Hairy Bittercress

After the recent rains & temperatures up & down my earth is very loose so Monday I spent most of the  day weeding in the circle. Easy pulling even of the multitude of tree seedlings came out with all root attached. It seemed as if I pulled  3,000 of the hairy bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta) but probably only 300.

This weed goes to flower, & then seed of course, when it is so tiny you almost don't recognize it. If left to produce seed as you pull it the seeds scatter far & wide.

I was somewhat amused (but only somewhat)  to find this website on edible weeds from New Zealand. Julia recommends eating the darn stuff, apparently in the brassica family, & others do too. If I have complete failures such as my Brussel Sprouts this winter, which did not produce sprout one, I might have to consider this as a veggie too.

If you want to read about weeds as veg & get the recipe here's the website

http://www.juliasedibleweeds.com/general/bittercress-a-warming-winter-weed/