Miner's Lettuce

This picture is courtesy of Mary's Heirloom Seeds who had the best picture of Claytonia. It's a bit early to grow it in the Carolinas right now so stay tuned and I'll have a video about it in 2025.

 

 

Common Name: Miner’s Lettuce

 

Other Common Names: Rooreh, Indian Lettuce, Winter Purselane.

 

Botanical Family: Monticeae (The Claytonia Family)

 

Botanical Latin Name: Clatonia perfoliata

 

Description & Habitat: Miner’s Lettuce is a succulent plant with slender green stems that grow through the centers of circular leaves on flowering stems. Non-flowering stems can have leaves with a heart shape to them. Non-mature plants can display an array of leaf shapes no part of this plant is toxic or poisonous and this plant is native to the Western Mountain and Coastal regions of North America. This forage-ready plant prefers a cool and damp but not constantly wed environment and the plant will often emerge after the first heavy rains of the year. Miner’s Lettuce is a cold to cool season annual that will readily resow itself and is available in seed form through numerous credible seed vendors with good regularity. Plants can grow about 12 inches tall and flowers are small and pink or white colored. This plant is tied into American history because it was of great important to miner’s health during the California Gold Rush. During Late winter and early spring it was hard for miners to find foods that were rich in Vitamin C and so Miner’s Lettuce became associated with prospectors and warded off Scurvy which is caused by a severe deficiency of Vitamin C in one’s diet. Scurvy as an illness was known as far back as Ancient Egypt however Vitamin C itself was not isolated until 1928 and then was called Hexuronic Acid. The California Gold rush was between 1848 and 1855 so the miners might have known something about Scurvy but possibly not what caused it or how to treat it in specific. It is estimated that about 10,000 men died of Scurvy during the California Gold Rush, part of which was due to ships having to take the long route around the southernmost tip of South America because the Panama Canal would not even be started by the French until 1881. The United State would not acquire the Canal until 1904, and we would not finish it until 1914. So the long trip across the sea and land was partially to blame for making Scurvy so prevalent during the time period. So, how does Miner’s lettuce play into all this? Miner’s lettuce once known as a way to ward off Scurvy may have saved thousands of lives and became a part of the diet of Gold Rush miners.

 

When & What to Harvest:  In the winter and into spring the foliage of this plant is edible and nutritious.

 

Non-Dangerous Lookalikes:  The heart shaped leaves of this plant do somewhat resemble members of the Violet (Viola sp.) family such as English Violet (Viola odorata).

 

Related Dangerous Species:  None are known.

 

Recipe:  This plant is safe enough to be eaten as the main ingredient of a salad in raw form. It also can be cooked like spinach and its flavor is similar when cooked.

 

Additional Information: (If applicable)

https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=clpe

(Note, the above link has a error on the page where it says Miner's lettuce is in the Portulaca family, it's not in that family.)

 

 

With all that garden goodness covered this is the part of the blog where I have to advertise for the Fayetteville City Market. Now I know you readers probably don’t much like advertisements, but my booth at the City Market helps to cover the costs of running the test garden and literally maintains the Research & Development budget that is used to bring you the information that has made up the backbone of this blog.  In addition to being able to process card payments we now take CashApp payments so your payment options for my product have tripled. With that said; if you want to get some GMO-free, Organic fruit, herbs, flowers and perennials, come on down to the Fayetteville City Market on 325 Maxwell Street in downtown Fayetteville between the hours of 9:00 am and 1:00 pm on Saturdays. Even in bad weather the market goes on though you might have to look for me under the ‘arches’ of the Transportation Museum’s front entryway.

 

For those of you wondering what plants are going to be at the market this weekend here is the list.

 

Fresh Foods:

Soup Kit – Parsnip

Soup Kit – Turnip

Garlic Bulbs

Blue Oyster Mushrooms

 

Soil Amendment Products:

Live Mushroom Compost – 18 Gallon Tote*

Live Mushroom Compost – 3 Gallon Bag

Live Mushroom Compost – 1 Gallon Bag

 

House Plants for the Holidays:

Abutilon

Aloe, American

Begonia, Sindbad

Cuban Oregano, Large Leaf

Hoan Ngoc

Pothos, Cebu Blue

Rose Campion

Selaginella

Solanum uleanum

Sorrel, Raspberry Dressing

Swiss Cheese Plant

 

*The 18 gallon tote is by special order only and is delivered to any address within the Fayetteville city area.

 

 

How to stay in Contact with Us!

Our group’s online presence has migrated to Nextdoor.com. All you need to keep up with all our activities is to have a Nextdoor account and to look for the ‘Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville’ group and ask to join! You don’t have to live in Fayetteville to join us! Feel free to ask all your garden questions of our knowledgeable membership and post your cool garden pictures.

 

Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville

 

Also please take a gander at the YouTube version of this blog:

The Videos: Look Here

>Newest videos (-): [The channel is on Hiatus until 2025]

 

Meetings are still going on! Our next (unofficial) meeting is December 21^st at the Fayetteville City Market at 325 Franklin Street between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.

 

Pretty In Pink - Pink Dandelions

 

 

Pink Dandelions are somehow a heck of a lot cheerier looking. This photo btw is from the Experimental Farm Network.

 

 

Common Name: Pink Dandelion

 

Other Common Names: None Known

 

Botanical Family: Asteraceae (The Aster Family)

 

Botanical Latin Name: Taraxacum pseudoroseum

 

Description & Habitat: This species of Dandelion is native to Central Asia, but is noted to be far less likely to go invasive by several sources. You probably won’t just find it in the landscape unless someone cultivated it prior and it is persisting on its own. Given the glut of seed vendors selling the seeds for this plant this year, it is possible going forward you may find this plant in folk’s gardens. Overall Pink Dandelions look like their more common cousin (T. officinale), but have a flower that has a yellow center and pink outer petals. For all intents and purposes these plants are a perennial in USDA zones 3+ and prefer partial shade (4-6 hours) and need a well-drained soil and have a preference for soils rich in Nitrogen and Potassium and likely have a significant bit of organic matter. Growing them from seed follows the same process as growing any other Dandelion, you surface sow the seeds shallowly and they should germinate within 5-10 days at an air temperature of 45-75 degrees. Pink Dandelions bloom from about April to July and might bloom again in the fall if the weather is good. Additionally, Pink Dandelions attract pollinators and are a strong source of Vitamin A. On a strictly herbal/medicinal side of things it is known that these dandelions have all the same medicinal and herbal uses as their common cousin. For those who don’t know Dandelions help with Liver and Gallbladder conditions as well as helping to flush the Kidneys.

 

When & What to Harvest:  You can harvest the leaves, flowers and later in the season, the root to obtain edible greens and flowers, or use the flowers to brew wine. The root can be roasted and ground up as a caffeine-free coffee substitute or used to make medicinal tinctures and tonics.

 

Non-Dangerous Lookalikes:  There are a lot of plants that look like a dandelion and most of them are in the Aster family and may, or may or have milky latex sap. Wild Lettuce, Chicory, Carolina Desert Chicory, Common Dandelions, Cat’s Ear Dandelions all are visually similar.

 

Related Dangerous Species:  None are known.

 

Recipe:  

 

Basic Dandelion Wine

 

Ingredients:

7 cups of Dandelion Flowers*

1 Gallon of hot water

2 pounds of unbleached sugar

3 Teaspoons of Acid Blend

¼ Teaspoon of Tannin

½ Teaspoon of Yeast Energizer

1 Campden Tablet, crushed.

1 package Wine yeast (Use K1V-1116 by Lalvin)

1 pound of Golden Raisins.

 

(Starting S.G. should be 1.090-95)

 

Instructions:

 

1. Collect the blossoms when they are fully open on a sunny day

2. Remove any green parts.

3. Thoroughly wash all flowers to make sure they are cleansed of foreign debris.

4. Heat water and put flowers and raisins in a cotton fabric strainer bag.

5. Put strainer bag in your primary fermenter and pour the hot (but not boiling) water over the bag.

6. Stir in the sugar and then add all other ingredients EXCEPT for the yeast.

7. Cover/seal your primary fermenter and allow it to sit for 24 hours.

8. After 24 hours prepare yeas as per the directions on the packet and add to fermenter.

9. Stir daily and check the SG, when the SG reaches 1.040 (3-5 days) thoroughly wash your hands, and squeeze the bag to release more juices into the fermenting fluids.

10. Syphon the fluids in the fermenter into a glass jug secondary that has an airlock.

11 when ferment is completed (SG is 1.000, about 3 weeks) syphon off to a clean secondary and attach a new airlock.

12 syphon off to a new fermenter in two months and again if needed until the wind is clear before you bottle it.

 

Additional Information: (If applicable)

https://www.rareseeds.com/dandelion-pink?srsltid=AfmBOop6p2rD-ypHrdMal5I1dn-qJKlrSEndpPMEsHK4CTGNvxNh2Isn

 

 

With all that garden goodness covered this is the part of the blog where I have to advertise for the Fayetteville City Market. Now I know you readers probably don’t much like advertisements, but my booth at the City Market helps to cover the costs of running the test garden and literally maintains the Research & Development budget that is used to bring you the information that has made up the backbone of this blog.  In addition to being able to process card payments we now take CashApp payments so your payment options for my product have tripled. With that said; if you want to get some GMO-free, Organic fruit, herbs, flowers and perennials, come on down to the Fayetteville City Market on 325 Maxwell Street in downtown Fayetteville between the hours of 9:00 am and 1:00 pm on Saturdays. Even in bad weather the market goes on though you might have to look for me under the ‘arches’ of the Transportation Museum’s front entryway.

 

For those of you wondering what plants are going to be at the market this weekend here is the list.

 

Fresh Foods:

Soup Kit – Parsnip

Soup Kit – Turnip

Garlic Bulbs

Blue Oyster Mushrooms

 

Soil Amendment Products:

Live Mushroom Compost – 18 Gallon Tote*

Live Mushroom Compost – 3 Gallon Bag

Live Mushroom Compost – 1 Gallon Bag

 

Sandhills Mushroom Farms – Lion’s Mane Tincture Sample size

Sandhills Mushroom Farms – Lion’s Mane Tincture

Sandhills Mushroom Farms – Turkey Tail Tincture

 

 

House Plants for the Holidays:

Cuban Oregano, Large Leaf

Pothos, Cebu Blue

Swiss Cheese Plant

Sindbad Begonia

-more TBA-

 

 

*The 18 gallon tote is by special order only and is delivered to any address within the Fayetteville city area.

 

 

How to stay in Contact with Us!

Our group’s online presence has migrated to Nextdoor.com. All you need to keep up with all our activities is to have a Nextdoor account and to look for the ‘Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville’ group and ask to join! You don’t have to live in Fayetteville to join us! Feel free to ask all your garden questions of our knowledgeable membership and post your cool garden pictures.

 

Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville

 

Also please take a gander at the YouTube version of this blog:

The Videos: Look Here

>Newest videos (1): Rose Campion

 

Meetings are still going on! Our next (unofficial) meeting is December 7^th  at the Fayetteville City Market at 325 Franklin Street between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.

 

Happy Thanksgiving/Indigenous People’s Day (2024)

 

About two pounds of Lion's Mane Mushrooms, which since they grew from and Oak will have a Oak whiskey Barrel kind of flavor which is amazing in a gravy.

On the list of things I never thought I would write or say.. I had to go elbow-deep in this Water Oak to get the Lion's Mane Mushrooms deep inside it's tight crevasse. Yeah, get your laughs out now because the picture above this one shows what I got out of this and the scratches, bruising and, muscle strain was worth it.

These four bags were infested with Tricioderma, a type of fungus that in grow bags goes cannibal and eats any other fungi present. However these Blue Oysters and Lion's Mane ended up killing and consuming the infestation instead. The bags while sealed sat in my field int he full sun for a few weeks and then when cold weather came I saw the intended mushrooms pinning and opened the bag so they could breathe and grow. Salvage Mushrooms for the win.

Because of the holiday I've decided that there will be no normal post here. I've done the same on NextDoor and Bluesky as well. Today I've got a Mushroom Gravy recipe for you and more detailed information that could not make it to the other media sites due to character limits. So lets start with Mushroom foraging (the first two pictures). Late October into November is usually when Lion's Mane emerges in my area and finding it is somewhat of an adventure. I have a few secret patches where I know it's more likely to turn up and for several weeks I use every possible excuse to go there just to check. The weather has to be just right, with rain being important and if I time it right I get the goods. The second picture despite my intentionally humorous phrasing high lights one of the difficulties of harvesting these mushrooms. Some times they aren't outside of the tree and readily visible, sometimes they are in opening in the host tree and sometimes that puts them out of reach. Sometimes they are too high up and you just have to wait until next year. In this year's case as I noted in the caption I pretty much had to give a Water Oak a cavity search. The reward was about two pounds of Lion's Mane which is worth it because I know it will taste amazing. Grocery store bought mushrooms are severely lacking in the flavor department and they also have a bland fungus smell if they have any aroma at all. Plus most of what is sold is either White Button, Cremini or Portabello mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus) which are three growing stages of the same species. If you're lucky you might see Enoki, Maitake (hen of the woods), or Shiitake, but even those aren't as good as home grown or wild foraged mushrooms. So the aroma is a almost sweet fungal scent punctuated with strong oak overtones, while the flavor will have a strong oak essence that I liken to oak whiskey barrels. This flavor holds up in cooking and you immediately know you're eating something amazing when you do. Local-grown Mushrooms are vastly superior to store-bought because they have the aroma, and the flavor and haven't been sitting in a refrigerator for who knows how long. This is not to say that I'd turn down store-bought mushrooms on the discount rack, as friends of mine have seen my 'Jackpot!' texts with pictures of me clearing out the discount vegetable rack of obnoxious quantities of heavily discounted mushrooms. No, what I'm saying is if I have the choice between the two I'll go for the fresh local ones every time. This is to a point that searching for Lion's Mane and Bear's Tooth fungi is a yearly activity and making food with them for the holidays is tradition. For me it's not Indigenous People's Day if I'm not consuming native fungi as part of the meal and the same goes for New Years and Christmas. 

With all of that said, we have the third picture. Those were contaminated Mushroom blocks that were handed to me by Sandhills Mushroom Farms for recycling into Mushroom Compost. Each of them was deemed contaminated and the most likely culprit was Trichoderma, though there was a possibility it could have had Neurospora which is commonly called Orange Bread Mold. Respectively we called them Barf Mold (Trich) and Cheeto Mold (Neuro). Neither is desirable but at least in the environment Trichoderma can form mycorrhizal bonds with plants and be a net benefit. As I noted in the caption these contaminated grow bags sat in the full sun in a field for weeks at my farm waiting to be ground up and turned into mushroom compost. But sometimes the cultivated strain wins, and out of 180 bags, about 20 saw the intended fungus win the war and start pinning. Pinning by the way is the term for when a fungal mass starts producing growths indicating it wants to try and produce fruiting bodies. The fruiting bodies are what we think of as the capped mushrooms but they also come in a variety of shapes and forms besides the traditional one we think of. Bags found to be pinning were brought in cut open to allow oxygen in and if they persisted then the backs were fully opened to let the fungus mature it's fruiting bodies to a harvest-able state. Sometimes this worked and sometimes I got weird fungal mass that had parts and pieces that looked right but was basically a spongy blob. I've taken to referring to these blobs as 'Fungal Blubber' and they are still edible just not pretty.  After salvage-harvesting, the blocks are ground up and turned into the usual unsterilized mushroom compost and that's the in and out of the process behind that third picture.

 As for the recipe I promised you, I’d like to share a recipe that is a tradition at my house. At thanksgiving the first batch of wild forage mushroom gravy is made with as many wild foraged mushroom varieties as I have on hand. However, the one I use the most of is Bear’s Tooth and Lion’s Mane because this is the time of the year they naturally emerge and are the absolute tastiest. Generally I find them on or in Oak trees and they take on an oak whiskey barrel kind of flavor that lends itself to savory brown gravy. Since brown gravy is a must-have at thanksgiving dinner in general it blends in well and adds an extra bit of flair to food item that most just think of as a means to dealing with meat or potatoes that might be too dry.

 

Ingredients:

1 Cup of chopped Mushrooms

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 14oz Can of Broth* or 2 bouillon Cubes (This can be Chicken, Beef, or Vegetable)

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder*

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

 

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.

2. Whisk in flour and stir until the mixture becomes paste-like and light golden brown or, about 5 minutes.

3. Whisk in beef broth gradually.

4. Cook and stir until no lumps remain or about 2 minutes.

5. Add Mushrooms, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.

6. Cook and whisk until gravy thickens or, about 5 minutes.

 

Serves 4

* If you want to make this recipe a bit fancier, you can use Beef Consommé, Himalayan Pink Sea Salt, Black Garlic and freshly cracked black pepper in replacement of noted ingredients.