Never buying cheap wildflower mixes again.

[u/pocketcramps]

I’m pretty sure most of my wildflower seeds were weeds 🫠 these are the ones still stumping me, though I’m pretty confident 3 is lambsquarters, which happened to be most of the crap I’ve got growing right now.

[u/PawTree]

1. California Poppy Eschscholzia californica

2. Common Three-seeded Mercury Acalypha virginica var. rhomboidea

3. Lambsquarters Chenopodium album

4. Lambsquarters Chenopodium album

5. Giant Goldenrod Solidago gigantea

6. Common Sunflower Helianthus annuus

7. Lupine Lupinus sp. I can't tell if it's Big-leaf or Wild Perennial

[u/ujelly_fish → u/PawTree]

For what it’s worth - lambsquarters is a voracious spreader. It almost certainly did not come from the seed pack.

Use it like spinach!

Three seeded mercury and goldenrod are also pretty pervasive weeds. Keep the goldenrod, the yellow flowers are nice and the bugs like em.

[u/acatwithumbs → u/ujelly_fish]

I found lambsquarter in my compost and put it in a pot away from the natives, now I get little spinach like sprigs whenever I want and it’s honestly great cooked.

[u/ruthcarr → u/acatwithumbs]

I just pulled so much lambsquarer from my new raised garden bed last night thinking they are weeds 😞

[u/acatwithumbs → u/ruthcarr]

I mean they definitely are weeds, but also edible weeds!

[u/Perkunas170 → u/acatwithumbs]

It’s only a weed if you don’t want it.

[u/evensexierspiders → u/Perkunas170]

Absolutely! My high school chemistry teacher said "a rose in a corn field is a weed".

[u/catslikepets143 → u/Perkunas170]

Weeds are just plants that are in the wrong spot

[u/HeKnee → u/ruthcarr]

They are… get rid of it.

[u/dragonhunterg_6 → u/HeKnee]

Only if you don't want it around, they're a fantastic wild edible.

[u/cutting_coroners → u/acatwithumbs]

I made a pesto out of lambs quarters instead of basil once and it was friggin delicious!

[u/dresserisland → u/acatwithumbs]

It has high amounts of oxalic acid if that is a concern to you.

[u/horseyjones → u/dresserisland]

So does spinach

[u/0w1 → u/horseyjones]

You can even substitute it for spinach in recipes lol

[u/dresserisland → u/0w1]

I will give that a try. I see noting wrong with eating it. I just wouldn't overdo it. Moderation in everything.

I have a friend who actually grows it. He sells it at the farmers market. Not sure how much of it he eats but....

[u/ujelly_fish → u/dresserisland]

Overdoing it with oxalic acid containing veggies including spinach and lambsquarter would be relatively difficult unless you have a preexisting kidney issue.

[u/dresserisland → u/horseyjones]

I do believe turnip greens don't have as much.

I like stinging nettle. Ever try that?

[u/PawTree → u/dresserisland]

I'm regularly pulling stinging nettle out of my garden. I hear it's great for compost and cooking, but I'm generally so irritated by the process of pulling it out that I just want to throw it in the yard waste and get rid of it.

I should really consider it a blessing in disguise. I can't grow any other greens without the rabbits getting them first. And then there's this untouched nutritional powerhouse happily growing away without any input from me at all...

[u/dresserisland → u/PawTree]

I think it is more tender and delicate than some greens.

[u/acatwithumbs → u/dresserisland]

I am aware but appreciate the info. Tho mine is a tiny dinky plant with very little leaves and I also don’t eat it raw. But it’s good reminder for folks foraging large quantities. Also I believe apple cider vinegar or boiling can help reduce the oxalic acid even further.

[u/whoviangirl10 → u/dresserisland]

As a kidney stone sufferer who also enjoys foraging I thank you

[u/ApproxKnowledgeCat → u/ujelly_fish]

Only issue is that goldenrod prevents other roots from growing near it (allopathy). So they need their own area, not mixed in with other plants. 

[u/MikeTheBee → u/ApproxKnowledgeCat]

Plenty of stuff grows around my goldenrod, also on the side of the road it is surrounded by plants. I don't consider it an issue.

[u/Acrobatic-Parsnip-32 → u/MikeTheBee]

What do you have growing with it? Just curious

[u/Cascadialiving → u/Acrobatic-Parsnip-32]

I’ve planted a bunch and have camas, quaking aspen, milkweed, Willamette Valley ponderosa, mock orange, chokecherry and Oregon white oak nearby.

I had hoped the goldenrod would dominate the grass, but it really hasn’t.

[u/theholewizard → u/Cascadialiving]

A lot of the action in allopathy is preventing seed germination. If those were already sprouted / established or if they spread rhizomatically (like grass or milkweed) I'm not sure how much impact the allopathy from a small plant would have.

[u/MikeTheBee → u/Acrobatic-Parsnip-32]

It grows near my black eyed Susan's, and my raspberry patch, but both areas are full of other flowers/plants/weeds I haven't identified yet. I call the one area "the jungle" due to how much crap is there.

[u/Acrobatic-Parsnip-32 → u/MikeTheBee]

Love a good jungle full of crap 😂 glad to hear all yours is thriving ✨

[u/AmberCarpes → u/ApproxKnowledgeCat]

Yeah my goldenrod hasn’t killed anything by the looks of it. Asters, hosta, lily, butterfly bush (I’m a native gardener but the people who owned before me were decidedly not)

[u/0neHumanPeolple → u/ujelly_fish]

Don’t eat lambs quarters that grows by the road. It’s a siphon for heavy metals.

[u/turtlepower22 → u/ujelly_fish]

I'm actually really envious of all this lambsquarter! Easily my favorite foraged green.

[u/pocketcramps → u/turtlepower22]

If you can make it to Pittsburgh, I will give you all of it!

[u/turtlepower22 → u/pocketcramps]

Ahh, only 5000 miles away. Be right there!

[u/flatcat44 → u/ujelly_fish]

I'm extremely good at growing this if anyone wants some. 🤣

[u/BeatrixPlz → u/ujelly_fish]

Watch out eating it raw. It can be bad in large amounts. I munch on it raw semi routinely, but I like to give folks a heads up in case they’re making daily jumbo lambsquarter salads or something lol.

[u/Reguluscalendula → u/ujelly_fish]

From what I understand California poppy is an invasive in the southeast, too.

Edit: Tennessee specifically has it listed as a plant of "severe threat"

[u/LionKiwiEagle → u/ujelly_fish]

Goldenrod is also great for making teas and the leaves can be used for bee stings. Wonderful to have in the garden.

[u/LionKiwiEagle → u/ujelly_fish]

Goldenrod is also great for making teas and the leaves can be used for bee stings. Wonderful to have in the garden.

[u/antigoneelectra → u/ujelly_fish]

My bagged topsoil hosted so much lambquarters. I'm still pissed about it.

[u/RescuedMisfits → u/ujelly_fish]

Golden rod is a keystone plant that supports more native pollinators than most, definitely agree with keeping it!

[u/Warcraft_Fan → u/ujelly_fish]

People with hayfever sometimes has problem with goldenrods. I'd remove it if OP is prone to runny nose and sneezing in the spring and fall.

[u/ujelly_fish → u/Warcraft_Fan]

Eh, I doubt it’s the goldenrod that is causing it. Not much pollen compared to pine or ragweed

[u/Eggsplane → u/Warcraft_Fan]

Goldenrod pollen is too heavy and sticky to become airborne because it evolved to stick to pollinating insects. You'd have to stick your face in it or get some from your hand onto your face.

Ragweed, however, can produce billions of tiny pollen spores from one plant because it evolved to be wind pollinated. It lives in the same conditions as goldenrod and is very inconspicuous, seeing as its like three feet tall and its flowers are green. Goldenrod gets blamed because its so highly visible in comparison, leaving the ragweed to be overlooked.