What Grows Here?

I'm making an effort to learn more about the things growing near my home, and I'm posting about it here. Note: I do not have any official education in plant identification. I'm going off of some educated googling and comparing what I can observe to what I can read about online. If you are a plant expert and notice I have some incorrect information, please feel free to (politely) correct me.

[whatgrowshere]

About this blog

I live in eastern New York and am making an effort to learn more about the plants growing near my home (both wild and in gardens (including but not limited to my own)), and I’m posting what I learn here so that I have it all in one handy spot for reference.

I’m not an expert.  I don’t have any official education in this.  I’m just a good observer and a good googler.  If you’re an expert and you notice I’ve gotten something wrong, please feel free to (politely) correct me.

[whatgrowshere]

Common Name: Chicory.

Scientific Name: Cichorium intybus.

Where I Saw It: This one was along the side of the road.  I see them along roadsides and sidewalks a lot.

Can I Eat It? Yes!  The leaves, buds, roots, and stems are all edible.

Native Range: Africa, Asia, and Europe.

How It Behaves in New York: It grows wild here.  I’m finding conflicting reports on whether it’s considered invasive.

Reasons to Like It: Pretty!  Edible!  Makes pollinators happy!

Reasons to Dislike It: Possibly invasive.

[whatgrowshere]

Common Name: Riverbank grapes.

Scientific Name: Vitis riparia.

Where I Saw It: This one is along the bike trail, but they grow all over.

Can I Eat It? Yes!  It’s a grape, so the ripe fruit is edible and you can use the leaves to make stuffed grape leaves.

Native Range: North America.

Reasons to Like It: Native!  Edible!  Pretty!

Reasons to Dislike It: It’s a climbing vine, so it can make your other plants unhappy and can cause problems on architectural structures it attaches itself to.

[whatgrowshere]

Common Name: Mugwort.

Scientific Name: Artemisia vulgaris.

Where I Saw It: This picture is from the bike trail, but honestly it grows all over the place, including in my backyard.

Can I Eat It? Yes!  The leaves can be used as a seasoning in food or to make tea, and the young shoots can be eaten as a vegetable.

Native Range: Europe, Asia, Northern Africa, Alaska.

How It Behaves in New York: It’s a common wild plant here, and is apparently considered by some to be invasive.

Reasons to Like It: Tea!  Seasoning!  Edible!

Reasons to Dislike It: Possibly invasive, and can be a really persistent weed in a garden even if you set aside possible ecological effects.

[whatgrowshere]

Common Name: Wild carrot.

Scientific Name: Daucus carota.

Where I Saw It: This one was long the bike trail, but in general I see them along roadsides and sidewalks, as well as in grassy fields.

Can I Eat It? Yes!  As the name suggests, it’s a carrot, so the roots are edible.  However, they are much tougher than the ones you buy from the store.  The internet also tells me the flowers can be battered and fried, but I’ve never tried this.

Native Range: Europe and southwest Asia.

How It Behaves in New York: It grows wild throughout North America but is not considered invasive.

Reasons to Like It: Edible!  Pretty!  Not invasive!  Makes pollinators happy!

Reasons to Dislike It: It can be a pretty persistent weed in places like sidewalk cracks, but otherwise I see no reason to dislike it.

[whatgrowshere]

Common Name: Golden moss or stonecrop.

Scientific Name: Sedum acre.

Where I Saw It: This stuff grows all over my yard and driveway.

Can I Eat It? Internet says yes, but only in small amounts.  Personally, I’m not planning to.

Native Range: Europe, Northern Africa, Western Asia.

How It Behaves in New York: Spreads quickly and according to the internet can get invasive, but can be controlled by blocking its light and/or making it sit in a bit more water than it’s used to.

Reasons to Like It: Cute ground cover, nice and soft.

Reasons to Dislike It: Apparently invasive.

[whatgrowshere]

Common Name: Some sort of day-bearing strawberry, not sure of the exact variety.

Scientific Name: Genus Fragaria, but I don’t know the species.

Where I Saw It: In my garden.

Can I Eat It? Yes!  These are nice and sweet, and a good size for toddlers to munch on.

Native Range: North America.

Reasons to Like It: Native!  Edible!  Easy to grow!  This plant gives me strawberries into the fall!

Reasons to Dislike It: Maybe if you’re allergic I guess?

[whatgrowshere]

Common Name: Cherry Roma tomatoes.

Scientific Name: Solanum lycoperiscum.

Where I Saw It: In my garden, planted as a young plant earlier this year.

Can I Eat It: Yes!  These are nice and sweet and a great size for snacking.

Native Range: South America and Mexico.

How It Behaves in New York: Generally speaking, our winters are too cold and our growing seasons are too short for tomatoes to thrive on their own.  I do have a couple of bonus tomato plants in my garden this year from seeds that dropped last year, but I’m not expecting them to bear fruit before the days start getting too short.  If you buy a young plant or start seeds indoors in early spring and then plant them outdoors in the sun once you’re sure they won’t get a frost, you’ll get good fruit.

Reasons to Like It: Delicious!  Local pollinators like it!

Reasons to Dislike It: As noted above, it’s not native around here and you have to start seeds indoors early or buy young plants if you want to get a good harvest.

[whatgrowshere]

Common Name: Garden phlox.

Scientific Name: Phlox paniculata.

Where I Saw It: This grows in my garden.

Can I Eat It? Yes!  Apparently it’s the only type of phlox that is edible.  With edible flowers, you can candy them by brushing with egg whites and then dipping in sugar.  They’re nice for decorating cakes.

Native Range: Eastern and central United States.

Reasons to Like It: Native!  Edible!  Makes local pollinators happy!

Reasons to Dislike It: None that I can find.

[whatgrowshere]

Common Name: Greek oregano

Scientific Name: Origanum vulgare hirtum

Where I Saw It: This is part of my herb garden in front of my house.

Can I Eat It? Yes.  It has a sort of spicy flavor and is used for seasoning in a lot of Mediterranean dishes.

Native Range: Western and southwestern Eurasia, the Mediterranean.

How It Behaves in New York: This plant comes back perennially and has been spreading slowly in my garden.  The internet tells me that oregano, as part of the mint family, has a tendency to become invasive, but I haven’t noticed that with this plant.

Reasons to Like It: Smells good!  Tastes good!  Makes local pollinators happy!  Attracts bugs that are good for the garden!

Reasons to Dislike It: None that I can find, though if it does start becoming invasive then that would be a problem.

[whatgrowshere]

Common Name: Yellow wood sorrel.

Scientific Name: Oxalis stricta.

Where I Saw It: It grows wild throughout this region.

Can I Eat It? Yes!  It has a tangy lemony kind of flavor.  As a kid I used to munch on these leaves when playing outside.  It’s apparently also good to add some flavor to salads, though you wouldn’t want it as the main leaves.  The internet also tells me that you should only eat it in moderation because the oxalic acid can inhibit your calcium absorption.

Native Range: North America.

Reasons to Like It: Edible!  Native!  Vitamin C!

Reasons to Dislike It: It grows pretty aggressively and can become an annoying weed in a garden bed.