Maple Leaves and Chickweed: Backyard Wild Salad

[@thenaturenerd1369]

I've been watching your channel for over 3 years now and I have to say that you have a natural gift as an educator. Your videos are informative, and have even inspired me to start making some of my own videos!

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Thanks for the kind words, The Nature Nerd. I enjoyed watching you make your wild salad in your video. You pick so clean and organized! :D And your salad looked so tasty, too. Happy foraging!

[@TheBlackSheepDiaries]

You have really opened my eyes, I've now been grabbing stuff from my yard, lots of chickweed, and making really awesome smoothies, got some teeth problems. Making teas with dried rose petals, tulip poplar bulbs, prickly pear bulb skins, pine needles, delicious! Thank you kind soul.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

I"m glad you are finding plants and ways to prepare them, that work for you, Black Sheep Diaries. Teeth problems are tough business. Smoothies are a great idea. Chickweed is perfect for smoothies. Happy foraging!

[@chickenstead6586]

Thank you for such great videos. Pick clean rolls through my head every time I pick. This just shows that you don't have to get complicated to have good food.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Your comment made me smile, Shannon Champion. I know I say "Pick Clean" a lot, but it makes really eating wild food so much easier. So I'm happy to know it's in your mind now! Simple wild salads can be so good. Happy foraging!

[@sylvanguide7776]

Yes! Another video! Thank you for showing how to prepare the food too! Happy foraging.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Yes, Sylvan Guide is here! Happy foraging to you, too. So many great plants out there! :D

[@bradlafferty]

I was harvesting Purple Dead Nettle yesterday and I kept hearing, “pick clean” in my head! Thank you for teaching us that, as well as scads of other useful things about wild foods!

[@danbolton3180]

I'm eating a nice winter yard salad tonight, miner's lettuce, dandelion greens, sheep sorrel, chickweed, and field mustard, plus what ever else I find with a French vinaigrette.

[@StartingToGarden]

...I love this channel!! Randomly found it while looking for information on wild field mustard... now here I am binging on all the videos.

[@tallcedars2310]

Good point about weeds being real food. I find them satisfing to eat and surprisingly filling! Lonnie made a wild salad video years ago and after watching it I went right out and made it, best salad I ever ate. I believe his channel has your link, best channel around in my books. Now I eat wild every summer and love it. This salad is something I will try with some other leaf since maple trees don't grow here. To be on the cautious side, will check which leaves are edible first. Poplar is the main leafy tree here then willow. Not many birch left but it's on the salad list too. When I saw the size of the chickweed I laughed, ours are so tiny in comparison. Have a great day and thanks for another awesome recipe!

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Hey, Tall Cedars, nice to see you here! I had a big garden lettuce salad the other day, and it wasn't half so filling or satisfying as a wild salad, so I appreciate what you mean about that. Lonnie has a great channel (Far North Bushcraft and Survival, for anyone else reading this) - that's amazing if he's linking to my channel. I'm surprised Chickweed doesn't go gangbusters in your warm season, with some nutrient-rich soil, since Lambs-quarter grows in your area, if I remember right. Willow is one where there's so much variety from one to another, individually as well as species. And birch gets astringent so fast. You have me curious about what all is edible in your area and how to expand your salad and greens grocery store in nature!

[@tallcedars2310]

@@HaphazardHomestead Good idea to toss some compost on the chickweed, will give it a go. Sure would be nice to have bigger plants for sure. Would love any help you can add to your video's for this area! I have a book I use, Edible and Medicinal plants of the Rocky Mountains and Neighboring Territories. It's written by Terry Willard in Calgary Alberta, great book with lots of information. It has most of what we have here and over the years I've been witling away at learning a plant here and there. There's lost out there but it's mostly small forest plants. This spring I will be harvesting cattail from the pond, fun in the boonies:). Another book called The Edible Wild by Berndt Berghlund tells how to make popcorn from yellow water lily plants, have to try that this summer, sounds kinda fun!

[@HaphazardHomestead]

It's nice there are so many good regional wild edibles books out there. Have fun with your cattails! My favorite parts are the male parts at the top of the spike, when they are really young and like a tiny corn on the cob. And then the cattail pollen. It's as good as pine pollen, I think. Happy foraging - and building your outdoor shopping center! : )

[@tallcedars2310]

​@@HaphazardHomestead You are awesome Holly, thank you for those amazing tips! Last year it was so windy there was no pollen left, lol. Hope to collect pine pollen this year and add cattail pollen too:) Am enjoying harvesting wild plants & being able to prepare delicious recipes from your channel. Yours is the best one out there & was happy to see you have 22.8k subscribers, it's growing fast, yeah!

[@lisapeterson9018]

We have maple trees in TN but I haven’t seen the black maple. I’ll have to see how the ones in my yard taste. Thanks for all the information.

[@DuckSmiles]

I love chickweed! It's one of my favorite plants to pick and eat because it's got such a nice light flavor.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

You know what's good, Kylie G! It's amazing how much of it can be out there. Thanks for your review of chickweed -- it helps people know that this is real food, quality food. Happy foraging!

[@SamSam-qm1li]

Hooray hooray for new videos! Please keep safe in these uncertain times. Love your videos and view in life.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Thanks, Sam Sam! Hooray for the plants that can feed us well -- and without much effort! : )

[@skinnyway]

I've just started using chickweed - wish I had known about maple leaves when I was little - had one in the yard. so appreciative that you dont have silly music drowning you out. Thank you very much for your time!

[@Far-North-Bushcraft-Survival]

This did indeed look very tasty for sure.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Thanks, Lonnie! How nice to see you here! Maple trees are like the spruce in your area -- so useful in so many ways.

[@remnantfewministriesminist495]

I never would have thought about chickweed with Maple leaves as a wild salad. I foraged a lot of chickweed in early spring! Thanks for introducing me to so many new ways to forage and eat wild edibles!

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Tree leaves are so underappreciated as food, Remnant Few. Of course, not every kind is edible, but there are some nice ones out there. And from a tree, there are sure plenty to harvest! If you try out any maples, I'll look forward to your taste review.

[@remnantfewministriesminist495]

@@HaphazardHomestead Thank you! For sure!

[@MoniMeka]

Your salads look so good!

[@johnlombardo7816]

I've missed you and your vids! So glad to see you back and rockin!

[@InJesusLED]

Awesome info! You do a great job helping everyone with this. Appreciate your efforts!

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Thanks for your appreciation, MCP! I hope you can enjoy some of what's out there growing on its own, too. Happy spring!

[@neolapeterson4011]

I haven't been able to find Chickweed I wish I could, it looks so good. Tonight I am having yellow dock leaves and ham hocks. Can hardly wait until it is done

[@HaphazardHomestead]

You are eating well, Neloa Peterson, with that Dock and Ham Hocks. That sounds so good! You might see Chickweed more in the cooler seasons.

[@neolapeterson4011]

@@HaphazardHomestead ok. I have found so many medicinal weeds and lovely tasting weeds that I get excited when I find something new. I love your videos because I am learning a lot from you. I haven't found wild onions or wild garlic. I live in Nebraska so maybe they don't grow here I don't know. Thanks for all your videos

[@HealthyLifeFarm]

We have a ton of the chickweed here and I wish we had a maple tree. Your salads look amazingly delicious and from free foraging. Take care my friend and have a great weekend!

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Hi Peaches. A ton of chickweed is a lot of chickweed, so you've got some good eating there! It's one of my favorites for a salad. There are some really good tree leaves to eat, so even without maples you might have something in your area. Happy gardening and have a great weekend, too!

[@amouramarie]

I'm just starting to forage. Starting with easily identified: blackberries, dandelions, maple blossoms. Didn't know the maple leaves were edible - there's a stand of absolutely huge grand broadleaf maple right by my house. I'll have to try out their leaves. :)

[@kentripple9231]

going to be looking for some Chickweed to try out.

[@peacefulscrimp5183]

Great video 👍

[@veganjasper]

I had no idea maple leaves were edible I'm definitely going to look into it! :D thanks for another great video and you even posted on my birthday! :D

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Happy Birthday, Amber Merlea! Maple leaves are in my top 5 tree leaves to eat, but it does take tasting from tree to tree, to find the young, tender ones that taste good. Japanese maples can have a nice lemon-y flavor that's refreshing. Once you find a good tree, remember where it is! :D

[@abdallahmanasrah2317]

@@HaphazardHomestead have you tried grape vine leaves?

[@veganjasper]

@@HaphazardHomestead That sounds wonderful I can't wait to try it for myself!

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Yes, Abdallah, I like eating young, tender grape leaves. But just like the maples, I find some taste really good and others not so much. But even then, I like the little tendrils at the end of the new growth. It can have a really nice lemon-y flavor. If you have a nice easy way that you like to eat grape leaves, I'd like to know and maybe try that out! Happy spring!

[@abdallahmanasrah2317]

@@HaphazardHomestead enjoy kzbin.info/www/bejne/rmrYZXVql5x5bZo

[@shanek6582]

Nice! I’ve been picking chickweed from my backyard and feeding it to my chickens, I didn’t know we could eat it, I’m trying it tomorrow. Thanks

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Your chickens have been eating well, Shane K! I hope you will enjoy it, too. It's one that people usually like, even if they aren't big fans of wild food. If you try it, I'll look forward to your taste review of it.

[@shanek6582]

Haphazard Homestead, I’ve been eating poke weed since I was a kid but this year is the first time I’ve tried nettle, my family did a side by side taste test a few weeks ago and we all liked the poke better. We’re going to try the chickweed tonight and we’ll let you know. Thanks

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Poke is the best! I eat stinging nettles, too, but poke wins for me, too. It's so substantial.

[@1fanger888]

Very cool, thanks

[@rockreader4298]

That salad looked scrumptious! I've got the supplies to make it right out in the yard. Yum! I wanted to make a comment on the (Teach from home) ad. I loved it and I'm thinking that a few parents may find they can handle home-schooling much better than they thought they could, but a great many are going to end up appreciating and feeling real reverence to the good teachers in our world.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Haha -- the supplies are right in your yard, lucky you! :D It's interesting to find out what ads get associated with my channel. I agree that teachers should be appreciated a lot. Happy backyard foraging, rockreader4!

[@rockreader4298]

@@HaphazardHomestead, I sure wanted to harvest some red buds to pickle, but unfortunately I waited a couple days too long and the red buds were gone, only leaves. Can you use their leaves for anything?. One day there's red buds, the next day they're gone. : l It happens so fast.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

I feel you on those Redbud flowers, rockreader4, especially if there's a heatwave or a rainy spell. I do use the early leaves in salads, although to me, they get astringent pretty quickly. Almost as quickly as the flowers can be gone. At least with a tree, it will be in the same place next year, so you can be on the lookout. And the young seedpods are like snow pea pods, if you catch them quick enough, too.

[@kleineroteHex]

Love your infos!!! I let chickweed grow around my garden, especially in the shady spots, the ones in sunny parts I rip out after early harvest. What about the Japanese maple, grown for ornamental "value", I had a volunteer I took care of, looks pretty, grows like a weed this year 😁. I also add dandelion and plantain leaves into my salad, yumm. My pickle juice I often use for hardboiled eggs too.

[@BonnieBlue2A]

kleineroteHex How can you eat plantain leave? They are so astringent! I had to chew on one to prepare it to place on a bee sting and my mouth was without saliva for more than 10 minutes afterward.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Hi, kleineroteHex! I'm glad to hear you are enjoying your weeds, and especially chickweed. You're helping folks understand how worthwhile it is to look for this plant -- and how you help it help you, by letting it grow wild in the shady spots. Nice idea with the hardboiled eggs, too - I'll have to try that! :D

[@kleineroteHex]

@@BonnieBlue2A strange! I do not notice them to be astringent - chewed many for bee and wasp stings. I find them tough and mostly dry them to make tea. The young tender ones I eat here and there just alone. The ones I use in salads I cut really fine and with olive oil and vinegar and lots of other greens they are not even noticeable to me. When it comes to chewing them for a sting I suppose I wouldn't notice anything lol, last year I got a paperwasp sting, a bee sting feels like a tickle compared to that😂

[@kleineroteHex]

@@HaphazardHomestead I love my wild free greens, especially first thing in the spring!!! After I did a bit of research and found most of them have compounds to fight spring allergies they are my best friends! Lambsquarter has become my spinach - I don't even plant spinach anymore, it would bolt so fast with a few hot days that I gave up on it.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Lambs quarter is so good!

[@diedrehood9961]

Thanks for your valuable information. Thanks to you I have tried chickweed and dandelion flowers. Amazing! I love the way you enjoy your wild edibles. Bless you.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

You're welcome, Diedre Hood. I'm glad you are enjoying two of the great wild edible plants -- chickweed and dandelions. It's amazing to me how they are just out there, on their own, waiting for us to appreciate and use them. Happy foraging!

[@FM_GOBi]

I love this channel so much! I'll go look for it tomorrow. This morning I had Stinging Nettle and some Mint that I've foraged in a park outside of the town. Greetings from Eastern Europe.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

With that stinging nettle and mint, you've been eating well! Our chickweed in North America originally came from Europe. The range maps show it should be in Eastern Europe. Happy foraging and thanks for stopping by to watch and comment, FM GOBI!

[@Ladythyme]

I love chickweed! 5 petals like bunny ears 😀 Haven’t tried Maple leaves...on the prowl! Lol

[@HaphazardHomestead]

You've got good taste, Ever Changing Me, with your enjoyment of chickweed! I hope you can find some good tasting, young and tender maple leaves. They make a good salad green to mix in with more flavorful plants. Happy foraging!

[@alwaysfabulous9965]

Thanks for another video

[@HaphazardHomestead]

You're welcome, Always Fabulous! I'm glad you stopped by for a comment, too. Happy spring!

[@squirrel_bait]

Hey, great video. Well done and so informative. I eat wild chickweed too but I did not know maple leaves are edible. I learned something new!!!! Thanks much and happy healthy foraging.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

I'm glad to know you enjoy wild chickweed, Squirrel Bait. It's definitely one of the great spring salad greens. I hope you end up liking early maple leaves, too.

[@dkulikowski]

Thanks for another great video my friend. I have been eating chickweed every morning as one of my ingredients in my bone broth. Nettle, wild onion, garlic mustard, plantain and violet leaves are very abundant now and eating them twice daily in some form. I am moving soon and have been checking out my new grounds looking for wild edibles. It is a property that has woods, river and wetland. Hoping for a lot of the same plants I have here. I first will make sure that the establishment doesn't spray poison anywhere. Please keep your great advice and inspiration coming. Hugs.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

How nice to see you here, Lark! That sounds like a big change for you. I know you love where you have lived for so long and taken such care of the plants there, wild and in your garden. I hope you are as happy in your new location. That's a great mix of plants you are eating! Chickweed in bone broth sounds really good. Enjoy getting to know the plants of your new place!

[@TipsyFlipper]

love your videos so much.. thank you

[@HaphazardHomestead]

I'm glad you are enjoying them, Dwight Nash! I hope you can find some wild edible plants around you!

[@TipsyFlipper]

@@HaphazardHomestead i can't find chickweed but I do have garlic mustard.. so spicy and I hear the root is like horseraddish

[@HaphazardHomestead]

I don't have garlic mustard around, but it's so invasive, I think I"m OK without it being here. Enjoy your greens!

[@carrie5032]

I gathered more than I thought I had from my yard, I have a big bowl of it. Your instructions are great! I did how you did and didn't get other things in there. My chickweed is in a rocky area in mostly shade so it's smaller but still very good! I came in and washed everything, cut it up and then realized I probably should've taken the stems off of the maple leaves. So, then there I was foraging in my bowl trying to pick out the stems! Are they edible and just too tough to eat? I'm really enjoying learning what to eat out there. Thank you!

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Very nice with your salad, BlueEyesChick. You are right about the maple stems. They are just too tough and wiry. I'm glad you enjoyed your salad. It's amazing how good those two plants go together so well. And it's amazing how much there is, growing out there, just waiting for us. Happy spring!

[@carrie5032]

@@HaphazardHomestead It was fantastic! I found sprouts from the flower seeds of oak trees but I can't find info on these if they're edible. Thank you, Happy Spring!

[@MoniMeka]

The way I'm about to make me some pickles! Lol

[@DuragonLeMente]

for your wild salad series alone, you get a sub :D

[@sheepyleepy..2806]

what did that maple leaf taste like was it sweet was it a savery

[@wild-radio7373]

I just absolutely LOVE your videos! 🤜👍🤛♡♡♡

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Thanks, Aname Aname. There's some great plants out there!

[@Chrissvarietychannel549]

I've been eating chickweed for years but I have yet to try maple leaf although I've known their edibility for a while now. I'm going to have to get around to it. I'm a forager as well.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Chickweed is one of the great weeds out there. I hope you can find some tasty maple leaves. The young ones are the best. I'm always happy to meet another forager and see what you've been finding and eating. I see on your channel that you like a good variety of wild plants, including redbuds and nettles. Happy foraging!

[@Chrissvarietychannel549]

I actually forage and eat many more wild greens and mushrooms. I just don't film everything. I have a couple of maple trees in my yard. Shouldn't be hard to eat a few. Thank you for watching my channel.

[@JoJo-wk4cx]

I love chickweed salad with henbit and dead nettle.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

You know what's good eating, Jo Jo! That's a good combination. And your comment helps other people appreciate that these plants are real food. Happy foraging!

[@AMonikaD]

I'm surely your newest fan!! Just love your videos, you tell a good story as you make the video, so informative! I cant wait till stuff starts to grow here in Ontario Canada, my Maples are still bare, last frost date is just this weekend. Grass barely got green last week. I will be eating your recipes, that's for sure. And you started adding the dressing recipes, thanks! Any ideas for a Linden tree ?

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Hi, AMonikaD! You are at the exciting time of year, when spring is just getting started. You have a lot of good eating ahead. If you have American Basswood (Tilia americana) in the woods around you (also called Linden), you are in for good eating. They are in my top 5 favorite tree leaves. The young leaves are as good as anything in the grocery store. If you are in the city and picking the European Lindens (with the small leaves), you do have to make sure they aren't sprayed to keep ants and other insects from the nectar-rich flowers.

[@chessylatendresse941]

When I was little girl my neighbor made maple 🍁 leaves Tempura. Best in the world. R Any kind maple-leaves edible?

[@Fatima-qx6uw]

I am newbie In wild edible greens..... Chick weed is my first wild green for eat.... It's so easy to find and identify in shade places..... My recipe for chickweed pakora..... chickweeds+gram flour +Egg+salt+pepper. Mix all up and give small portions with spoon and Deep fry in oil.....very crispy very testy. My 3 year son just love them.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

That sounds really delicious, Fatima Rahman! Do you cut up your chickweed to any specific size before mixing it with the other ingredients? I like your point about how Common Chickweed is a good first wild green for people to try. Happy foraging, and your son will enjoy a lot of good eating! :D

[@Fatima-qx6uw]

@@HaphazardHomestead u r replying mee!! Thank u so much. I am so happy. I really like ur videos so much. U r so sweet and eat so healthy meals. Keep it up. Answer of ur question.... Yes... Chop it like normal (how u chopped ur salads in video).and u can add water also if needed. Add more chickweed or any kind of spinach and less gram flour(gram flour is just for binding) will be more delicious. U can add onion also.fry until golden brown. Give it a try. U will love it.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Thanks for those details, Fatima R. I will have to try your Chickweed Pakora. :D

[@Fatima-qx6uw]

@@HaphazardHomestead my pleasure..... Yes please..... U will love it.

[@sketchandjam]

Does Chickweed get bitter as it gets older? Any tips on surviving Oregon's grass bloom allergies, last time I was there they knocked me out.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Chickweed has never seemed bitter to me, sketch and jam. If it's stressed from sun and lack of water, it just kind of dries out into something without much flavor or substance. I've still used it in salads at that point, but there's more of the plant that gets composted than eaten. Allergies can be so tough. I feel for anyone that has pollen allergies especially, because pollen is everywhere. I'm not a medical person, so empathy is all I can offer on that.

[@sketchandjam]

@@HaphazardHomestead Cool, I'll have to look for it here in Illinois. I've been harvesting some of the garlic mustard but now it has become bitter with age. I'm glad to hear chickweed doesn't get bitter with age like garlic mustard. For allergies I am trying to get local honey and eat alot of it to build up a tolerance somehow (probably just placebo).

[@HaphazardHomestead]

If a placebo works, that's OK it seems to me! At least with honey, it tastes good.

[@toneenorman2135]

Can you eat the Japanese maples leaves? What about the Liquid Amber? They look like maple leaves….Thank you.

[@wild-radio7373]

YUM!! 🤜👍🤛♡♡♡

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Yum, for sure, Aname Aname! :D

[@massagetech2982]

Can you eat young wild grape leaves raw?

[@johnreed2760]

are any maple leaves edible or just certian ones

[@HaphazardHomestead]

If their scientific name starts with "Acer" then they are in the Maple genus and are edible. Some get tough, lose their flavor, and get astringent faster than others. But when they are young and tender, in their prime, maple leaves are nice and mild greens. Happy maple leaf foraging!

[@Kiyoko-vb8un]

Are maple sprouts edible?m

[@WillowWayRanch]

Thumbs up, commenting and watching to make sure my sub sticks!

[@heidigrx]

Apparently I don't have chickweed. I keep looking for it, but what I find here is hairy all around the stem.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

There are a few different plants that are all called Chickweed, heidigrx. You may have the Mouse-eared Chickweed (Cerastium vulgatum). It's pretty common, too, but I don't find it getting as big and lush as the Common Chickweed in this video. And it's later in the spring, too. I've been eating some, so you may see it in an upcoming video soon -- and let me know if that's the one like you see in your area.

[@societyofrobots]

I'm watching this in a random parking lot, then look up and see two huge red maple trees. Hmmmm

[@TheWBWoman]

Maple leaves are edible?!?

[@HaphazardHomestead]

There's a lot to eat from a maple tree, PC Henderson. On some trees, the leaves get too tough and astringent, pretty early. But on others, they taste good. They are in my top 5 favorite tree leaves to eat!

[@jeannewallace4851]

Haphazard Homestead in Japan, street vendors often have fried maple leaf. Linden leaf are my fav in salads.

[@errorASMR]

:)

[@HaphazardHomestead]

: )

[@chessylatendresse941]

Maple leaves make best Tempura

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Thanks for your comment, Chessy Latendresse! I've been reading about that, but have never tried it -- yet. So I am glad to have your view of them prepared like that. Were yours green leaves, or the ones harvested in the autumn? And were they fresh, or had they been stored in brine or salt? I've seen a couple different accounts and will probably try them both ways. Maples are such great trees!

[@chessylatendresse941]

Haphazard Homestead If I’m right over night salted Next day same way u Tempura. Chickweeds: I make Tsukemono & soup. Some freeze them for juice, oshitashi, miso-soup. Chickweed powder for like a Matsu-Cha.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Thanks for that added information about the Maple leaves tempura, Chessy L. And for your experience in using chickweed, too. You are eating weel! :D

[@chansamonephommachack8920]

I didn’t realize my backyard is a buffet.

[@ms.s1321]

If you keep eating that way all your life, you're never going to gain any fat weight. That is some healthy stuff.

[@ms.s1321]

When you talk, you sound like straight from the book as if you're the narrator and you're reading it.

[@ethanmann5231]

First

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Welcome, Ethan Mann, first among hopefully many! I hope you can enjoy a wild salad sometime, too!

[@ethanmann5231]

Thanks, I enjoyed the video I knew maple seeds were edible but not about the leaves.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

It's amazing how much maples have to offer. They are worth the space they need to grow!