Last Monday I arrived in London for a work /family trip and despite a 2-3 hour delayed flight due to fog, I was able to have two hours at Chelsea Physic Garden before closing time at 4 pm.
So, here’s some pictures of mostly unusual edible plants spotted during my visit!
One of my favourite gardens…
The flight was 3 hours delayed due to fog in London, clearing as we arrived
Red sun glare in the background from the fog-free English channel!
Windsor Castle
There’s a garden of Unusual Vegetables at Chelsea, but the real unusual edibles are to be found in other parts of the garden in the systematic beds and other special collections. The following pictures show edible plants I found during my visit!
Hydrophyllums propagated for sale? Great North American forest garden edibles, known originally as Indian salad.
Solanum aviculare, Kangaroo Apple has edible fruits eaten fresh and dried when completely ripe. I saw poroporo growing wild in New Zealand years ago..
Aralia californica…these seemed to have been propagated by cuttings..
The impressive olive tree at Chelsea!
One of several ornamental varieties of Gingko available from specialist nurseries. This is “Majestic Butterflies” for obvious reasons!
Citrus aurantium “Seville Orange”
Spilanthes acmella, toothache plant…has an intense citrous flavour which numbs the tongue as though you’ve been to the dentist!
Young autumn shoots of artichoke / cardoon
This pigeon was eating the peppery berries of Zanthoxylum americanum (prickly ash), a North American relation of Szechuan pepper. It has been noted as an alternative to the latter, but it seems mainly to have been used medicinally by the Native Americans
Zanthoxylum americanum in the foreground
Zanthoxylum americanum seed
Zanthoxylum ailanthoides is from Japan, but Z. piperitum is the main species used to make sanshō, Japanese pepper. Nevertheless, the seed and young leaves (ki no mé) of Z. ailanthoides can be used in a similar way. A regional nickname is tara,and in fact, its young shoots are often mistaken for the true tara (Aralia elata) by gatherers of wild plants.
Zanthoxylum ailanthoides in the foreground
Carduus nutans: the stems, once dethorned, are delicious!
Giant Dahlia imperialis, not one of the best edible Dahlias, but the flowers are presumably edible
Ripe fruits of Solanum aviculare, known as kangaroo apple or poroporo in Australia and NZ respectively
Urospermum dalechampii and other relatives are important wild foraged plants in the Mediterranean countries
Peltaria turkmena: an edible woodlander in the cabbage family from west Asia…the young leaves and flowers are eaten.
Crambe cordifolia or ornamental sea kale should be grown more as the taste of the spring blanched leaves is similar to sea kale and it is much more hardy!
Abutilon grandiflora is from tropical East Africa, most if not all members of the mallow family are edible
Lavatera arborea “Variegata”, also in the Mallow family
Althaea cannabina in the Mallow family
Oxalis articulata var. alba
Impatiens tinctoria is best known as a dye plant
The young shoots of Asparagus acutifolius are reckoned to be gourmet food in the Mediterranean countries
Fuggles Hops
Oca, Oxalis tuberosa
Tea plants ;)
Allium tuberosum in seed
…with Solanum sisymbriifolium…
Chenopodium berlandieri (huauzontle)
Perilla
Crimson-flowered broad bean
Crimson-flowered broad bean
Angelica archangelica
Nasturtium roses :)
Cardoon
Tetrapanax papyrifer in flower, rice paper plant in the collection of fibre plants
Flowering Boehmeria nivea or ramie in the collection of fibre plants
Broussonettia papyrifera (paper mulberry) in the collection of fibre plants – it also has edible fruits!
Araucaria angustifolia (Brazilian Monkey Puzzle)
Persicaria virginiana “Compton’s Form”
Tricyrtis (toad lilies) – edible spring shoots. It would be nice to know if the flowers are also edible?
Arctium lappa (burdock)
Hablitzia tamnoides in the systematic beds…no mention of it as an edible plant :(
Hablitzia
Hablitzia
Flowering perennial buckwheat
Rumex scutatus
Gingko
Smelly Gingko fruit
Gingko
Smelly Gingko fruit
Fedia cornucopiae, African valerian is a great edimental and salad crop
Lilium lancifolium “Splendens” – this is cultivated for its edible bulbs in the Far East…the flowers are also edible!
Rhus triloba, lemonade bush
Aster macrophyllus is one of the edible woodland Asters from North America…young shoots
The last flowers on Big-leaf Aster, Aster macrophyllus
Oplopanax horridus from Western North America is found in the understory of old growth forest and has edible spring shoots
Tulbaghia violacea, Society Garlic
Tulbaghia violacea, Society Garlic
As usual there were several wrongly identified Alliums
At the end of April I will be talking at the Curtis museum in Alton….I did my homework here! At least 3 of the plants in the Curtis border are in my book
Hemerocallis fulva from Japan in the Curtis border
Tradescantia virginiana in the Curtis border
Trachystemon orinetalis; see http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?page_id=1269
Hosta
There’s a great exhibit currently showing off the diversity of chilis
Macropiper excelsa from New Zealand…has various uses in the kitchen from tea to a beer flavouring, the fruit are tasty and the seeds can be used as a pepper substitute. The leaves have also been used..
Fuchsia excorticata yields an important pre-European edible berry in New Zealand.
A November cowslip, Primula veris
New Zealand spinach growing as you might find it in New Zealand in the shade of coastal woods
Houttuynia cordata
Glycyrrhiza glabra (Licquorice)
Tulbaghia violacea var. robustior
Toothpick plant, Ammi visnaga…showing its product and according to pfaf.org the leaves are also edible
The impressive bay tree at Chelsea
The impressive bay tree at Chelsea
The impressive bay tree at Chelsea
Rumex lunaria from the Canary Islands
Stevia in flower
Fuchsia paniculata fruit
Begonia soli-mutata, Sun Tan Begonia! The common name comes from the fact that the color of the leaf will change depending on it’s exposure to bright light. Edible flowers.
Impatiens auricoma x bicaudata is probably edible
Impatiens auricoma x bicaudata is probably edible
Dodonaea viscosa, hopbush, at one time used as hops in beer..
Plantago major “Atropurpurea” or “Rubrifolia”
Umbilicis luteus, a southern European navelwort has edible leaves
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