Eat the weeds! You'll thank me later

I love gardening.

Planting the seeds, watching the little green sprouts emerge into the daylight, picking the fresh vegetables that emerge from the miracle of summer sun.   

And all that hard work — watering, weeding — is good for my waistline too.   

But I always end up resenting the weeding. The weeds mock me with their fertile proliferation, crowding out my spindly colonial shoots.

It's frustrating — or it used to be.

That feeling started to shift when I learned more about those pesky stray greens and discovered we could become friends.

More nutrients, less work — and money

Turns out lamb's quarters, a dusty-looking weed that's prevalent throughout my gardens, is, in fact, more nutritious than the tomatoes I was trying to protect from it. 

And those sunny dandelions are more nutritious than the broccoli that never quite seems to get as big as the ones shipped up North from places like California, which is running out of water trying to feed us all (and imagine all the gas used to get it to my door). 

I also learned rose hips, the seed pods of roses, make a really lovely ketchup.

And that beautiful fireweed that flourishes in the North? Its liquid makes a lovely jelly or even sweet syrup for a fireweed martini.  

Turns out, all these "pesky" weeds can save me money and time; I don't have to buy soil or build planter boxes, I don't have to water them nightly or weed them weekly — and more importantly for those in the North who struggle to make ends meet — I don't have to pay for them.

These "weeds" sprout up in the most inhospitable gravel piles and back alleys, which is a testament to their vigour, and according to some botanists, a testament to the vigour they will pass on to you.

So, eat the weeds!

But not all of them...

Now before you face plant yourself at the edge of your driveway, there's a few things to learn — actually, a lifetime of things to learn.

First of all, not all plants are edible. Some will make you sick, so make sure you know what you're picking. Just because something has a dandelion-like flower, doesn't mean it's a dandelion. Elders, the internet and books such as "The Boreal Herbal" by Yukon's Beverley Gray are all great places to start your research.   

Weeds also absorb contaminants, so don't pick those growing by a busy road or near contaminated sites.

If you're heading out to the bush for your search, it's a good idea to let people know where you're going and when you'll be back.   

And if you're picking on First Nation's traditional land? Let them know. The treaties say we should "share" the land, right?

And finally, if you come upon a lovely patch of black currants or sheep sorrel, don't pick them all; you'll thank me later when you come back to a tasty reward and "patch" year after year.