Topic: can someone id this for me please?

[Le-y]

its one of the weeds on the plot growing faster than i can blink BUT i quite like it, looks lovely and when you pick it it feels almost like your washing your hands.

[Unwashed]

Fat hen.

[Paulines7]

I agree, Fat Hen. 

See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chenopodium_album

[lewic]

I am plagued with this stuff, the roots go down about a foot and it seems immune to Roundup. Worse than bindweed, it grows so fast!

Was told it was Shepherds Purse recently, but I am not sure about that as it doesnt look like the photos I've seen.

[Unwashed]

I am plagued with this stuff, the roots go down about a foot and it seems immune to Roundup. Worse than bindweed, it grows so fast!

Was told it was Shepherds Purse recently, but I am not sure about that as it doesnt look like the photos I've seen.

Fat hen seeds and germinates prolificly but is the easiest weed in the world to pull up by hand.

[Bugloss2009]

it's edible, though i've never tried it

[Pesky Wabbit]

My lottie neighbour let his seed all over the place last year.

Now, on my plot, its not so much Fat Hen, more Chronically Obese Hen.   >:( >:(

it's edible, though i've never tried it

I don't think I've ever been hungry enough to try either.

[Le-y]

thank you all, looks like im in for a lot of work, good thing is the hens love it :)

[valmarg]

Whilst I agree, it does look a lot like fat hen.  The foliage of fat hen is much greyer.

From Le-y's description of 'when you pick it, it feels almost like you are washing your hands'.  I certainly don't get that with fat hen, and I wondered if it was soapwort.

Just a thought.

valmarg

[Digeroo]

Looks just like my fat hen do not let it run to seed,  it produces thousands and they all germinate.  The longer you leave it them more difficult it becomes to pull it up. 

Makes a good mulch.

[valmarg]

Well, I think the fat hen we have in our garden doesn't look anything like the plant shown.

valmarg

[Unwashed]

I'm pretty sure it's fat hen, but good king henry and orach (the green one, not the red variety) are similar.

Valmarg, can you post a pic of your weed as I suspect it's something else.

[Pesky Wabbit]

Ohhhhhhh, thats definitely Fat Hen,

I can send you a box of samples if your not sure.

[goodlife]

Yep..Fat hen used to be staple food during middle ages and before all this fancy lettuce and other stuff became avalable..cale for winter and 'weeds' during summer ;D
It doesn't taste bad at all..but if any of you fancy ago..just don't eat it from compost or manure heap..from ground fine.. ;)
I'll keep to the fancy stuff and let my chickens to feast with fat hen.. ;D

[valmarg]

Valmarg, can you post a pic of your weed as I suspect it's something else.

Unfortunately not, as (a) I don't know how to post piccies on site, and (b) fortunately there are no fat hen weeds in the garden at the moment.

We do have its chaenopodium cousin, bonus-henricus, aka good king henry.

I'm sorry, but I didn't mean to be argumentative, but the snap just didn't look exactly like fat hen to me, but consensus says that is it.  So be it.

valmarg

[Vinlander]

Yep..Fat hen used to be staple food during middle ages and before all this fancy lettuce and other stuff became avalable..cale for winter and 'weeds' during summer ;D
It doesn't taste bad at all..but if any of you fancy ago..just don't eat it from compost or manure heap..from ground fine.. ;)
I'll keep to the fancy stuff and let my chickens to feast with fat hen.. ;D

It was introduced as a seed crop as much as salad - the seeds are nutritious apparently, but I agree it's best to pull it up.

At least in my garden it rarely flowers until it is big enough to be obvious and yank out.

I have more trouble with ironweed - more risk of a hernia!

Has anyone else noticed how annual weeds come and go? I used to be overrun with shepherds purse but hardly see it now - now it's charlock playing top b!tch, with cleavers coming up fast on the inside

[campanula]

the quinoa which was so fashionable a few years ago is the seeds of chenopodium. The seeds from Fat hen were actually found in the stomach of tollund man so there is a long history of eating them. Try it - they are slightly nutty, not at all bad.

[small]

Well well, so when these posh southerners go on about quinoa they are really eating weed seeds.....I googled this, Campanula, fascinating, one site said the seeds feel soapy which fits with a previous posting...... I have huge amounts of fat hen so I'm going to investigate using the seeds.  Hopefully I'll report back....

[goodlife]

I was just reading about fat hen this morning.... ;D ::)...yeah..I do have a life..
anyway.."according to paleobotanists..Iron-age Britain people did eat fat-hen as a part of their staple diet"..so it's been around..and I did have a little taster too just to remind what it taste like..ok.not much taste really..actually in mixed salad it would go just right..something to add into selection.. ;)

[Little Weed]

I eat fat hen regularly - I cook it like spinach. You can chop and stir fry it or use it as a side vegetable, cooked in a little water, fairly briefly. I sometimes use it cooked, drained, seasoned and mixed with ricotta as a layer in a veggie lasagna.