Bonnie in her garden with 1 or her grandchildren!

Winter officially starts today, and to celebrate it in a weird kind of way,  I thought why not post a story about summer. Some people love winter, the cold, snow, ice, fires, skiing etc… and other people get the blues. Do not worry, summer is right around the corner… and if you love winter, your time is now!

That Noxious Weed

“Bang!” our screen door slammed and my irate husband bounded into the house. “This noxious weed!” he exclaimed, “I don’t know where it came from but it is taking over our garden. You can’t kill the critter either. I pulled some last week and left it hanging on the fence in the sun all this time and look, it’s still alive.”

I had noticed the tiny green semi succulent plant during the early summer. Sometimes I pulled it up and threw it on the compost pile. Now I looked at the mass which spread from one central spot. The roots had not gone deep but I could see that little tendrils reached into the soil all along its web like structure that would have covered at least 30 square centimeters of ground. I squeezed one of the leaves and felt the moisture ooze out.

“Let’s find out what this plant is,” I suggested. “I think it may have come in with the last load of topsoil we got.”

We found our answer while searching “Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast” by Pojar and Mackinnon. The noxious weed was none other that Purslane or Portulaca. Other names are Pusley, or Low Pigweed. I dug out my old “Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants” by Bradford Angier and read more. Purslane was edible! Good to cook or to eat in a salad.

On further investigation our gardens were full of the weed. It grew in dry hot areas and also under the raspberry and pea rows in the shade. It popped up in the most unexpected places. No wonder. I read that fifty two thousand seeds had been counted on one plant!

I also read that a 100 gram edible portion of purslane contains 2,500 international units of vitamin A when it is raw. It contains 2,100 units when it is cooked. It you took a similar weight of potatoes we are told they have no more than .04 miligrams of riboflavin raw or baked in their skins. Purslane leaves have .10 miligrams raw and .06 when cooked. Calorie wise, purslane has 21 calories while a potato of the same weight has76 calories raw. It has 15 to 75 calories when boiled whole. Purslane boasts 25% more vitamin C. Most exciting is the fact that purslane contains more omega-3 than any other leafy vegetable.

We were going to attend a fellowship dinner the next day so I decided it would be fun to make a purslane salad. The tiny leaves and stems took a lot of washing because the plant grows so close to the ground, but it was worth the time. Before the pot luck I tossed about two litres of the green leaves and the smaller stems of the plant with tomato wedges, minced garden onion, garlic and cucumber. I made a dressing of lemon juice, olive oil, a dash of Braggs, and a bit of honey. Then I poured the dressing over the salad to marinate for the next two hours until it would be eaten. The buttery tasting purslane was a real hit. People still ask me about “that little wild plant”.

Good-bye noxious weed. Hello edible tasty purslane.

Bonnie Walker has been a vegetarian since the age of 16. Then her 23 year old brother came home at Christmas time and asked her why she would want to eat a dead bird with all the waste products floating around in the blood! That was the end of flesh foods for her.

Growing up in an “alternative” household, Bonnie’s father insisted on getting out two pails—one hot and one cold water—to do foot baths when anyone came down with a cold or the flu. Her mother used to put a wool sock around her neck when her throat became sore. It was natural for her to become a student of nature and incorporate natural treatments into her lifestyle.

A large garden has always been a high priority with Bonnie. Some years she has canned up to 700 quarts of grape juice, tomatoes and other fruits. The deep freezer bulges with berries, peas, and green beans.

Bonnie is an educator. She has taught school, pulling healthy ideas into the classroom as well as working as a school administrator with boards, teachers and parents for over 25 years. Upon retiring she has become a published author writing stories for children. Presently she is devoting her spare time to her grandchildren, water colour and creative writing.

“Life just gets better,” Bonnie vows “except it is hard to pace myself now and I am a slow learner when it comes to lifting thing.