Ppl in general should know more about the PANC movement and im not joking
The PANC movement is a latin-american based botanical movement (started out in Brazil) focused on researching and cataloguing non-conventional edible plants, and man. There are so many straight up ornamental plants that just. are edible. you can eat them. you can grab a daylily and eat it. You can grab a begonia and eat it. Hibiscus, lavender, dandelions. And those are just the flowers. So many little herbs out there that are fully edible (Shout out to lamb's ear, that one tastes really nice imo).
Like straight up there is free food out there. foraging is so cool but it's so hard to find actual sources not made by either some AI fucker that's gonna end up killing you or by some crunchy "eating grass will cure your cancer" influencer. PANC is made by actual scientists that specialized in botany that have fully researched and found out that These Plants Are Fully Safe to Eat.
And not only that, but they're legitimizing native knowledge. They're taking the plants that our native populations have been eating for centuries and are proving, in a lab, that yeah, these plants ARE safe to eat - which is incredible. It might sound stupid (like ooo NOW you're willing to believe the native people) but this is so, so important, because having ACTUAL SCIENTIFIC PROOF of their knowledge is a way to combat the still pervasive idea that natives are "stupid savages", or that their traditions are just "wacky spirituality nonsense".
Most sources are in portuguese, but you can still use a translator. Here's a link for a giant PDF with a shit ton of edible plants. This particular one has pictures of said plants, along which parts are edible and how (some you can eat straight up, others are edible after cooking, etc). Most of these plants are native to Brazil, but a lot of them are exotic plants that have been brought here as ornamental plants - and a lot of them have been shipped out to other countries as ornamental plants too, so you can still find some species near you.
Oooooh hell yes, thank you OP for posting about this! I didn't realize there was a specific movement behind these plants!
Even before looking at the PDF, just this year I have discovered so many unconventional/niche *perennial* edible plants I've literally never heard of before:
--- Cnidoscolus Acontifolus:
Aka:
Chaya (most common name)
Miracle Spinach
Tree Spinach
Chayamansa
Chicasquil
Chaykol
and more!
Growing and Propagating:
With protection, can withstand frosts, but hard freezes will cause it to die down to the ground and can cause significant delay of regrowth in spring from some accounts.
In frost free climates can be grown into a large tree that is easy to shape, in climates that freeze, you can grow it in large containers that you bring indoors over winter :D
Concerns:
Euphorbia genus, so stems produce a latex sap when cut, individuals with latex allergies or sensitivites should be cautious
*cannot be eaten raw due to cyanide compounds in the leaves*; must be boiled for a *minimum* of 20 minutes! Some people will also stir-fry the leaves at high heat after slicing, but I do not know of specific methods to ensure it's safe, so caution should be used.
Some cultivars have stinging hairs on the leaves (that are deactivated along with the cyanides by boiling); when purchasing plants, look for hairless varieties for the easiest harvest.
Edibility:
After boiling for 20 minutes, leaves retain their size according to the videos I've seen (where other greens shrink significantly)
After boiling for 20 minutes (yes I'm gonna keep emphasizing this), leaves can be dried or frozen for future use.
More nutritional value than regular spinach and other similar greens! :O
More information:
Chaya FAQs and Nutrition Information - see answers to frequently asked questions about Chaya and review nutrition information.
More plants that are very similar growers, but their leaves are edible raw:
-- Moringa Olercea,
aka Moringa, or Drumstick Tree
-- Abelmoschus Manihot,
aka Edible Hibiscus (it's actually in the Okra genus!), South Sea Salad Tree, Bele Tree, La Pele, Aibika, Singapi, Sunset Hibiscus, and more!
-- Hibiscus Acetola
Aka Cranberry Hibiscus, False Roselle, and more
