3 Obscure Wild Edibles You Can Find While Foraging - Chufa, Asiatic Day Flower, Clear Weed

[@malemouse198]

This is a worthy channel, so informative.

[@nadracurtis4563]

My granny always called the Asian plant, Wandering Jew. I always loved it, but did not know it was edible. Nice to know about the other two as well. Thank you.

[@blackberry5447]

Thanks for adding that. I've heard of that flower and always wondered what it was.

[@fefecrow]

The wandering Jew has little purple/pinkish flowers that come out. Very small. They're edible?

[@lamlamnguyen7093]

I had seen the asiatic day flowers before and now I know it’s edible. Thanks for such an informative video.

[@TrilliumWildEdibles]

You're very welcome Thi, I'm glad you found this video helpful! Thanks for commenting!

[@Large011]

Very interesting plants. The Asiatic day flower is so cute. I never heard of Chufa before, its cool looking. Thank you for sharing.🌿

[@sherrycolwell9591]

I enjoy your videos very much, Josh. I look for your videos everyday. You do such an excellent job of providing interesting and informational content in such a professional and upbeat manner. I was genuinely distressed upon watching your 9/11/17 video. So very sad that you will not be doing videos but it is important to take care of yourself first. You have provided subscribers such a wonderful service with your videos. I'll miss seeing you. every. day. Get well soon!

[@blackberry5447]

You're only a weed until someone loves you !

[@Humble-Daniel]

The indigo flowers of the asiatic day flower are really nice looking, I wonder how it tastes. I've never seen any tiger nut before, I'm curious about that plant and might grow it in my garden. I think I may have seen clear weed before, but not sure. Thanks for this video!

[@thechunkiestmonkey6887]

I make a dye from the two petals it's a beautiful blue

[@GrammaRosesHomestead]

Great video! You are extremely knowledgeable! It's obvious you've studied a lot. I don't have (or haven't seen) Clear Weed, but do have both Day Flower and Chufa abundantly on my property! I didn't know they were edible. That's good to know. Since I'm a botanist, and the only one many people are aware of in my area in the Southeast US, I've been asked to make some videos of wild edible/medicinal plants, and I may or may not do it. I can add those to my list. FYI Chufa is NOT a grass. I know. It looks like a grass. And acts like a grass. However, it's a SEDGE, which is a grass-like plant. ALL sedges have triangular stems. That is their main identifying characteristic. Another name for Chufa is Yellow Nutsedge, Cyperus esculentus, an abundant garden weed. I found an article about it on the Mother Earth News website. You might find it interesting too.

[@chezmoi42]

Hi, Rose, you understand the naming problem. If you're in the SE, you could refer people to 'Green Deane' at www.eattheweeds.com/, my go-to site for information on edibles in the US. There are many others, but he has made a lot of videos to accompany his well-researched articles and recipes. He also leads foraging walks in FL and beyond.

[@TrilliumWildEdibles]

Thanks Gramma Rose, that's nice to hear, but I don't feel so knowledgeable about this subject really like I used to. Not that I felt I was a know it all, never felt that way as there's too much in this subject for anyone person to know it all, ya know! See, like I said in the video It's the only one I know that has that feature. It's good to know it's a sedge and not a grass though! I'll check it out, I like Mother Earth New, been reading them for years.

[@GrammaRosesHomestead]

Hi chez moi, I have discovered "Green Deane". His website is a wonderful resource. If he ever makes it to my area in Mississippi, I'll definitely join in on one if his foraging walks.

[@chezmoi42]

What a funny coincidence - this morning I ran across a reference to this article, which talks about purple nutsedge as a prehistoric 'dentifrice'. news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/07/140716-sudan-sedge-toothbrush-teeth-archaeology-science/ I wonder if the sweeter version has equally antibacterial qualities?

[@GrammaRosesHomestead]

How interesting. Thanks for the link.

[@TommyBrown-Joliet]

I didn't know about clear weed until seeing this vid. I planted commelina communis and also spiderwort in my yard. I have chufa too. I also planted Jerusalem artichokes in pots along my back fence I think they grew tubers through the drainage holes in the pots now I will always have them in my backyard

[@DonaldHill87]

I have asiatic day flower growing everywhere behind my house in the forest. I dug some up and planted them in an empty spot around my front porch. If you train it on where you want it to grow it will fill in and look really good as ground cover and do a great job of attracting pollinators to the area. One thing I didn’t hear mentioned that I noticed is that the plant will put down roots at a leaf node if it is touching the ground.

[@kellyd.rodgers3039]

That Asiatic Day Flower is a pretty plant. It's growth structure reminds me of 'wandering Jew'. I wonder if it can be grown in containers like Wandering Jew? It'd make for an attractive potted edible. Very good video here!

[@robmaxwell189]

Wandering Jew is in the same genus as the Spiderwort - trandescentia, so it is in the same family as the dayflower

[@Erewhon2024]

You can sometimes find the (only Z8 hardy, from Mexico) 3 blue petalled Comelina coelestis for sale as seed or as a "summer bulb" from bulb merchants. Its roots are supposed to be edible, though nowhere near as productive as a potato or sweet potato. It is also reported to be more floriferous.

[@Betty-qd8st]

I have all these in my yard lol

[@bigtupholsterygardeningbee4170]

Awesome

[@OneShot-kh2ft]

Great vid dude you know I love your info. My mom has gout is there a plant can can help her?

[@mikekrebill9189]

Hi Nate! You are right, Chufa is a sedge. Sedges have triangular stems and are quite common throughout the world. Many are found in wet locations; and quite a lot of them are used in ornamental landscaping. Check out en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyperaceae for an overview.

[@diminishingerica8733]

I found those day flowers in my backyard today! How cool! I wondered what they were! :)

[@TrilliumWildEdibles]

Awesome, glad to be of some help! I wondered what they were for years as well, until I found out about them a couple of years ago. Thanks for commenting Erica!

[@jdizzle708]

Great video! I've seen asiatic day flower before and always wondered what it was.

[@kleineroteHex]

Ever since I watched this I see these dayflowers everywhere😉 And I think I might have had that chufa growing, but I kept ripping it out, ugh, should have asked you years ago 😎

[@TrilliumWildEdibles]

It's okay, they are pretty prolific in most states and you didn't harm the Chufa population. You might or might not live in an area where the tubers grow to any decent size. For example where I live the tubers never get any big, if they even form at all. It seems more northern latitudes get the tubers or underground nuts for some reason. Thanks for commenting!

[@godzilla0974]

Found it in my moms tree lawn in Northern Ohio. It looks beautiful.

[@fefecrow]

This purple day flower i used as paint as a child. When i learned about native americans and how they woukd use rocks/clay, flowers and pla ta to make colors to paint with. I found these flowers and when i picked them and rubbed them it left a deep purple. So i would harvest them smash them and paint with them. It was so pretty.

[@bite-sizedshorts9635]

That first one has a common name in my area that probably isn't used much any more, but it was called wandering Jew, and there was supposed to be a legend attached to it. I do know that you can dig one up, plant it in a hanging basket, and it does well. It grows wild all over here in eastern NC.

[@chezmoi42]

Very interesting video - I had only heard of the chufa (Cyperus esculentus), known here in France as the 'amande de terre' or 'earth almond'. I've not yet had the pleasure of finding it in my favorite haunts. It would be most helpful if you could add to your text the regions where they are commonly found, and more importantly, the botanical name, to be sure we know what we are looking at.

[@suzieaguilar397]

chez moi Have you looked on Amazon to see if they have books specifically addressing wild plants which grow in France? That is what I had to do here for the Eastern part of the United States. I found one that had really good illustrations, then another book which addressed mostly the wild plant's medicinal applications. It is really very fascinating to study. Many of the plants we have here in the States were brought here by immigrants from all over the world. No doubt, up in Canada and down here in the States, one could find some from France. Good luck to you in your search of France's unique wild plants!

[@chezmoi42]

That's very thoughtful of you, Suzie. I'm fine here, and run wild food/mushroom walks myself, but I often run into 'virtual' friends on line from all around the world who are curious about what may grow near them, and if I recommend videos it's nice to know they have the basic info without having to google for the name, etc. I'm also wary of common names; being American in Europe, I'm on solid ground with Latin, rather than trying to suss out each country's pet monikers - between the US, Canada, Australia, and all the regions of the UK, not to mention foreign languages, it occasionally adds up to confusion.

[@GrammaRosesHomestead]

You're absolutely right. I didn't recognize the name Chufa as being the same plant as Yellow Nutsedge, a common garden weed where I grew up until I found its Latin name. It works both ways. Like this Cyperus, the same plant can have different common names in different places, and like Buttercups, completely different plants can have the same common name. People who use the scientific name are not being "snooty", but precise.

[@suzieaguilar397]

chez moi Oh my, what an exciting life you are having! My husband and I have been around Europe a lot, too, but since they started the excessive "body search's" to get access to flights in and out of States, I choose to not travel by air anymore. I most certainly understand the confusion of trying to find a common name for each wild plant, that would be acceptable in four different nations!!! It is wonderful that you have the solid ground of the old Roman language, Latin. All the best to you and your walk-about-wild-plant-tours.

[@chezmoi42]

Thanks, Suzie. It's been a great retirement hobby, making use of my HS Latin (do they even teach that in public schools any more?) and college botany basics. I've spent most of the last 25 years studying mushrooms, and the last ten focusing on botany, and never tire of sharing their beauty, utility - and dangers - with others. It all started in my woods with a lavender mushroom...then a purple one...then a turquoise one. How could I resist?

[@philliperskine4986]

Try ground flaxseed or Brazilian nuts for Selenium to help for depression and mental stability. Love you brother

[@fefecrow]

Isn't flax seed a estrogenic?

[@kleineroteHex]

Thanks, I find this most interesting, plus that you report on "weeds".

[@TrilliumWildEdibles]

You're welcome! It's important to talk about plants that can be invasive or are invasive as some people are wanting to promote a native plant life so it helps to know the invaders, but also to understand they aren't all harmful! Thanks for commenting kleineroteHex!

[@kleineroteHex]

Trillium: Wild Edibles you are welcome, you do a great job!

[@TrilliumWildEdibles]

Thanks!

[@jeanduggan1391]

It would b helpful if u also mention the approx.size / height of each plant...thanks

[@Erewhon2024]

That usually depends on growing conditions.

[@MusicofDeHaro]

Good video. Appreciate it. I have some clear weed near where I’m camping.

[@TrilliumWildEdibles]

Awesome! Clear weed is surprisingly abundant, just not many people know what it is. Thanks for commenting!

[@chelseamoniquemorrisprinci8856]

Thank you

[@slangpolitics]

Correction they actually bloom everyday of the season, once a day during the morning to early afternoon and direct sunlight. I have these in my backyard garden around my tomato plants.

[@TrilliumWildEdibles]

That's a great correction. Thank you for sharing this information with us all!

[@Erewhon2024]

chufa is a sedge, not a true grass. "Sedges have edges." Most Cyperus and other sedges have that triangular cross section. Only chufa has corms that make good horchata. Purple nutsedge (another Cyperus) also produces corms, but it has a strong flavor that many find unpleasant, but some think could be used as a galangal substitute spice in low doses. Other U.S. native sedges aren't noted for human food.

[@jeanneamato8278]

I have oodles Asiatic Day Flowers.

[@thomasrhodes5013]

I continue to wonder....what plants can I eat?

[@TrilliumWildEdibles]

All of the ones in this video are edible, plus many of the other plants I have covered as well. It really depends on where you live as far as how many are edible, but rest assured there is most likely over 100 different plants in your area that are edible. Unless you live in the far arctic or some desert regions of the world. This is one of the reasons I make this content, is to help people like yourself! Thanks for commenting!

[@thomasrhodes5013]

thank you for reply. I live in New England, more specifically, CT.

[@TrilliumWildEdibles]

Oh, you have loads of plants, probably almost every plant I have covered and then many more! The abundance is amazing, and at times a lot to take in at once. Just keep trying and you'll get there!

[@johnvanegmond1812]

thomas rhodes.........I eat buckets of wild plants, aka weeds. I determined to learn one a year. My gateway weed was dandelion. Now when ever a plant stands out to me, I look into it. Today I decided to learn what this pretty two petal flower growing in my back yard was. Woo hoo! It's an edible. Happy foraging.

[@valholla4499]

Chufa is not a grass, it's a sedge.