Top 5 Weeds to grow

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As gardeners, we spend a ton of time and money putting together our space, resources, and energy to create a garden. 

We have plans on exactly how we want to plant out our garden to get the most out of our gardens.

I want to challenge your way of thinking about weeds by giving you my Top 5 weeds to grow in your garden.

There are all sorts of things that seem to always get in the way of us gardeners having the garden of our dreams. 

Whether it bugs killing our plants, powdery mildew trying to smother our garden, or birds getting our tomatoes, there are solutions to these problems. 

For the organic gardener, these problems tend to be more difficult to manage because we do not want to use chemicals to control pests and mildew.

There is one more problem that we as gardeners always seem to have and that weed trying to take over our garden.

For most of us, pulling weeds is one garden chore that we despise.

If we let weeding go for just a few days the garden is covered in them; then we spend time, money, and our energy in trying to get rid of them. 

When we see the weeds we go all out to get rid of them, we get out the shovel to dig them out or we break out some vinegar to try to kill it.

What Is A Weed?

A weed is essentially any plant that you do not want in a particular spot.

So, if we view weeds in this way a tomato volunteer that came up from a seed that was dropped last year in our now pepper patch would be a weed. 

If you actually think about the weeds that you have in your garden or yard, you did not plant them which means they came up on their own.

The weed seed germinated on its own without any special treatment that we give our seeds indoors.

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It self-seeded and it grew sometimes in between pavers in our pathways or who knows where else. 

We spend a ton of hours in order to get rid of some of our best-growing plants. I want to challenge you right now to change your thought process about weeds, well about some of them.

I strive to have a garden that flourishes even in our hot Texas summers with little maintenance so why would I rip out the plants that do best in my area.

Although these edible weeds may be different than what you have in your area here are the top 5 weeds to have in your garden that can be used for meals.

Best Weeds To Grow In Your Garden

There are tons of different edible weeds that you can cultivate in your garden. Here is our top 5 weeds to grow.

Dandelion

The most commonly found garden and lawn weed is dandelions and they have a reputation of being a pesky waste of resources and space.

For everyone who wants a perfect lawn, there is no way to get around the persistent dandelion.  The good news about dandelions is that the whole plant is completely edible. 

The leaves, roots, stems, and flowers are all edible making this a great and versatile plant. 

The leaves are the most popular part of this plant because you can harvest them at any point throughout the growing season.

The leaves if harvested young can make a delicious addition to your salad or larger leaves can be added to a stir fry.

Dandelion, The top 5 weeds to grow

Purslane

Purslane is one of the weeds that can often be found in difficult areas like growing in between cracks in your driveway or between pavers.

It likes moist garden beds and even shady areas where it grows close to the ground and usually goes unnoticed. 

Purslane is a hidden gem nutritionally as it is one of the foods with the highest amount of omega-3 fatty acids.

More so than any other leafy vegetable and also can be a great addition to a salad or a stir fry. 

Purslane is a succulent that has a nice peppery flavor that also adds some texture to dishes and can be eaten raw or cooked.

Also Read:  Food Foraging – How to find native edible plants right in your backyard

Lamb’s Quarters

Lamb’s Quarters is another versatile plant that can be used in multiple ways.

The young leaves can be eaten as a spinach substitute raw in a salad or sautéed or steamed in other dishes.

The seeds can also be eaten but it does take a lot of them to make an addition to a meal.

The top 5 weeds to grow

Curly dock

Curly dock is another common weed that will almost grow anywhere and is hard to get rid of.

Curly dock leaves can be eaten raw when harvesting young or cooked when harvested older.

These leaves make a great addition to soups and salads. 

The stems are edible if peeled and can be eaten raw or cooked.

Dock leaves tend to be tart because of their high oxalic acid so its best to eat them in moderation and when cooking it is recommended that you change the water several times.

A curly dock can make a great addition to any garden.

The top 5 weeds to grow

Chickweed

This common garden weed can be harvested and used for food and medicinally.

Chickweed leaves, stems, and flowers can be eaten raw or cooked, added to salad or soups.

This versatile weed adds a nice spinach flavor to any dish.

This plant can be used to treat minor cuts, burns, or rashes but also can be made into a tea for use as a diuretic.

These are just a few of the edible weeds that you can have in your garden.

Do not over-stress trying to get rid of all the weeds that may pop up in your yard but rather start putting some of those to work for you.

The top 5 weeds to grow

Can I Eat the Weeds in My Yard?

Yes, you can eat the weeds from your garden and yard if you can identify them as edible varieties. These weeds are rich in vitamins and nutrients. They can be used in a variety of different recipes.

If you do not know how to identify edible weeds in your yard I would recommend consulting a field guide but there are a ton of wild plants you can eat.  Here is a link to a field guide that can be useful in identifying plants.

Field Guide

Why Would You Grow Weeds On Purpose?

If you can grow something with very little work or resources, why wouldn’t you?

Also Read:  How to pick the best apple at the market

Conclusion

If you need some ideas on starting seeds indoors (Starting seeds indoors, Start seeds indoors pt 2) or some ideas on how to plan your garden (Planning your garden)

Hi, I’m John.

John grew up on a farm where his family raised chickens, goats, rabbits, and grew a huge garden. John has a family of his own and gardens to know where his food comes from. Learn more..

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