Eating weeds

An unexpected way to get rid of garden weeds – by eating them – is being explored at an event in Matakana at the end of the month.

Matakana community gardeners will be discussing and showing many common weeds that are not only edible, but also highly nutritious, during a two-hour workshop in the garden at 43 Matakana Valley Road, behind the community hall.

Organiser Trish Allen says there are a surprising number of weeds that are packed full of vitamins and minerals, and can be cooked, eaten as they are, or added to smoothies.

“There are heaps of them, and some of them are really good for our health,” she says. Examples of edible weeds include dandelion, plantain, chickweed and cleavers. The workshop runs from 2pm to 4pm on Sunday, March 31, and though booking isn’t necessary, koha would be appreciated.

Trish will also be taking part at another gardening workshop on the morning of the same day, just up Matakana Valley Road at her former home and permaculture centre, Rainbow Valley Farm. Together with John Graham Smith and Judy Keats, she will be exploring the finer points of hot compost and bio char making, between 10am and 12.30pm. Hot composting is a method of making compost faster at high temperatures, while bio char is a type of home-made charcoal that can be used as a soil enhancer.

Info: Scroll down to March 31 at kaipatiki.org.nz/ecofest