A Weed or a Vegetable?

If you had joined me in my garden this morning, you may have noticed an abundance of this plant, and wondered is she growing that or does she need to weed her garden?

If you know your plants well, you would identify this one as Lady's Thumb, and realize that it is in fact a weed. Yet, knowing my fondness for eating weeds, you may be back to wondering is that a weed or a vegetable?

Lady's Thumb is edible. It is easy to identify. Look closely at the leaves and you will notice a darker, triangular spot toward the middle of the leaf. It is about the size of a lady's thumb print. It flowers in a spike of tiny pink flowers.

The flowers and leaves are edible. Both have a very mild flavor, and are great additions to salads. I tend to go easy on the flowers, though. They do make the salad pretty, but I'm not overly fond of their texture. You can find Lady's Thumb spring to fall, and it is one of the few greens that does not get bitter as the weather gets warmer.

I do enjoy Lady's Thumb, but I do not grow it in my garden. There is no need to. It is everywhere. It is growing at the edge of my garden, in some gravel by our driveway, all along my parents sidewalk, and especially well in a damp place in their yard. So, in answer to the question, the Lady's Thumb in my garden is a weed. It all got pulled, and fed to the rabbits. The Lady's Thumb outside my garden? Well, that is food!


Photos courtesy of my staff photographer. Yes, I have one, my eight year old son.