This last "weed" I referred to does truly grow all around our patio, springing up between the bricks that Stefen and I (with other temporary employees and helpers) painstakingly laid out and pounded into level submission two summers ago. Who cares if the "weeds" are moving our lines and causing some bricks to stick up at slight angles on the corners? And really, who even needs to see the beautiful bricks when they're covered by such a lovely, permanent weed?!
One elderly gentleman told me as he was ordering a coffee one morning back in June that the weed growing between our bricks and moving in leafy waves across our flowerbeds was called "spurge." (I Googled spurge once and saw that although we have that here too, it is not, in fact, the name of the weed on trial here.) "You'll want to get rid of it before it takes over. A little Round-Up will take care of it." He just kind of stared at me when I told him my mom liked it too much and wouldn't let me rip it up. My grandpa offers to spray it every once in awhile, and Mom's fiance, Mike, has actually sprayed it a couple times in preparation for the fireworks and huge festivities that take place down at the park on the 4th of July. (No one wants to slip and fall on their rear on Independence Day....) Stefen and I have also spent many an afternoon weeding it out of the gardens that I deemed "veggie only" or "pretty, non-invasive plants only."
However, there is one flowerbed in the front corner of our property that I am not allowed to touch unless the weeds get unruly and try to take the bricks back from me yet again. This flowerbed is also home to portulaca grandiflora or "rock roses," giant lilies, a couple forlorn-looking baby trees, and some rogue marigolds. I am not allowed to harm the succulent weeds in this flowerbed. So for many weeks, I left them alone. I pruned them when Mom wasn't looking, and I used a dandelion puller to pry them out of the bricks when they got too comfortable. It wasn't until today that I discovered this succulent, invasive weed might actually have a purpose in life, other than to annoy me to no end.
Facebook is a place where you can learn magical things. With just a scroll of your mouse, you can see who broke up with who, who is in love with who (but wasn't yesterday), how to lose weight by only eating "these certain summertime foods," how to survive an apocalypse, and apparently how to utilize invasive plants. Joyce from Friends Drift Inn taught me this morning that what I thought was called spurge (or the-bane-of-my-gardening-existence) is actually called purslane (or portulaca oleracea), and guess what? YOU CAN EAT IT!!!!
Being the college graduate that I am, I immediately began looking for other links to back up what was still, to me anyway, a theory. Yup, Google confirmed it for me. And depending on how much you believe the Internet, Martha Washington even served it to our nation's first president. (Happy Birthday, America. Here's a salad.) The most common ways to eat purslane are either on a salad or as a pickled condiment. (You can bet your britches I'm gonna learn to pickle it!!!) Some say it has a taste similar to watercress or spinach. Others say it kind of has a lemony-ness to it. I'm here to tell you, they're both right.
Yes, that's right. I tried it. Heck, it grows in abundance here, so why not? If my mom insists on letting it live in our flowerbeds, you can bet I'm going to try and find a use for it. Having come from a scientific background in school, I knew the only way to know for sure if purslane was any good was to test it myself. A hypothesis is only a hypothesis until it can be disproved. So I picked some, I washed it, and I ate it. (Having grown up with an aunt who puts pretty little violets in her salads, I'm definitely one for culinary adventure.) Although I think it might be an acquired taste for some, it wasn't half bad. Purslane might even be making an appearance in future salads and, if it's lucky, on the shelves of my pantry next to my other home canned goods.
If you need more assurance that it's safe to consume this otherwise annoying plant, here's a link from the University of Illinois Extension to help calm your fears. Also, I haven't had any side-effects yet, so I think you're all good to go. I also read that purslane is high in beta-carotene, iron, magnesium, riboflavin, omega-3, and a whole list of other vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants!
All in all, I'm glad I finally found a reason not to hate this funny little plant. Although it is still not welcome in my vegetable garden or on our brick patio, at least it will be welcome on my plate. :)
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