Purslane

DESCRIPTION: Purslane is an annual. The Purslane has smooth, reddish mostly prostrate (flat-lying) stems. The stems radiate from the center of the plant and usually creep along the ground. If it's in a pot or has competition the stems will weakly strive up towards the sun. The leaves can be about an inch long and up to half of an inch wide. The leaves are obvoate/oblong and smooth. The leaves are green with a purple hue around the edges. The leaves may be alternate or opposite and are clustered at stem joints and ends. The yellow flowers are a quarter-inch wide and can appear any time but are dependent on rainfall. The root is able to tolerate poor compacted dry soil. In summer the plant first appears as an unassuming small flat-leaf leafed weed that slowly sprawls along red stems that find hot pavement or barren dirt as an attractive place to establish a home. If it does not get hot or enough sun the plant stays paper flat and unattractive and does not transform into interesting succulents plant.

EDIBLE: The leaves, stems, and flowers are edible and stand up well to pickling.

NOTES: This is one of my favorite plants!! It is an ugly weed that transforms into a beautiful tasty succulent. 7 times the beta-carotene of carrots. Six times more vitamin E than spinach. The plant breathes like a normal plant but can retain water like a cactus. I found a Purslane variety growing on the beach in Florida, Oh man were they good with a salty kick! Historically, sailors suffering from scurvy found these plants useful for high vitamin c. In the summer of 2020, I found many plants but only half of the plants transformed into the full succulent plants as the previous years. The plants thrive in the hot sun, even in the cracks of sidewalks and street gutters.

JRH