#rooreh

[tggardens]

Well hello, old friend.

[bluebelly-sun-serpentine]

Rooreh (Ohlone), palsingat (Cahuilla), or Claytonia perfoliata flowering. This friend has a wide range in the west. They're a lovely sour, crunchy edible – a bit reminiscent of spinach. Gold rush miners learned from native peoples that eating rooreh could help fight off scurvy, and for this reason in the post-1849 they've often been known as miner's lettuce. Recently there's been a push to return their older names to prominence and credit indigenous knowledge in both academic and amateur botany spaces. I've been trying to find the Coast Miwok name for them, since these particular plants live on Coast Miwok land, but have had no luck so far; if you know that name and are wiling to share it, please do!

Cafe Ohlone's spring menu often includes a dish that features rooreh, but if you're not in the bay and can't spring for their Sunday brunch tickets (I'm pretty sure they're sold out for the season, anyway), they're perfect candidates for your next winter garden - they're very cold hardy. I find them on riparian trails and used to be in the habit of taking them home - these days I'm more food secure and let them be.