Weeds?

Weeds, if they were called by any other name, would they still annoy us to such a degree. The topic of weeds and weed control can touch off a frenzy of discussion when gardeners gather.

Some gardeners have little to no problem with weeds as they either use them to attract beneficial insects to their garden, eat them, for example, lambs quarters have serious food potential, or they read them and realize that the existence of weeds is telling us something about our garden; usually about the condition of the soil.

When we get the message we can take the proper steps to eliminate the problem and watch the weeds disappear.

Nature does not like bare patches of soil and the plants that we call weeds are nothing if not opportunistic, they will quickly move in where others fear to grow.

Weeds are hardy pioneers that are often the first plant life to appear on an abandoned site. So if you do not want the weeds to move in then do not leave patches of soil available to them because if you leave it they will come.

In addition to mulching, you can avoid digging all together; often when we turn over the soil to create a new garden bed what we do is free the weed seeds that have been lying in wait for the opportunity to grow to spring forth.

Resist the temptation to dig and deny them that opportunity. No-till gardening plus mulching will reduce your weed concerns.

Like many activities how you approach your garden depends to a considerable extent upon your attitude towards the garden; towards Nature and towards weeds.

When I am giving a garden talk or starting a workshop and feel the need to gain some insight into the people who are there; I ask one question; when you hear the word dandelion what is your first reaction?

If they gasp and say weed or worse then I know that I have my work cut out for me; if they say healthy, salads, wine or tea substitute than I have a very different crowd.

The dandelion, the bane of many suburban lawn and gardeners, is probably one of the most versatile and useful plants that grow so freely in our yards and just about anywhere it can get some sun and put down roots.

I am not suggesting that you deliberately grow it, although you can buy seeds if you wish, I do feel that you can learn to love it and try some of the recipes, like dandelion fritters.

I find the dandelion to be quite a beautiful plant that contrasts brilliantly with green lawns; if you pick the heads before they go to seed and deep fry them in batter, for example, you won’t be spreading them around the neighbourhood.

In fact, you could invite the neighbours over for dandelion tea and fritters and maybe just change their minds.

Once again, if you do not leave space for weeds to garb hold in your garden and do not set free the seeds already hiding in the soil, you are well on your way to reducing your weed worries.

In Praise of Dandelions

They grow everywhere or so it seems. You do not have to tend them, water them or feed them. All you need to do is appreciate them and harvest them, then enjoy them as wine, tea, in a salad or deep-fried as fritters.

What I am I going on about, well dandelions, the most misunderstood and under-appreciated “weed’ in the world, well that may be a bit over the top, but you get my drift.

This is urban food foraging at its most basic. You may not even have to leave your own property to gather this most versatile plant. If you are a homeowner and have a lawn, the odds are good you have a handy supply of dandelions.

Now you may have spent hours, each summer, in vain attempts to make the dandelion go away, but somehow, no matter what you do it keeps coming back.

Now you can give up the struggle and start reaping the rewards that nature has been putting in front of you for all those years and rather than doing battle, go and get some supper.

Dandelion greens are one of the season’s first edible arrivals and the ragged leaves add a distinctive appearance to the meal. They are best picked when young. Dandelion greens are high in vitamin A in the form of antioxidant carotenoid and vitamin C.

It is not necessary to be a gardener to take advantage of this useful plant. All you need is a lawn that has not been sprayed with poison in an attempt to control the weeds and it is quite likely that you will have dandelions aplenty.

You can harvest the root, the flower and the green, so the whole plant, pretty much, is useful. The root can be ground and used as a coffee substitute, something like chicory, in case you are looking for something a little different in the morning.

You may find it faster to collect the dandelions if you work with at least one other person that is if you are planning to harvest the whole plant.

Have one person cut the flower and another dug out the root using a dandelion weeding tool. The tools often destroy the flowers.

Now, because dandelions are so plentiful in many lawns you can do an early harvest and take the young leaves and leave the root in the ground to grow back and then come back for the flower and root.

Or you can harvest the whole plant when young making sure to leave a few growing so that you can harvest the flowers if you want them. There are options which make this even more fun.

So the first step is to decide what you are going to use the dandelion for, salads, coffee, wine fritters and so on and then collect the plant accordingly.

If you do not have a lawn you may want to visit your neighbours and ask them if you can harvest their dandelions. Do this in early spring before the dandelion is bloom.

Tell them what you want the dandelion for and that you will remove all the dandelions from their front lawn. Unless you really love dandelion coffee or wine, there is a limit to how many plants you will need to harvest.

Friends and family may be happy to have your drop by and visit while weeding their lawn.

It is possible that people will look at you funny and whisper behind your back but hey you are getting some great exercise outdoors, providing food for the family, that costs nothing but your labour, and maybe encouraging others to step forward and stop poisoning the community and eat the weeds.