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As with any foraging, you should also make sure that you know that you're actually harvesting purslane and not something else. There are plants of a family cal
by aetherson 3y ago
As with any foraging, you should also make sure that you know that you're actually harvesting purslane and not something else.
There are plants of a family called spurges that can be mistaken for purslane and are toxic. I don't have enough expertise to talk about how likely it is that you'll mistake spurge for purslane or how to identify.
- joecool1029 3y agoThey aren't that close in appearance. Spurges are woodier with flatter leaves and have an irritating white sap. This is not a plant likely to kill you if you ate a small amount of it, it's likely to cause burning/irritation in the mouth if you did make the mistake. Purslane you'll know it's correct if it tastes good, it's one of the best random green plants I've foraged. The only downside it seems to have is kind of high oxalate levels so it should be eaten sparingly or cooked especially if predisposed to kidney stones. Article describing differences between the two plants: https://lawnphix.com/lawn-care/spurge-vs-purslane-lawn-weeds/ https://lawnphix.com/lawn-care/spurge-vs-purslane-lawn-weeds... unlike mushrooms or potential poison hemlock lookalikes I don't want to discourage foraging this, just take it slow (try small amount of anything new before eating a lot of it) and you'll be fine.