Purslane

[Bambi.1]

Also known as Portulaca Sativa or Pigweed  :o :o

Purslane was mentioned on Horizon recently as being very high in Omega 3 and good in salads,Has anybody tried growing it or eaten it  ???

Also has anyone any idea of where to get the seeds from  ??? l know many of you have seed catalogues.......Please  :-*

[Bambi.1]

[terrace max]

Hi Bambi

I grew it a couple of years ago with no difficulty. It's kind of bland but has an unusual succulent eating quality. Nice in salad. I started mine off in the greenhouse in spring and planted out in the garden. It likes a good soil and plenty of sun.

I saw the Horizon programme too and will be growing plenty this year as a result!

Both HDRA and Suffolk herbs have both the golden and the green varieties. The former is a bit more tender...

[Bambi.1]

Thank You TM,l like the sound of growing it with no difficulty  ;D

[Bambi.1]

Ok,Thank you Wardy  ;D

I don't have any seed catalogues,can anyone suggest one which has the Purlane seeds.............Thank you.

[terrace max]

Winter purslane AKA Miners Lettuce AKA Montia AKA Claytonia, or officially Montia Perfoliata is a completely different plant. A kind of winter weed which is kind of OK when there's nothing much else about...

Go and stand in the corner Wardy  ;)

[terrace max]

They also say kids love it!

[redimp]

Handy as I have a couple of kids who need Omega3 - it's exhausting round here sometimes.  Cannot get them to eat greasy fish which as a near vegan I don't like getting too close either.

[terrace max]

Yep, agreed - oily fish is full of mercury apparently...

[Bambi.1]

Chiltern Seeds Online Shop.   Have I redeemed myself TM?  It deffo says its Purslane portulacea  :)

Thank You Wardy  :-*

[terrace max]

No, no, no Bambi - don't buy that, if you want omega 3 you want one of these two, honest:

http://www.organiccatalog.com/catalog/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=purslane&search_in_description=0&x=17&y=7

(I think after midday Wardy's probably had a bit too much sweet sherry, so just ignore her) ;)

[terrace max]

Just noticed it's cheaper here, look under 'Purslane':

http://www.suffolkherbs.com/data/SH/includes/frameset.asp?SHOP=SH&LAN=UK&MAIN=Default

...but the site is horrible to use.

[Bambi.1]

No, no, no Bambi - don't buy that, if you want omega 3 you want one of these two, honest:

http://www.organiccatalog.com/catalog/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=purslane&search_in_description=0&x=17&y=7

(I think after midday Wardy's probably had a bit too much sweet sherry, so just ignore her) ;)

Thanks TM  ;D This looks a great site .............and thank you Wardy  ;)

[Robert_Brenchley]

If oily fish is too greasy, have you tried steaming it or baking it? I can't cope with it if it's gone anywhere near fat in the cooking, but steaming in particular takes a bit of the oil out.

[PREMTAL]

Hi Terrace Max,
                         Fish from the sea do contain trace  mercury in their system, however it is not strictly true to say that oily fish are more likely to be carriers.

Mercury is a heavy element and will therefore find its way into the systems of bottom feeders like cod.

The fish containing the most beneficial oils is Mackrel, and being a top feeder it is far less likely to be subjected to the poisons of mercury.

On the subject of omega oils the best source of these oils actually comes from hemp seed, it contains omega 3 and 6 in the correct balance for human consumption.

Unfortunately being related to cannabis you need a licence to grow it in this country. >:(

The charity that my daughter works for sent people out to Afghanistan just after the end of the war to show the local people how to grow hemp.

In their country they can get 3 crops in a year and for those who are starving it is a life saver. ;D

For those who wish to avail themselves of this as a supplement it can be purchased as an organic oil extract.

It is marketed  by Viridian, comes in a 200 ml bottle it costs £8-50, it has a nutty flavour and is not unpleasant to take.

Hemp seed is highly nutritious, and also as a bonus has the beneficial effect of softening the skin, my daughter swears by it.

                                                      PREMTAL

[terrace max]

Hi Premtal

Puzzled now. Pregnant women in the US are advised to avoid mackerel (and swordfish) because of the mercury contamination  ??? Can't get into a scientific debate about it though, because I don't know what I'm talking about!!

Anyway, this is what the US gov says about it:

Nearly all fish and shellfish contain traces of methylmercury. However, larger fish that have lived longer have the highest levels of methylmercury because they've had more time to accumulate it. These large fish (swordfish, shark, king mackerel and tilefish) pose the greatest risk.

...some fish and shellfish contain higher levels of mercury that may harm an unborn baby or young child's developing nervous system. The risks from mercury in fish and shellfish depend on the amount of fish and shellfish eaten and the levels of mercury in the fish and shellfish. Therefore, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are advising women who may become pregnant, pregnant women, nursing mothers, and young children to avoid some types of fish and eat fish and shellfish that are lower in mercury.

So it seems the fishes' longevity is also key. I read somewhere else that toxins are concentrated in fishes' fat cells - so oily fish are a always bit suspect. Maybe an argument for sticking lower down the food chain? After all - the fish get their Omega 3 from plants...

It's difficult to find anything useful from our government - perhaps they have a fishing industry to prop up??

Agree entirely with everything you say about hemp though.

Now, pass me a sherry Wardy! :)

[redimp]

Hemp seed is highly nutritious, and also as a bonus has the beneficial effect of softening the skin, my daughter swears by it.

                                                      PREMTAL

Ah, but does it also soften the head?

[Robert_Brenchley]

Oily fish are predators of open water, and the concern is probably that the larger ones have had time to eat lots of smaller fish which will have picked up any mercury contamination that's about.

[PREMTAL]

Hi Terrace Max,
                        Like yourself I am not well versed in the deeper science of this subject and do not doubt that in American coastal waters it has been shown to be a problem.

The Americans however are more likely to have problems with mercury build up in their fish population. Given that they have healthy fish stocks the fish live longer before entering the food chain.

We on the other hand are constantly being told that our fish stocks are in danger. This being the case it would seem unlikely that our food fish would live long enough to build up high levels of mercury.

I agree entirely with your assessment of government info
the nearest thing to an answer that you get is to be told that "it is within permitted limits" whatever that means. ::)

PS:- I think that our fish stocks are more likely to glow in the dark. ;D

                                                     PREMTAL

[ina]

Also known as Portulaca Sativa or Pigweed  :o :o

Purslane was mentioned on Horizon recently as being very high in Omega 3 and good in salads,Has anybody tried growing it or eaten it  ???

Also has anyone any idea of where to get the seeds from  ??? l know many of you have seed catalogues.......Please  :-*

To get back at the original question about purslane, I think everyone in The Netherlands knows this vegetable but I don't think there's one child who likes it hahaha. There's two kinds here, summer and winter purslane. I don't like it at all, it's kind of sour and slimy but I grow it every year for my mother who loves it.

Someone wrote that they start it off (was it in a greenhouse?) and plant it out, I don't see how you can do that, unless they are talking about a different sort that I don't know about. You harvest the seedlings and you need zillions of them for a meal, if you let them grow on, it will become woody.
Here are a couple of pictures of purslain growing and harvested. Hope it helps.

Purslain growing in the foreground


Harvested purslain on the left in the trug

[terrace max]

OK to summarise - Ina is growing Winter Purslane aka Miner's Lettuce. Latin name MONTIA PERFOLIATA. This is a winter weed which I find difficult to get going from seed but once it's in, self-seeds everywhere. Not a gourmet delight. NOT loved by children. But a useful winter stand by.

The plant relevant to this thread due to its Omega 3 content is (Summer) Purslane, PORTULACA OLERACEA. This comes in Green or Golden varieties. It's bland but has an interesting texture.

This is what an internet search came up with:

P. oleracea contains many biologically active compounds and is a source of many nutrients. Some of the biologically active (and, in some case, potentially toxic compounds) include free oxalic acids, alkaloids, omega-3 fatty acids, coumarins, flavonoids, cardiac glycosides, and anthraquinone glycosides. It has high contents of Omega-3 fatty acids and protein (compared to other vegetables) (Ezekwe, et al. 1999). The quantity of these compounds in P. oleracea varies with the growing conditions (e.g., planting date, soil quality, fertilization) and the age of the plant. Some of the compounds in Portulaca oleracea are listed below.

alanine -- plant and herb (570-13,400 ppm)
alkaloids -- leaf (300 ppm)
caffeic acid -- plant
calcium oxalate -- herb
catechol -- plant
beta-cyanin -- herb
digalactosyldiacylglycerol -- herb
docosahexaenoic acid -- herb
dopa -- plant
eicosapentaenoic acid -- herb (10 ppm)
HCN -- plant
histidine -- herb (220-5,170 ppm)
l-noradrenalin -- plant (2,500 ppm)
linoleic acid -- herb (704-18,245 ppm) and seed (67,686 ppm)
linolenic acid - herb (3,221-64,315 ppm) and seed (17,226 ppm)
alpha-linolenic acid -- herb (4,000-80,000 ppm)
lysine -- herb (650-13,200 ppm)
methionine -- herb (90-2,814 ppm)
norepinephrine -- plant
oleic acid -- herb (16-2,160 ppm) and seed (49,935 ppm)
omega-3's -- plant (30,000 ppm)
oxalates -- shoot
oxalic acid -- plant (1,679-16,790 ppm)
phytin-p -- plant (4-40 ppm)
saponin -- plant
sinapic acid -- plant
beta-sitosterol -- seed
tannin -- plant
threonine -- herb (470-9,400 ppm)
tryptophan -- herb (160-3,400 ppm)
valine -- herb (660-13,200 ppm

Hope this helps Omega 3 hunters and purslane enthusiasts everywhere.  :)