some day I'd like to grow and harvest clover as well. As kids we used to eat the purple flower in the summer that was growing in the ditches before my uncle would mow and bale it all for the cows. I should do a spreadsheet some day and figure out how many pounds of each seed type we'd need for a full year of sprouting!


The nice thing for me is that I drive past them 5 days a week, so I can check them daily. Also there is a lot more clover along that road than I am ever going to get to so it won't matter if some of the seeds fall before I get to them.

Does white headed clover work as well or is there something special about the red? I guess I've never thought of looking that up before. It's good you can keep a constant eye on them. Is there any information on how much seed per size of plot you'd get?

It's kinda funny, as a kid I hated working in the garden with my parents. Now I'm really glad they forced me to help them because I actually know something about gardening from all those years. Now I just need a few acres of land. LOL

[delmar]

Now that I didn't know. Some day I'd like to grow and harvest clover as well. As kids we used to eat the purple flower in the summer that was growing in the ditches before my uncle would mow and bale it all for the cows. I should do a spreadsheet some day and figure out how many pounds of each seed type we'd need for a full year of sprouting!



Does white headed clover work as well or is there something special about the red?
From one perspective clover is clover. red clover tastes pretty much the same as white clover. Nutritionally there is no real difference. I'm sure that white clover sprouts would be wonderful! The major difference is the size of the plant. Seems to me you could plant a couple of acres of white clover and barley get enough to do much juicing.Red clover on the other hand, as you already mentioned, is commonly dried and baled to feed cattle!



I guess I've never thought of looking that up before. It's good you can keep a constant eye on them. Is there any information on how much seed per size of plot you'd get?
Nope. I'm learning as I go along on that one.

It's kinda funny, as a kid I hated working in the garden with my parents. Now I'm really glad they forced me to help them because I actually know something about gardening from all those years. Now I just need a few acres of land. LOLThere are ways to do a lot with a garden that is not very big. I planted some amaranth and some organic popcorn that I plan on juicing. I have even given some thought to sudan grass. I'm pretty sure a 10'x10' plot of that stuff would keep you juicing all summer!9112

[SunshineMN]

I wish I had any place at all. Right now we live in a mobile home park and I have to get permission for anything I plant. They won't allow gardening even though I have a fairly big yard. I may try to get permission for amaranth as a decorative flower anyhow. They don't need to know I'll be harvesting the seed in the fall for sprouting in the house. LOL

I plan on buying some greenhouse flats soon so I can at least grow wheatgrass and microgreens inside. When we eventually get the livingroom done (we're tiling the floor instead of carpeting) I plan on getting some big pots and growing some plants indoors. I wish we had a house, we'd just put down grass instead of tiling or carpeting.

[Mary Kay]

...back to the clover thing: the diff betw red and white clover is that the white grows low to the ground, whereas the red grows tall...so maybe that's why you get more. I bought two lbs of diff't clover to mix in with grass for some pasture "paddocks" for my chickens and we way overplanted the clover....I just recently learned that one acre of field requires about 5 lbs of clover = not very much.

Sunshine MN, I feel for you. Can't you petition them or something? Or have huge pots with stuff like tomatoes growing in them around your back door/deck etc? Make them look real pretty with flowers too and maybe even give some of your bounty to your neighbors then they'd be "on your side?" LOL.

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

SunshineMN--here's another idea: Maybe you could offer the property managers extra $$$ towards your deposit with the understanding that if you don't return the plot of land that you've tilled/made into a garden to its former grass-state when you move out, they could keep your deposit.

But also, like you've already thought: you can grow lots of sprouts in jars and all winter, I grew sunflowers and wheatgrass for greens too, so it is possible.

Mary Kay

[Living Food]

From one perspective clover is clover. red clover tastes pretty much the same as white clover. Nutritionally there is no real difference. I'm sure that white clover sprouts would be wonderful! The major difference is the size of the plant. Seems to me you could plant a couple of acres of white clover and barley get enough to do much juicing.Red clover on the other hand, as you already mentioned, is commonly dried and baled to feed cattle!

The leaves, flowers, and sprouts of white red, and yellow clover are all edible. The only real difference is the size of the plants; red clover has the largest leaves and flowers, then white, and yellow clover is outright tiny. As for nutritional quality, I really can't say; I know that white lcover has fairly shallow roots, yet have also heard that sweet clover has a very deep, extensive root system (which means that it picks up more minerals from the soil).

As far as I can tell sweet clover is different from white, red, and yellow clover. Does anyone here have more information on this?

[delmar]

I wish I had any place at all. Right now we live in a mobile home park and I have to get permission for anything I plant. They won't allow gardening even though I have a fairly big yard. I may try to get permission for amaranth as a decorative flower anyhow. They don't need to know I'll be harvesting the seed in the fall for sprouting in the house. LOL

I plan on buying some greenhouse flats soon so I can at least grow wheatgrass and microgreens inside. When we eventually get the livingroom done (we're tiling the floor instead of carpeting) I plan on getting some big pots and growing some plants indoors. I wish we had a house, we'd just put down grass instead of tiling or carpeting.I don't think I would try amaranth in a place like that because from what I understand, it drops so many seeds it can become pretty invasive. You might be able to talk them into some patches of " "ornamental grass" the sudan grass I mentioned is really easy to grow and small patches of it look great!

Also, while you are not able to tear your yard up and sow red clover, I found an article that explains how to sow white clover into an existing pasture. In your case I'm sure you could sow it into your existing yard without anyone noticing you did something on purpose.

http://cropsoil.psu.edu/extension/facts/agfact22.pdf

[delmar]

You could also do a couple of "little red wagon" style planters.
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http://www.outdoordecorandmoretexas.com/420_500_csupload_44142432.jpg?u=2913967645

[Mary Kay]

Cute!
How could they not like that?
MK

[SunshineMN]

I noticed we have lots of little white clover flowers in our yard at the moment. The heads are much smaller than the red clover ones. I may try some big planters outside for some tomatoes and peppers. I do have a cement slab under our steps that's got plenty of space for a few planters.

I'll ask about ornamental grass as well. I could put a row of that right around the trailer and then put a row of flowers in front of that. Tell them it's background for the flowers. LOL It'll have to be next summer though. I'm not well enough to do all that this year. After a year on raw though I should be ready by next spring.

The wagon is really cute. We'll have to keep our eye on yard sales and maybe we can pick up a couple really cheap. I'd think they would be good for growing herbs with a few flowers thrown in. Thanks for the ideas! :)

[delmar]

SunshineMN
I wasn't well enough last year to feel like doing what I'm doing this year!
Looking forward is great, but I do urge you to start small as soon as you can. Could you make a goal of starting one planter of healthy stuff real soon? There is just nothing like making a nice green juice out of something you dug out of the soil yourself. I promise that one small step will lift your spirits! There is no better start to a healthy body than a healthy soul!

[delmar]

I noticed we have lots of little white clover flowers in our yard at the moment. When they turn brown wait a few more days then grab em!
If you are not up to bending over right now get yourself a reacher. The kind with the rubber cups will pick up those seed heads really well!
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[MysticTree]

Delmar, you are one of my favourite people on here. I love reading your posts :)

[delmar]

Delmar, you are one of my favourite people on here. I love reading your posts :)Thanks, I'm am kind of infamous on a couple different kinds of forums for being a think outside the box sort of fellow.

[MysticTree]

I have just found a friend who farms organically and uses red clover as crop rotation. I'm hoping to go round tomorrow to see if I can get some for juicing. It won't be any use to collect seed as it will be turned under before it sets.

[delmar]

I have just found a friend who farms organically and uses red clover as crop rotation. I'm hoping to go round tomorrow to see if I can get some for juicing. It won't be any use to collect seed as it will be turned under before it sets.

I wonder if they would let you dig up a small patch of sod to replant? In fact, now that I think about it, I think I will put a shovel in the car and try that with the clover that is growing by the road on my way home.

[FamousVir]

I'm new here , nice thread!

[SunshineMN]

Looking forward is great, but I do urge you to start small as soon as you can. Could you make a goal of starting one planter of healthy stuff real soon? There is just nothing like making a nice green juice out of something you dug out of the soil yourself. I promise that one small step will lift your spirits! There is no better start to a healthy body than a healthy soul!

We do have a fairly nice assortment of seeds we sprout already. I'm hoping next month I can get some nursery flats so I can start growing sunflower greens, chia greens, flax greens and wheatgrass in the house. I'll probably try to grab a few of the white clover once they start drying out. Funny, I don't remember actually ever playing around with the clover seeds as a kid. We probably ignored them after they started drying out.

I'm with MT. I love your posts. I'm always interested in seeing what you're up to!

[MysticTree]

Since he is only just down the road and has 280 acres of organic farmland I think it will taste better from there as the soil where I am is pretty much non existent except where I ship in organic compost.

[delmar]

We do have a fairly nice assortment of seeds we sprout already. I'm hoping next month I can get some nursery flats so I can start growing sunflower greens, chia greens, flax greens and wheatgrass in the house. I'll probably try to grab a few of the white clover once they start drying out. Funny, I don't remember actually ever playing around with the clover seeds as a kid. We probably ignored them after they started drying out.

I'm with MT. I love your posts. I'm always interested in seeing what you're up to!Sounds like you are getting it done! Congratulations.

[lynch]

oh very nice try, but i really think that you need a fertilizer..... for your plants.... aside from that you will need a proper irrigation. It can help you a lot.

[Mary Kay]

Sunshine MN,

I'd suspect Southern Minnesota has lots of thistle this time of year, like me here in Ohio - no? And lambsquarters are starting to get tall too....Well, there you go! If you have a "clean" area from which to gather them, you can have an abundance of free greens. I have so many thistles around, I've been cutting them off and juicing them, but with lambsquarters, I've been either blending into smoothies, or using in salads. Just wanted to throw some wild foraging ideas at you so that you don't feel too badly about not having a garden ---if you know what to look for, there's a lot to be found.

Mary Kay

[MysticTree]

Not sure if that comment about fertiliser and irrigation was meant for me. In case it was . . . I keep chickens and their manure is good food for the plants. There is also lots of nettle and comfrey from which to make liquid feeds. I have watering cans and a hose for dry weather which we have barely experienced this year.

[delmar]

Sunshine MN,

I'd suspect Southern Minnesota has lots of thistle this time of year, like me here in Ohio - no? And lambsquarters are starting to get tall too....Well, there you go! If you have a "clean" area from which to gather them, you can have an abundance of free greens. I have so many thistles around, I've been cutting them off and juicing them, but with lambsquarters, I've been either blending into smoothies, or using in salads. Just wanted to throw some wild foraging ideas at you so that you don't feel too badly about not having a garden ---if you know what to look for, there's a lot to be found.

Mary KayYou can juice thistles? Good to know they can be more than an annoyance!

[MysticTree]

Yes you can juice thistles. Mr Raw mentions them quite a lot for example.

[Living Food]

oh very nice try, but i really think that you need a fertilizer..... for your plants....

What makes you think that? Artificial fertilizers do far more harm then good.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

You can juice thistles? Good to know they can be more than an annoyance!

Thistles are my number one juicing weed. l am a huge fan of them and even posted you some sour thistles in a p.m recently. The key is to get the thistles that have thick juicey stalks (avoid the dry ones). The local farmer knows l love his thistles and told me he has saved some really really big ones for me that are over 5 foot tall. He has now taken to burning all the seeds of his weeds (much to my disappointment), but he does leave some areas free for me [only] where l can still pick his weeds each week. Five massive thistle bushes can give me over two liters of juice for the day. l juice my weeds in a wheatgrass juicer and it works really well because it avoids jamming an electric juicer (weeds are often too tough on an electric juicer), but a wheatgrass juicer is quick and easy.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

In the recent Hippocrates Health Institute magazine there was a great article on the legendary Ann Wigmore (my raw food hero and inspiration). My favourite part of the articlke was when Karyn Calabrese said `one of her best memories is when Dr Ann came to her home and made energy soup in her kitchen with weeds that she brought with her'. Talk about lucky; everyone talks about their time with Dr Ann with very high regard, she was the one that made wheatgrass and weed juice catch on across the world. lf it wasn't for Dr Ann, we probably wouldn't even be having this discussion about weeds today.

Towards the end of Ann Wigmore's life it was said that she gave up most sprouts and lived almost entirely on weeds. She could run up and down stairs all day long as an old lady without being puffed (at the old Boston Hippocrates) and she hardly needed any sleep.

[MysticTree]

My manual wheat grass juicer is doing really well with various weeds at the moment. Also pulverises soaked/sprouted nuts and seeds nicely. Makes a few things possible that I thought having no electricity would hamper.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

You can juice thistles? Good to know they can be more than an annoyance!

Juice `em and juice `em, and juice `em some more. They are one of the biggest blessings. As a matter of fact...rip up the vegie garden and fill it up with weeds instead. Let the weeds grow wild and then juice everything in site.

l often joke to the farmer, `if l lived next door, you would never have a weed problem ever again...i'd clean the whole lot out'.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

My manual wheat grass juicer is doing really well with various weeds at the moment. Also pulverises soaked/sprouted nuts and seeds nicely. Makes a few things possible that I thought having no electricity would hamper.

Yes yes! lt is vital to own equipment that doesn't use electricity because you never know when and how long the power could go down in the future. Who is to say that a the electric grid won't go down for a week, a month or even an entire year. Why be a sitting duck, we need to be prepared.

l have various juicers, seed grinders, mortar and pestle and sprouters that use no power. l was actually going to post them tomorrow in the sprouting thread. lt is so important not to rely soley on electric blenders and juicers

Are you juicing wheatgrass?

[MysticTree]

Will do soon. It's taken a crazy long time to get raw going down here. The spring has been madly wet and we have been both inconvenienced and lazy but we have some various things sprouting and have located an organic farm locally which I can even get clover from I think. Looking forward to juicing clover. Will be checking out what is available over the weekend.

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

My sunflower greens have been taking 6 weeks to grow outside, and winter only started little over a week ago.

My niece had her first wheatgrass drink tonight and she thought it was "horrible". She was initially very excited about the thought of drinking grass, but she quickly changed her mind lol. Very few people l know have ever liked grass juice (most hate it), it is very very strong stuff....most potent drink i've ever had, it goes right into the body. l enjoy all my green juices, but cereal grass juice isn't very nice to drink.

[Living Food]

As a matter of fact...rip up the vegie garden and fill it up with weeds instead. Let the weeds grow wild and then juice everything in site.

Weeds are far superior to "conventional" veggies, so people really should be focusing on growing them. However, even for those who are determined to grow mostly conventional veggies, adding some weeds as companion or mother crops has many benefits besides the nutritional ones; there is a fascinating book on the topic called "Weeds - Guardians of the Soil". It's over 60 years old now, yet very few people seem to be acting on it. The whole thing is available online as a free ebook at http://journeytoforever.org/farm_library/weeds/WeedsToC.html if anyone is interested.

The book talks about how weeds, when managed carefully, are actually extremely conducive to soil fertility, by enhancing the sponge structure of the soil and boring holes into the subsoil to extract minerals, and allowing more conventional plants' roots to follow them down there. Weeds are our best friends in just about every way, not just nutritionally.

The section on eating weeds in the above book is disappointing, but the rest of it is fairly brilliant. Check it out.

[Living Food]

My niece had her first wheatgrass drink tonight and she thought it was "horrible". She was initially very excited about the thought of drinking grass, but she quickly changed her mind lol.

Why don't you get her started on something a little nicer to drink? Then you can slowly get her to enjoy the more potent juices.

[delmar]

Thistles are my number one juicing weed. l am a huge fan of them and even posted you some sour thistles in a p.m recently. It seems that I did not look closely enough at that photo, but I just looked again and there they are. There are different varieties of thistles, I think. Are they all edible? The guy at the foraging workshop I attended last week talked a lot about not eating anything you can't identify 100%. I just want to make sure.

[SunshineMN]

Well, I forgot we had to mow the lawn and all my little white clover heads are now gone. I do have thistles in my yard but I saw the neighbor spraying them so they are no good now. Do you just use thick gloves to handle them? I've always hated thistles. How do they taste?

Does it hurt to mix wheatgrass juice with filtered water before you drink it? I've never actually had some yet but soon will be growing it.

Living Foods, thanks for the link to the book. I saved it as a pdf for future reference. :)

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

There are different varieties of thistles, I think.
Yes, many different varieties. l've tried many of them.


Are they all edible? .
Sure are.

The ones that grow in the forest are much much stronger than the ones that grow on farms (from my experience).

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

Do you just use thick gloves to handle them?
Sometimes, but just use a serrated knife or scissors to cut them at the stalk. Even pull them out and eat the root as well, and even leave some soil on the roots for eating if it is chemical free.


How do they taste?
When you first drink thistle juice you may find it strong and bitter, but if you live on raw sprouted foods you will find the juice quite pleasant to drink. lt gets easier and easier to drink as time goes on.

When you have strong raw foods your taste is completely different to most peoples. For eg, you can eat lemons all day and not detect any sour taste, and you can drink weed juice all day and think of it like fruit juice.

l have my dad come over and gave him weed juice once and he made an terrible screwed up face and said it was the most horrible thing he has ever had. Then again, i've had raw friends come over for a weed party and we have happily drank thistle juice all afternoon.


Does it hurt to mix wheatgrass juice with filtered water before you drink it?
Not at all, sometimes it is advised. l used to always do it for many years.

[MysticTree]

I have noticed that with lemon in juices. People nearly die with contorted faces but all I can taste is a sweet, citrus note.

[michigan roman]

Weeds are far superior to "conventional" veggies, so people really should be focusing on growing them. However, even for those who are determined to grow mostly conventional veggies, adding some weeds as companion or mother crops has many benefits besides the nutritional ones; there is a fascinating book on the topic called "Weeds - Guardians of the Soil". It's over 60 years old now, yet very few people seem to be acting on it. The whole thing is available online as a free ebook at http://journeytoforever.org/farm_library/weeds/WeedsToC.html if anyone is interested.

The book talks about how weeds, when managed carefully, are actually extremely conducive to soil fertility, by enhancing the sponge structure of the soil and boring holes into the subsoil to extract minerals, and allowing more conventional plants' roots to follow them down there. Weeds are our best friends in just about every way, not just nutritionally.

The section on eating weeds in the above book is disappointing, but the rest of it is fairly brilliant. Check it out.


this warms my heart ;-) as ive been so swamped with work this spring my 30X100 garden that has thee wealthiest soil on earth ands whose owner has over $100 worth of seeds from all over earth to plant in it , bummer , has become a giant bed of the most well fed weeds on earth . including all kinds of medicinal herbs planted over the years that come up on own . additional factor warming heart is just arrived fed ex today = OMEGA 8005 = great greens juicer

[Mary Kay]

About getting used to drinking the wheatgrass etc:

I used to hate- abhor- detest it. Nevertheless, I believed in its powers and always drank it thinned with water or something else - cucumbers, celery etc....Then this early spring when it was full grown as a cover crop in my garden, one day, instead of mixing it with something else I thought: "maybe the outdoor stuff is milder, so I'll give it a try plain." Well, it tasted good to me plain so I figured it was milder.

Then I brought three lbs to my homeschool co-op and had a wheatgrass juice-fest for all the people, some, made many contorted faces even with some cucumber, carrot and celery in it while I drank down a cup, literally. So as a test I went to a juice bar and bought some to see if it was in fact stronger....It wasn't. Here, I had become used to it.

And where I used to "cut it" with other things, I now wanted to keep it plain because it tastes kind of like vegetable soup broth to me and I don't want to ruin it. Funny, huh?

When giving it to beginners, I do mix it with cucumber, a little carrot, celery, and maybe even a little water and tomato, for example. And have a chaser. Like a tiny amt of freshed-squeezed orange juice. I'll do this for kids a lot.

Interesting, but now that the wheatgrass in my garden is done and there are so many other things coming up, I haven't grown any. I wonder if there'll be another "learning-to-like-it-curve."

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

...about thistles:

I remember reading that there are over 200 varieties of thistle....so far, I'm still alive after trying many without knowing if they were called bull thistle or....whatever thistle. So I figure if it looks like a thistle, it is and go for it.

I notice though that if I blend them into smoothies without straining --and I mean doing a LOT, that underneath my tongue becomes kind of rough/prickly. Took a while for me to figure out it was the thistle....LOL, I couldn't figure out what this rash under my tongue was. But again, that only happened when I did a lot. This only happens when blended, not when juiced - probably because whatever teeny tiny prickly things must still remain in the blended stuff, is strained out during juicing.

Most mornings my kids have fresh orange juice --it's always green ---and this time of year, there are often thistles in it. I strain it for them though because they don't like it pulpy....Hey, whatever it takes to get them to ingest more greens!

Mary Kay

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

About getting used to drinking the wheatgrass etc:

I used to hate- abhor- detest it. Nevertheless, I believed in its powers and always drank it thinned with water or something else - cucumbers, celery etc....Then this early spring when it was full grown as a cover crop in my garden, one day, instead of mixing it with something else I thought: "maybe the outdoor stuff is milder, so I'll give it a try plain." Well, it tasted good to me plain so I figured it was milder.

Then I brought three lbs to my homeschool co-op and had a wheatgrass juice-fest for all the people, some, made many contorted faces even with some cucumber, carrot and celery in it while I drank down a cup, literally. So as a test I went to a juice bar and bought some to see if it was in fact stronger....It wasn't. Here, I had become used to it.

And where I used to "cut it" with other things, I now wanted to keep it plain because it tastes kind of like vegetable soup broth to me and I don't want to ruin it. Funny, huh?

When giving it to beginners, I do mix it with cucumber, a little carrot, celery, and maybe even a little water and tomato, for example. And have a chaser. Like a tiny amt of freshed-squeezed orange juice. I'll do this for kids a lot.

Interesting, but now that the wheatgrass in my garden is done and there are so many other things coming up, I haven't grown any. I wonder if there'll be another "learning-to-like-it-curve."

Mary Kay

Soaking wheat seeds in kelp water and then watering the grass with the kelp water makes it much much stronger, almost unbearable.

l have noticed all these rye and sunflower plants growing in my garden. The seeds must have gotten in the garden somehow, and now the garden bed is full of them. l'll keep on watering them and see how they go.

[streetsurfer]

Seaweed extract really boosts the immunity and health of a plant so I imagine it must make it healthier as well to eat/juice.

[Mary Kay]

Mr Raw,

I don't really understand what you are saying about the kelp with reference to growing in trays or outdoors and whether it tastes stronger etc. . I would imagine that the stores that buy wheatgrass do not get it from growers who would use much kelp because that adds to the expense, so would guess that if anything, the storebought would be milder because mine has kelp!

Both my indoor trays of wheatgrass and my outdoor wheatgrass used as a cover crop are planted in soil that is mixed with kelp, DE and azomite.

When using my mixture in my trays I've often wondered if in fact it was bio-available....don't know if it needs to be broken down a little better....but figure I'm not wasting my money, even if it's not instantly bio-available because the wheatgrass root-mat, when done, goes into my compost pile anyway, and will ultimately be broken down and added to my garden.

Mary Kay

[Living Food]

Seaweed extract really boosts the immunity and health of a plant so I imagine it must make it healthier as well to eat/juice.

Sure does.


Both my indoor trays of wheatgrass and my outdoor wheatgrass used as a cover crop are planted in soil that is mixed with kelp, DE and azomite.

When using my mixture in my trays I've often wondered if in fact it was bio-available

The kelp shoud be, I'm not sure about the diatomaceous earth, I didn't know that it was a plant nutrient (would it be because of the silicon?). I don't know much about azomite.

Interesting story about kelp, some cultures that lived near the sea and had little to no soil for growing crops would take seaweed and alternate layers of it and sand, then plant seeds in the mixture and the plants would grow like crazy. Seaweed is amazing for both plants and humans.

[delmar]

Thistles are my number one juicing weed. l am a huge fan of them and even posted you some sour thistles in a p.m recently. The key is to get the thistles that have thick juicey stalks (avoid the dry ones). The local farmer knows l love his thistles and told me he has saved some really really big ones for me that are over 5 foot tall. He has now taken to burning all the seeds of his weeds (much to my disappointment), but he does leave some areas free for me [only] where l can still pick his weeds each week. Five massive thistle bushes can give me over two liters of juice for the day. l juice my weeds in a wheatgrass juicer and it works really well because it avoids jamming an electric juicer (weeds are often too tough on an electric juicer), but a wheatgrass juicer is quick and easy.I picked up three big thistles by the side of the road today, just to see what I'm working with. I wasn't planning to eat them myself because of the roadside location, so I shredded them in my food processor and gave them to my critters. They didn't go through my food processor as easily as I hoped and they were not as juicy as I expected, possibly, in part, because of the dry weather we have been getting this spring. I'm going to need to get a grass juicer and see if they do better through that.

[Living Food]

Living Foods, thanks for the link to the book. I saved it as a pdf for future reference. :)

Your welcome :)

If you like it, then try going to this link: http://journeytoforever.org/farm_library.html

It has many books on organic and traditional farming/gardening practices, and some on nutrition, too - while none of the books on nutrition seem to be raw-oriented, they nonetheless provide great proof that SAD diets cause virtually all chronic diseases and even problems like malformed jaw structure (hence all of the eyetooth removals necessary...it's not just "evolution" like they say). The way I see it, the diets recommended there are far better then SAD, but far inferior to (properly done) raw diets.

But the agricultural information is spot-on.

[phak-i-tu]

http://www.atomicshrimp.com/st/content/mini_dandelions
I never thought to do this. Thanks for the prompt.
Outstanding link! Hand winnowing too. It might be fun, though, to ask one of my neighbors to borrow his shop vac for this purpose - just to see the look on his face. This is ranch country and there's going to be some laughter if anyone catches me at this job. Dandelions show up even here in the high desert so this is surely worth trying. We have some little daisies here on the mountain that I've been keeping an eye on to the same end. I've been eating some of those flowers and putting them in smoothies; so far no bad effects.

[SunshineMN]

If you like it, then try going to this link: http://journeytoforever.org/farm_library.html

Thanks again! I bookmarked it as I have no place for a garden now but will have one within a couple years or so. Always good to learn and plan for the future. :)

[delmar]

I have been watching a stand of red clover that is growing by the side of the road on the way to work. I know that foraging close to the road is not recommended but my plan is to save seeds and plant them on my property. It should then, be safe to harvest seeds from those plants. I have been spending 85 cents/ounce for red clover seed for sprouting so I'm thinking this will be a heck of an investment of my time.

I found an article on saving clover seeds on ehow.com (http://www.ehow.com/how_5579128_collect-clover-seed.html) as well as one as well as one video on youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfF3u92XCOo), but the video didn't really describe how to know when the seeds are ready, and I really didn't get what the article was describing until I saw it for myself. I am a bit of a visual learner.

So anyway am am fairly certain that some of the seeds are now ready and I started collecting on the way home from work today.

9111

In the photo my finger is pointing to a seed head that I am pretty sure is ready. If you compare it to the other two seed heads next to it, you can see that the center portion on those is still green. The core of the one that is ready. on the other hand, has become pale and when you take the seed head between your thumb and finger it pulls off the plant quite easily. I did encounter a few pale seed heads that took a bit of a tug to remove. I decided that those might not be quite ready and left them for next time.

Clover update
So much to my dismay the county came along and mowed the roads and mowed down much of the clover I was watching. The good news is that within a few days the clover blooms were back and sticking up well above the grass. Now because of the drought the grass is not growing and no more mowing will be happening any time soon as a result. It has been very hot here so I had not been doing much outside for a while. So last night I started a strategy of going out about sundown and picking seeds for about a half hour before it gets really dark. It was still above 90, but with the sun low in the sky it is not so intense. I got about 500 seed head picked last night and about the same tonight.
I am planning on turning much of my lawn into a clover meadow

9168!

[SunshineMN]

I think that's a great idea delmar! I was out at someone's house recently and they had a big ole patch of it growing in their yard as well. All those purple flowers are pretty when there's a large bunch of them.

[Living Food]

I am planning on turning much of my lawn into a clover meadow

A wonderful idea. I don't understand why people let all of that possibly productive space go to waste. The simplest solution would probably be to just juice the grass, but letting edible weeds colonize it and then utilizing those is also a good idea - and besides, very few people probably drink that much grass (I might be an exception *smile*)

Update on dandelion seeds: Despite my best efforts, I was only able to collect a few hundred seed heads between worrying about lawns being sprayed with pesticides and not being able to find very many in the forest (not their favorite habitat), and now the hunting season is essentially over, besides a few late bloomers. I am rationing my dandelion seeds and treating myself to one tray/week, juiced; hopefully they will last until the dandelions go to seed again. They have an amazing energy, though, they're up there with sunflower greens and cereal grass, maybe even better.

[MysticTree]

I have some popcorn sprouting in trays of soil and I just got to say how amazing the very young shoots are. I'm not sure if they will make it to the greens stage!

[delmar]

I have some popcorn sprouting in trays of soil and I just got to say how amazing the very young shoots are. I'm not sure if they will make it to the greens stage!yup, sweet as fruit

[MysticTree]

yup, sweet as fruit
Possibly sweeter whilst still being a sort of savoury thing!

[Living Food]

I don't like popcorn shoots, much too sweet for me.

[MysticTree]

They are very strong but savoury as well as sweet. I'm planning to juice them as greens with other things. At the moment I eat just one when I'm watering. Amazingly refreshing and live. The sunflowers are doing well too. We had various homegrown leaves and micro leaves with our evening meal. The mustard leaves were hot, hot, hot.

[Living Food]

Amazingly refreshing and live.

That's why sprouts are so effective. Have you tried juicing any of the microgreens yet?


The mustard leaves were hot, hot, hot.

Lol, I once juiced a whole tray of mustard microgreens when I was a newbie...ouch!

[MysticTree]

I've juiced sunflower greens. I prefer wheatgrass juice I think. I'm planning to juice the peashoots if they don't get devoured before they get that far.

[SunshineMN]

I accidentally bought mustard greens one time at the grocery store and threw them in our salad for the week. Needless to say that salad ended up in the garbage and we had to go buy more greens. LOL We're not a fan of them in the least.

[Living Food]

I'm actually quite fond of mustard greens now; I just don't make the mistake of juicing an entire tray of them at once.

My tastebuds (and entire digestive system, it seems) have also changed dramatically, so maybe I could manage it now, though I'm still not going to try.

[Living Food]

I did an experiment - picked a few dandelion seedheads and stored them whole in a plastic bag (not just the seeds), and now a few weeks later I opened it up and they molded. I figured that would happen, but I did the experiment anyway to warn people to always completely separate the seeds from other organic material that might rot/mold. Storing them in the fridge or freezer would probably alleviate this problem.

[streetsurfer]

Glad you didn't lose a whole jar full of them. Seperating can come after drying and I always wait because I feel leaving the attached parts will help speed the drying....like a wick of sorts drawing moisture out of the seed. One should let any seeds dry well before putting up for storage. One good way is by placing them on an old window screen spread out thinly. Once dried, you can rub the seeds between palms to remove any chaff such as the dandelion tufts. Even cleaned seeds put away green can mold.<br>
<br>
One year I had issues with head moths on my amaranth, even when spread out. I did not break the seed heads down into small enough parts and the moths and a little mold took up residence. Moth eggs may have come in on the heads, or been an incident related to where they were stored, not sure. This year I plan to dry inside.

[MysticTree]

I did an experiment - picked a few dandelion seedheads and stored them whole in a plastic bag (not just the seeds), and now a few weeks later I opened it up and they molded. I figured that would happen, but I did the experiment anyway to warn people to always completely separate the seeds from other organic material that might rot/mold. Storing them in the fridge or freezer would probably alleviate this problem.That's much more likely caused by the plastic bag - use a paper one. Get a bunch of seed heads and loosely secure them together with string. Invert the bunch inside the paper bag with as much of the stalk outside the top of the bag as possible. Store in a cool, dry shed or larder or similar. When totally dried, shake the bag a bit to loosen the few remaining seeds still in the seed heads (most will have fallen into the bag). Voila! Perfectly ripened seeds.

[Living Food]

Good to know. I've just been manually separating the seeds from the seedheads, which is definitely more time-consuming then that method.

[MysticTree]

elderly horticultural relatives. Always handy to learn these things from them even if they otherwise terrify ;)

[Living Food]

Older folks often have lots of good skills that we would do well to learn. We've forgotten so many things that were once necessary for survival because we have other people + technology doing them for us.


even if they otherwise terrify

lol.

[MysticTree]

my father's godmother; she had been a missonary and studied horticulture in the days when you had to complete 7 years in a position post-study before the qualification was granted. A very good woman but completely terrifying but I learned loads from her including weeding in the dark. You learn to tell each plant from the feel and the smell and from remembering what was in the bed to start with obviously. She also taught me how easy it is to weed in the winter because even though there are no leaves on the plants you know what their roots look like and what they smell like so it is so very second nature and you feel totally at home buried in an herbaceous border on your hands and knees and it's so good for the soul! She was less successful with the religious encouragement.

[Living Food]

That's much more likely caused by the plastic bag - use a paper one.

Why would a plastic bag cause molding? Just curious.

[MysticTree]

In the same way that any bad ventilation does. The seeds need to dry out and they can't if they are smothered in plastic. The water has nowhere to go. Seeds ripen, get dry and then fall. Depending on what type of seed they are and the native weather in the place they grow naturally they then might need a cold spell first before they will germinate. Or a hot spell. Parsley is notoriously difficult to germinate in the UK at least. When I grow it I always put the seed in a sieve and pour a kettle of just boiled but not much cooled water over them. Germination rate improves. Different seeds have different preferences foe germination. Old fashioned gardening books are invaluable for this sort of info because back then everyone pretty much grew everything from seed. These days most people buy most of their veggies as small or plug plants and the knowledge is being lost.