Content
- Is the golden nettle edible?
- Harvest and use
- Ingredients of the gold nettle
- Attention, risk of confusion!
- Golden nettle as a medicinal plant
- Tips
All plant parts of the golden nettle are edible
Is the golden nettle edible?
Many consider the belonging to the family of the Labiatae only as a sometimes annoying weed, while both the leaves and the flowers of the wild plant are very tasty. But that's not the only reason why the perennials are sometimes cultivated in gardens, and their vigorous growth and bright yellow flowers also have a high ornamental value. Quite apart from another possible use, because in former times the gold nettle was considered a medicinal plant.
Early article Perfect for shady gardens - The gold nettle in the profile Next article Golden nettle has long flowering even in the shadeHarvest and use
Basically, all plant parts of the flowering between April and July golden nettle are suitable for consumption. The golden yellow flowers contain a lot of nectar - one reason why the plant is an important bee pasture. Gold nettles are not for nothing called "bee suckers" - and therefore taste honey sweet. Maybe you know the taste from your childhood, because deadnettle blossoms have always been a pleasure to suck out. But the tender leaves and young shoots have a very distinctive taste and taste both raw in salads and cooked or blanched about as wild spinach. From autumn you can also harvest the roots and prepare them as vegetables - similar to salsify. Basically, a harvest is possible throughout the year.
Ingredients of the gold nettle
The golden nettle not only tastes very good, it also contains a lot of vitamins, minerals and trace elements. In addition to essential oils, flavonoids and saponins as well as tannins and mucilages, gold nettles contain boron, calcium, iron, potassium, copper, magnesium, phosphorus, sulfur and zinc.
Attention, risk of confusion!
Who knows what the gold nettle looks like will not confuse it so easily. However, caution should be exercised, especially as the forest-zest, which is awake at similar locations, looks very similar to the golden nettle. However, this is also edible, but its taste is tart and aromatic. However, you can distinguish the plants before picking by the smell, because the forest-Ziest smells much stronger than the gold nettle.
Golden nettle as a medicinal plant
In earlier times, the common yellow nettle was not only in demand as a vegetable, but also as a medicinal plant, especially for colds. An infusion of their fresh flowers or leaves should have an anti-inflammatory and diuretic effect, and the plant is said to have antibacterial effects. You can also dry the young leaves and enjoy them together with other herbs as homemade herbal tea mixture.
Tips
If you go collecting in nature, it is better not to pick the gold nettle directly on (used) path and field edges, as these can be heavily contaminated with pollutants and pesticides.