Purslane

irregardless · #1 02/05/13, 09:14 PM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portulaca_oleracea

This was the bane of my existance this summer gardening... If I didn't rip up 200lbs of it, I would be VERY surprised. I think half the garden is covered by it currently... I didn't notice ANY when I was prepping the soil and I have never even seen this stuff before, google'd "weeds in Indiana" and this came up. I love being bored at work.

Should I allow it to grow to help conserve water and shade other weeds, like the wiki link suggests? (grass like weeds were next to non-existent)

"As a companion plant, Purslane provides ground cover to create a humid microclimate for nearby plants, stabilizing ground moisture. Its deep roots bring up moisture and nutrients that those plants can use, and some, including corn, will "follow" purslane roots down through harder soil that they cannot penetrate on their own (ecological facilitation). It is known as a beneficial weed in places that do not already grow it as a crop in its own right."

Anyone actually use it for food? Checking recipes it atleast seems edible.

K.B. · #2 02/05/13, 10:31 PM

not just edible, but delicious and nutritious, too!

we don't have any up in our garden beds, so I transplanted a wild plant that was going to seed into the middle of the garden this past summer

Hopefully we'll be set for life now

Paquebot · #3 02/06/13, 12:28 AM

If you have it once, you may have it for life. Rate of expansion is about a quarter-acre per year without help. In 2005, there were just a couple of plots which had it in the community gardens. Last year it was in every plot in that 1½ acre complex. I allow it to grow in just one small area home but only what I figure that we will eat. We use it only in stir-fry meals.

Martin

irregardless · #4 02/06/13, 12:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paquebot

If you have it once, you may have it for life. Rate of expansion is about a quarter-acre per year without help.

Bring on the end of the world then!

Johnny Dolittle · #5 02/06/13, 07:02 AM

The Wiki definition was provided by an ecologist no doubt. A farmer would have described it differently.

Tirzah · #6 02/06/13, 08:18 AM

When I saw the title of your post I thought you wanted some and was going to suggest you come to SW Colorado and help me weed this year

I tried eating it but didn't care for it.

K.B. · #7 02/06/13, 08:28 AM

purslane fits in well with the other "weeds" that become available at different times of year and provide some easy diversity to salads & cooked greens: chickweed, miner's lettuce, dandelion, plantain, self-heal, lambs-quarter, etc...

keep in mind that many weeds that are good for humans make good animal food, as well.

farmerDale · #8 02/06/13, 08:56 AM

We fought with purslane for decades, until we began mulching/no-tilling our garden. I never found it to be beneficial to my veggies in the least. I have also never heard of a weed that "brings up moisture for other plants to use".

It is also not very deep rooted at all. Like the dandelion thread, some folks are going to like purslane, some are going to not like it so much. All I know, is after finally eradicating the stuff in my garden, my garden does better, takes less time to weed by eons, and I do not miss it in the least. Never found it very appealing in the culinary aspect, but to each his own...

Paquebot · #9 02/06/13, 10:05 AM

There are a lot of people who defend certain "weeds" by claiming that they don't rob any nutrients from other plants and yet are full of nutrients when eaten. That ain't going to happen. They also are not very quick to share their water with any other plant. Low prostrate plants grow as they do for a purpose and that is because they don't like to have neighbors.

Martin

nightfire · #10 02/06/13, 11:04 AM

Just make sure what you have is actually purslane. We have a plant called spurge that looks very similar to purslane. Both grow next to each other here. Spurge is toxic, and has a white sap that comes out when part of the plant is broken. Purslane doesn't have the white sap.

Once I correctly identified which plant was which, I tried the purslane. It tasted fine to me. It's definitely worth trying to see if you will like it or not!

Johnny Dolittle · #11 02/06/13, 11:54 AM

Some plants have a more efficient metabolic pathway for processing the sugars produced by photosynthesis. These plants tend to come from more tropical regions and are designated as C4 plants. Plants having the less efficient metabolic pathway tend to come from temperate regions and are designated C3. C4 plants will respond to increased light intensity by growing faster. C3 reach a point where they saturate on light intensity and increasing the intensity will not speed growth.

Most of the crops in USA are C3 along with most of the weeds.

Corn and related crops (sorgum, sugar cane etc) along with weed relatives (Johnson Grass) are C4

Creeping Purslane is C4

So here is a weed that tolerates (thrives in drought) and can process any amount of sunlight making it a very competitive weed.

There are other C4 crops and weeds in the USA .... Google C4 plants if you want to know.

(no I didn't sleep in a Holiday Inn Express .... But I did complete a course in Plant Physiology years ago)

K.B. · #12 02/06/13, 12:03 PM

the value of a particular plant will vary from person to person depending on your perspective and preferences...

I personally like plants that grow without assistance, taste good (to me) and self-sow. There may be areas that I don't want those plants to grow and it is easily fixed with mulch.

When I come across a patch of yarrow, wild strawberry, dandelion and self-heal, etc... (common here in the spring in my orchard/garden area), it makes me happy rather than wanting to find a way to get rid of them. Salad, cooked greens and tea or tincture, if you like.

Many plants have different needs with regards to nutrient and root structure profiles. Some are shallow rooted, others have a taproot. Some accumulate different minerals in addition to varying needs for NPK. Paying attention to these profiles can help you in the garden and use "weeds" and other material to supplement your gardening.

Also, purslane is reported to be high in omega-3 fatty acids. I haven't seen a good analysis profile for plants grown in the US, but I would like to.

It seems that people who like to plant monocultures do not like "weeds" in their garden

northergardener · #13 02/06/13, 12:25 PM

My chickens love purslane!

lordoftheweeds · #14 02/06/13, 01:29 PM

If there was a market for it I would be a rich man

Johnny Dolittle · #15 02/06/13, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lordoftheweeds

If there was a market for it I would be a rich man

Interesting username !!!!

Maverick_mg · #16 02/06/13, 03:19 PM

I sell it to my chefs so it can grow all it wants, it's as close to free money as you can get. I think it has kind of a rhubarb taste, so I like it. I purposely plant winter purslane too to sell. It's a big hit around here.

tentance · #17 02/06/13, 03:20 PM

much tastier than sorrel....

motdaugrnds · #18 02/06/13, 07:14 PM

I found both purslane as well as spurge here. They are easy to differentiate once you understand them. I've been trying...yes trying...to propogate purslane WITHOUT LUCK. I found half a dozen nice plants growing over and around my gravel bed (#57 stones I use for terracing, etc.); and placed them inside my garden hoping to get a good start in there where they goats cannot get to them. Despits my efforts, the summer heat must have done them in because they are not there anymore....I keep hoping they will show up this spring!

I did find a couple of different varieties in one of my seed catalogs that I plan to order if these don't show up this year. I want purslane for the Omega-3 fatty acides it offers. (Anyone who wants to get rid of some can certainly ship some my way. I'ld be glad to pay for them.)

cathleenc · #19 02/06/13, 08:00 PM

I let it grow, at will, in my garden, following that companion planting legend. Never again. That darn stuff got 24" high and crowded out so many vegies I wanted to eat. And the variety in my garden was nasty tasting. I tried every which way to eat it, including pickling, and it was all blech.

But - I have tasted really nice tasting purslane elsewhere. Lemony and crunchy, nice chopped up in a salad. Liked it well enough that I actually bought seeds to intentionally sow in my garden. Hoping that the wild variety in my wisconsin garden is not the kind that develops from the intentional seeds I'm waiting to sow.

Johnny Dolittle · #20 02/06/13, 08:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by motdaugrnds

I found both purslane as well as spurge here. They are easy to differentiate once you understand them. I've been trying...yes trying...to propogate purslane WITHOUT LUCK. I found half a dozen nice plants growing over and around my gravel bed (#57 stones I use for terracing, etc.); and placed them inside my garden hoping to get a good start in there where they goats cannot get to them. Despits my efforts, the summer heat must have done them in because they are not there anymore....I keep hoping they will show up this spring!

I did find a couple of different varieties in one of my seed catalogs that I plan to order if these don't show up this year. I want purslane for the Omega-3 fatty acides it offers. (Anyone who wants to get rid of some can certainly ship some my way. I'ld be glad to pay for them.)

When it is grown under droughty conditions it gets very tough and will not wilt when pulled and left lay in the sun .... I have trouble with it re rooting and growing. I would think it would be easy to propagate by cuttings.