Is Miner's Lettuce Edible How To Grow Claytonia Miner's Lettuce

Yes, miner's lettuce is edible, hence the name. Miners used to eat the plant as salad greens, as well as the edible blossoms and stems of the plant. All these portions of Claytonia can be eaten either raw or cooked and are a great source of vitamin C.

How do you grow claytonia?
Can you cook miner's lettuce?
How do you propagate miner lettuce?
What can you do with claytonia?
How long does miners lettuce take to grow?
Is Miner's lettuce a perennial?
Is Miner's lettuce poisonous?
What does miner's lettuce taste like?
How do you identify a miner's lettuce?
Is purslane the same as miner's lettuce?
What does claytonia taste like?
When can I plant claytonia?

How do you grow claytonia?

Growing Information

Sow seeds 1/2" apart, in rows 12" apart, covering 1/4". Thin to 4-6" apart. If transplanting, sow 4-5 seeds per 1-2" cell container. However, bear in mind that claytonia does not tolerate having its roots damaged during transplanting.

Can you cook miner's lettuce?

Miner's lettuce is best suited for both raw and cooked applications such as steaming, boiling, stir-frying or sautéing. Used similarly to spinach, Miner's lettuce is most commonly used fresh in salads with other greens or displayed on appetizer plates as an edible garnish.

How do you propagate miner lettuce?

Spread seeds in rows 4 weeks before the last frost. Claytonia wants to get started early and will germinate in cold temperatures. If it doesn't get started before everything else, it may have trouble beating out the weeds. Ideally, sow it as soon as the soil can be worked, along with your garden peas.

What can you do with claytonia?

The leaves are at their tastiest when young and tender. The smaller leaves are great in salads, while larger ones can be cooked. Throw them into a stir fry at the last minute or boil them briefly like spinach. You will not see varieties of claytonia as such.

How long does miners lettuce take to grow?

Claytonia miner's lettuce can be found in soil conditions from sand, gravel road tar, loam, rock crevices, scree and river silt. The plant is propagated via seed and germination occurs rapidly, only 7-10 days until emergence.

Is Miner's lettuce a perennial?

Though technically a perennial in zones 6 through 9, miner's lettuce is treated as an annual and can be grown in colder climates once weather warms. It's not picky about soil quality, though performs best when soils are high in organic matter and kept evenly moist.

Is Miner's lettuce poisonous?

Uses. The common name of miner's lettuce refers to how the plant was used by miners during the California Gold Rush, who ate it to prevent scurvy. It is in season in April and May, and can be eaten as a leaf vegetable. The entire plant is edible, except the roots, and it provides vitamin C.

What does miner's lettuce taste like?

Miners lettuce is petite and delicate in appearance and on the palate. Its composed of thin, succulent lemon lime stems that support kelly green colored basal leaves. Its stems are thin, crunchy and equally edible as the tender leaves. The flavor is mild and sweet, with a subtle earthiness.

How do you identify a miner's lettuce?

Identification: Miner's Lettuce has two leaves fused together with the stem and white flowers in the center. They have a distinct look to them, looking like a circle or heart shape with a deep, smooth green color and little flowers or bulbs in the center.

Is purslane the same as miner's lettuce?

Miner's lettuce is also known as winter purslane (they're both in the portulaca family) and if you have ever eaten regular summer purslane, you can appreciate the succulent texture of this plant.

What does claytonia taste like?

It has a very mild slightly sweet, tart taste reminiscent of spinach or peapods and the stems have the crunch of a bean sprout. Add it to salads, steam it or stir fry it- it all works deliciously. Although when cooked it loses its crispness and becomes a little slick.

When can I plant claytonia?

It is a tough, cold resistant salad for growing in the open to crop from October until spring. Seed should be sown in shallow drills during July or August, choosing a slightly shaded site, and the plants should be kept moist until that task is taken over by the winter rains.