Pioneer Woman at Heart

One Flourishing, Frugal and Fun Family!

One family learning to live off the land, cut back on expenses, and to live a simpler and a more self-sufficient lifestyle.

Adopted Motto

"Eat it up,
Wear it out,
Make it do,
Or go without."
~A Pioneer Sampler, by Barbara Greenwood~

Showing posts with label Edible Weeds. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Edible Weeds. Show all posts

Saturday, September 1, 2018

Puttin' Up Purslane

One bonus from all this rain and recent heat wave, is that the weeds are galore.  Edible weeds - purslane.



Although this is wonderful fresh, I'm stocking up as much as I can for winter soups and frittatas.

I steam it for a few minutes, and followed the directions found at Mother Earth News online page (regarding harvesting purslane).



I cooled it per their instructions as well, to not wash off the vitamins and minerals - filling a metal bowl with ice water, putting an empty one in the ice water, and cooling the steamed purslane.

Thursday, May 17, 2018

Dandelion Poultice ~ Cleaver Poultices

Spring weeds are here now.  I wonderful time to gather, eat,  and store. I put some weed pesto in the freezer already.  I weeded about 95% of my herb garden, and all of the weeds, aside from the little bit of grass, were edible (or useful for natural remedies).




I've had quite a few experiences with dandelion since I first made dandelion jelly.  Over the years, I have made dandelion bread (which we absolutely love), dried dandelion for tea purposes, blanched and froze dandelion for meals (we love dandelion pesto), dried the root for a coffee substitute and medicinal purposes, and now I am making poultices.

Dandelion poultices, can be used to treat eczema, skin rashes, boils, and to reduce itchy skin (helps with itchy poison ivy). 

I am putting these poultices together in the freezer, like I do with comfrey and plantain.  There is nothing more comforting than a cold poultice in the summer, for an itchy rash too.

I am also putting cleaver poultices in to the freezer (as well as dehydrating some for medicinal purposes).  Cleaver weed poultices can be used to treat burns and even sunburn.  Spring is the only time I am able to pick this weed.  It's often found growing directly in my garden and will stick you like glue.  



Dandelion Poultice ~ Cleaver Poultices ©  May 2018 by Kristina at https://pioneerwomanatheart.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, April 17, 2018

Tuesday Tidbits ~ Chickweed Pesto

Warning....not good news just yet.

First, Hubby isn't off night shift after all.  A call came, and he's on 3rd for a few more nights (maybe).  

Second,

Monday, April 16, 2018

And "Poof!" Weekend Gone

I can't really say I felt like we had a weekend here.  Hubby worked all through the weekend, and with the continued 3rd shift, I am totally off sync.  

We had a family baby shower yesterday, and that was interesting.  Hubby got home at 8:30am-ish, and went to bed.  He got up at 2:15pm, and we went to the baby shower late, then left early to come back so he could nap for one hour before leaving for work again.  He insisted we be with his family at this time, and I truly felt they needed it too.  Us too.

However, we hit a big snaf-foo!  On the way home in his truck, because my car still has a falt tire since last Wednesday (he hit something on the way home, and with the funeral and 2 days of 100% rain, it was put on the back burner), his brakes started going out on us.  Thankfully our daughter wasn't driving.  He got us home by downshifting, but he needed a vehicle to get to work.

Tuesday, March 13, 2018

Stinging Nettle ~ Preparing it ~ Teas

Spring is just around the corner here, and nettles will be growing like crazy.  I'm posting today to encourage you to forage your edible weeds.  Ants love my stinging nettle, so I try to harvest it before they discover it.

Stinging Nettle is a wild growing weed.  It's best to harvest first thing in the spring, however larger leaves in summer can still be used for tea making.




Stinging nettle contains fiber, and protein, and is a packed with Vitamin C.  It also provides Vitamin A and other healthy nutrients.  It helps with seasonal allergies, helps removed retained water, reduces joint pain (arthritis), swelling, helps hair growth, may help with urinary issues, and more.  To obtain more information on edible and medicinal weeds, check your local library for resources.  Here is one useful book: