Looking for Wild fruits, currants, berries or other edibles to fill up my edibles garden.

Hi sullivann , Welcome to The Seed Exchange! Please see the link below for enabling your email link so that you can easily be reached for trading. You might also want to list things a bit more specifically on your exchange list. It would probably increase your chances of trading. hth. Sue...aka chemocurl Here is a link that might be useful: sticky: please read before posting! **Required**

Thanks, everybody, for your comments. I ended up emailing Sophie Hodorowicz Knab, who writes for the Buffalo-based Polish-American Journal, and is the author of a fascinating little book called Polish Herbs, Flowers & Folk Medicine. Much to my delight, she responded to my inquiry. Here's what she had to say: Hi Cecilia! Thak you for owning my book! I appreciate the support. My book on herbs was not all inclusive as a publisher imposes page limitations but I looked up komosa on a Polish website and indeed, it exists and very likely what you are looking for. If you keep scrolling down on the website you will see that there are two types of komosa: komosa biala(chenopodium album) and komosa strzalkowa (chenopodium bonus-henricus). The leaves of both are edible and native to Europe. The people of Poland foraged the land and were expert at finding herbs and plants to eat especially during times of famine and hardship. It's wonderful that you have this wonderful memory of your family. Plant it in your garden as a memory to your family and heritage. Best of luck to you. Sophie Hodorowicz Knab Here is a link that might be useful: Polish plant website showing Komosa

knittlin, I'll stay away from the pretty orange/red Yaupon berries. When I was a kid we had a similar kind of tree near our house and I stood there and ate several berries. After proudly reporting my delicious discovery to my mother, her eyes got very big and panic set in. Long story short, I ended up getting my stomach pumped. So since then my appetite for pretty wild berries has diminished somewhat. Your Library project sounds brilliant! And I would imagine that learning about what's under foot, so to speak, and in one's own yard (native edibles/medicinals) would be something that would peak people's curiosity and perhaps even entice some old timers to share their remedies and recipes with the younger generation! I was thinking about a 'native plants' garden myself with things like Purslane, Lambsquarters, etc. But I'll have to learn more about growing, harvesting and cooking them first. This website discusses the benefits of eating Lambsquarters: http://www.veggiegardeningtips.com/surprising-lambs-quarters/ I believe Scooter Cheatham IS based in Austin. And there used to be a "library/store/learning center" sort of place for herbs and edible native plants out east of Austin just off the OLD airport road (Manor) about a mile past the airport entrance (on the left), but not quite as far as 183. Can't recall its name and don't know if it's still there. It could be connected to Cheatham's project. Also was exploring Cheatham's Usefull Wild Plants site that I linked to above and discovered that they apparently do still teach annual classes AND then have a banquet using the plants they've discovered. I'll bet they have some amazing recipes! http://www.usefulwildplants.org/weedfeed.htm Some of their archived newsletters look intriguing such as the first one that discusses what kind of meals were eaten by the natives and pioneers. http://www.usefulwildplants.org/newsletter.htm I did a google on Edible and Useful Plants of Texas and the Southwest, By Delena Tull and discovered it's available to read online! Or at least a lengthy preview: http://books.google.com/books?id=pnnHgcasN-cC&pg=RA1-PA140&lpg=RA1-PA140&dq=recipes,+purslane+Portulaca+oleracea&source=bl&ots=Vm-SpPMdSr&sig=6fvE7DpZ-GJiYn8AkYwCsS4FVmE&hl=en&ei=Wim6SaLdBIa-Mpq5jbcI&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=6&ct=result#PPP1,M1 Can You Answer These Questions? 1) What do lipstick, World War I campaign tents, and shoe polish have in common? 2) The wood of this tree is one of the finest anywhere in the world for making bows and was prized by Native Americans for this. It is amazingly durable and decay-resistant. Paving blocks (as paved the downtown streets of old Fort Worth) made of it can last 50 years or more. One name refers to its use for bows, another to the color of the wood and the Indians who used it for bows. What are they? 3) This juicy plant thrives in the heat of summer and grows out of the cracks in city sidewalks. It is sold in Mexican and Asian markets as a vegetable. What is it? 4) You just noticed that the mustang grapes you've been picking are entwined with poison ivy. You've never broken out before so you keep picking. But should you be concerned this time? 5) Even though this plant has delicious leaves with more Vitamin A than spinach or broccoli, to most people it's a no-good weed to be mercilessly hoed out of the garden. The seeds of one of its relatives were a staple food of the Aztecs. What is it? 6) The Texas shrub called agarita (Berberis trifoliolata) produces delicious red fruits in late spring. Its yellow roots helped equip World War II paratroopers. How? 7) One U.S. president was also a great plantsman. Who said "The greatest service which can be given any country is to add a useful plant to its culture?" 8) You are curious about the plants in your own backyard and want to know more about them. What can you do? Here is a link that might be useful: ANSWERS