Last year I experimented with harvesting nettles as a wildcrafting food souce. It was tremendously successful! I love the stuff.
But, really, it has a season of April through June. Theoretically, you can gather them all through the growing season, but, in my experience the tender top six inches are best and free of bugs, gunk, and such, before summer sets in.
Which means I better get my butt out there and harvest some! Nettles are about the best wildcraft herb easily and ubiquitously available. It has all the good things about spinach multiplied by, like, a thousand times!
What I do is take a big pot, gloves, and scissors (or clippers) and cut the top 6 inches from the best looking plants. The more clean and healthy, the less prep work before cooking.
Then, I wash (pick out any ugly stuff) and fill pot with some water. Put on the stove and boil the crap out of it. People mostly are adverse to using nettles because of the little needles that inject the minor toxin that make them "stinging". But, really, the cooking does get rid of that.
Anyhow, there are three products of my effort:
1) The vegetative mass can be used similarly to spinach. By itself, or in recipes,
2) Any excess that is more than I will eat in a day or two gets dehydrated for use later in the year,
3) The liquid left over is what is called "Pot Liquor". It is considered a tonic. And, I love it! I put a bit of salt into it and drink it down. For me at least, it indeed does seem to be a tonic. Extra amounts get stored in the frig for a few days and a bit is drunk down each day. Theoretically, this tonic liquid should last a long time in the frig.
So, there you have it. Won't cost you nuthin but some effort and great for your health. Need I mention that powerful buzz word of our age: "Anti-oxidants"? LOL, go for it! (standard disclaimers apply)
Pot Liquor Nettles Cartoon
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