Time for my Favorite Spring Shoot

Its that time of year, the time of year of Japanese Knotweed. If you are not familiar with the plant, it is an invasive species that grows up to 8 feet tall in the summer. It has heart shaped leaves, and in early summer, white flower clusters. Right now, if you were to drive by a patch of it, all you would see would be the skeletons of this plant. But if you looked closer, right at the bottom of these stalks would be red-green shoots from 1-5 inches tall. These are amazing as a replacement for rhubarb in any recipe, and holds just as well as a vegetable. I served it at my aunts wedding shower a year ago in a stir fry, and it was delicious and everyone loved it. So next time you walk by this highly invasive plant give it a try. You will be doing yourself a favor as well as our local ecosystem. This plant will choke out all other life in a certain area if left untamed, as nothing around here but me eats it. 

Happy foraging

Ezra