Join the RHS today and support our charitable work, Keep track of your plants with reminders & care tips – all to help you grow successfully, For the latest on RHS Shows in 2020 and 2021, read more, RHS members get free access to RHS Gardens, Free entry to RHS members at selected times », Reduced prices on RHS Garden courses and workshops, Our Garden Centres and online shops are packed with unique and thoughtful gifts and decorations to make your Christmas sparkle, General enquiries Roundup Ultra, SBM Job done Tough Weedkiller (soluble sachet only), Resolva Pro Xtra Tough or Doff Maxi Strength Glyphosate Weedkiller), Being non-selective, it is essential to avoid spray drift onto neighbouring plants. … 020 3176 5800 Out in the Southwest the dock gets huge, with giant leaves - the plant is almost a small bush. Your email address will not be published. Broad leaf dock top, curly dock bottom. How do you like to use them? Then gently pull the seeds from the stem while holding it over a large pan or bowl. RHS Garden Hyde Hall Spring and Orchid Show, Free entry to RHS members at selected Chemicals: using spot and broad-scale Clean Eating Recipes . Explore. Thousand Wishes has Curly dock seeds flour bread, Learning and Yearning has Dock Seed Brownies, Edible Wild Food has a simple Quarter Dock Seed Crackers recipe that also uses lambsquarters seeds, Finally, Gather Victoria has a decadent looking Double Chocolate Curly Dock Seed Cake. If you’re new to identifying dock, Foraging Texas has great information on IDing and using dock. Used for their leaves and seeds are: Rumex rispus, Rumex obtusifolius (also called Butter Dock because it was used to wrap butter) Rumex patientia, Rumex pulcher, and Rumex sanguineus. Foraging Dock Seeds for Wild Foraged Flour ~ Yellow dock produces tiny seeds, similar to buckwheat, which can be ground into flour for baking. You can often find it near fields, ditches and the edges of forests and in parks and meadows. I’d like to try it someday. Tougher formulations are worth trying (e.g. You can either wash them gently or sift them through a sieve to remove any bugs. Asparagus. Thus, when I decided to use the toasted seeds in a cracker, the name was obvious. Passing on traditional skills like foraging, cooking from scratch and living well on less. Have you cooked with dock seeds? Docks have a thick, branched tap root that can regrow from the top section if damaged. Notice that on the edge of the leaf of Curly Dock there is a wavy “crisped” margin and also its relative thinness and “lancelike” shape. Dock seeds can be used whole to make dock seed crackers, but for most purposes, it’s better to grind it into flour. is part of the Buckwheat family (Polygonaceae). Weedkillers for gardeners  (Adobe Acrobat pdf document outlining weedkillers available to gardeners; see sections 1a, b and 4), Chemicals: using a sprayer By late spring or early summer, dock produces tall flower stalks that bear copious amounts of seed, which are also edible. Weeds: non-chemical control, Join It is a list of products currently available to the home gardener. Curly dock seeds have 20, 000 units of vitamin A per ½ cup. Required fields are marked *. Purslane can often be found in moist garden beds, lawns, and shady areas, where it lies … This relates to the leaves, though. Docks are common, persistent, perennial weeds of agricultural and recently disturbed land and gardens. For best taste let them soak in water for a few hours to remove the bitterness then dry the seeds and grinding the dock seeds … Purslane. Wild dock seeds tend to have a lot of chaff, but I've still eaten them. Young leaves are edible fresh or cooked. Dock seeds are commonly imported via manure however composted manure, municipal compost and other soil improvers should be free of dock seeds. Although the leaves of this plant can be described as appetizing and a prime source of both vitamin A and vitamin B, it is best to be consumed moderately as it can cause urinary tract irritations. In pasture, individual plants of broad-leaved dock can be very long lived, forming compound crowns with multiple taproots. I also didn’t even try to make them pretty, as it was my first experiment with just seeing how they’d taste!). Explore. wildflowers) and so should only be used in grass where such action is acceptable, Glyphosate is a more effective treatment for established docks, Apply when growing strongly from mid-summer onwards, Glyphosate is not selective and any spray coming into contact with grass around the docks would be killed or severely checked, Ready-to-use sprays or a gel formulation (Roundup Gel) can make application to individual weeds more accurate, Apply glyphosate as a spot treatment to individual plants or spray areas that have been cleared of cultivated plants, Glyphosate is a non-selective weedkiller applied to the foliage, where it is translocated throughout the weed. Many phytochemical investigations on this genus confirmed that Rumex species are rich in anthraquinones, naphthalenes, flavonoids, stilbenoids, triterpenes, carotenoids, and phenolic acids. the RHS today and get 12 months for the price of 9. Once you’ve ground your roasted dock seeds, transfer the flour to a glass jar with a tight fitting lid, and store it out of direct sun light. Mon – Fri | 9am – 5pm, Join the RHS today and support our charity. Let's be honest - I made these crackers specifically because I came up with the name Rumex crisps. These leaves do have a bitter taste, especially the older they become. After that but it can become tough and somewhat bland. Cautions. The root contains the most medicinal properties; it can be boiled to make a bitter tea that detoxifies, helps the liver or skin ailments, and is used as a laxative. It's best to think of dock as our native buckwheat. Yes, even in the midst of a pandemic (actually, especially because of the pandemic), our family still foraged quite a number of wild foods... Life is too short to eat bad gluten-free pizza, and there's no reason you have to. I'm a sucker for wordplay. Small, greenish white flowers appear on tall spikes. Seeds can be used raw or cooked. If you’re new to identifying dock, Foraging Texas has great information on IDing and using dock. Several folks have told me they also make dock seed crackers. I pressed them into little flat crackers, poked a few holes with a fork, and baked them on a cookie sheet at 350 until they were crispy (the coconut flour ones took much longer than the almond flour ones, but the time varies greatly by how moist them are and how flat you press them). When making big batches, I roll crackers out and cut them into squares with a pizza cutter, but for small batches it works to just hand press them. I toasted mine in a cast iron pan before grinding it, since toasting seems to make everything better. R. crispusas the name suggests has wavy, curled leaf edges with wedge-shaped leaves. Broad-leaved dock (Rumex obtusifolius) is a long lived perennial with a basal rosette of long-stalked, smooth ovate-oblong leaves, stems 80cm-1m (32in-3¼ft) high and the distinctive seedheads on spikes that persist into winter. The seeds come off the stalk easily once they’re dried, and in an area full of dock seed you should be able to collect several cups in just a few minutes. Curled dock (R. crispus) similar to broad-leaved dock but leaves are tapering with a wavy edge and stems 60cm-1m (2-3¼ft). We don’t have enough growing in our area to collect the quantity of seeds needed to make flour. (As a side note, we also discovered that the hollow stalks are great fun for blowing bubbles too.). Bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta) Bittercress. Docks weeds (Rumex spp.) I haven’t tried eating the seeds of curly dock yet. They can also be dried for later use. The Journal of the American Oil Chemists’ Society reported that dock seeds contain 10.62% protein and are also a source of lysine, fiber, phosphorus, calcium and other nutrients. Chemicals: using safely and effectively As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. They did note that dock, like other greens, does have a fair amount of oxalic acid and could lead to kidney stones in susceptible individuals if consumed in large quantities. Simply use a knife or clippers to cut the seeds from the curly dock stems. I made two batches — one with half toasted dock seed flour and half almond flour, and one with half coconut flour. Rumex obtusifolius, commonly known as bitter dock, broad-leaved dock, bluntleaf dock, dock leaf or butter dock, is a perennial plant in the family Polygonaceae.It is native to Europe, but is found on all temperate continents. We all liked the garlic almond flour version but the coconut flour one didn’t impress us at all. They are often difficult to eradicate as their deep tap root can regrow from the top section and they produce large amounts of seed. Elderberries: The Beginner's Guide to Foraging, Preserving and Using Elderberries for Health Remedies, Recipes, Drinks & More, Getting Started Homeschooling: Everything You Need to Know About Legal Requirements, Curricula, Testing, Types of Homeschooling, Learning Styles, Socialization and Making It Fun for Everyone, A Magical Homeschool: Nature Studies (52 Wonderful Ways to Use Nature Studies in Every Season to Teach Science, Math, Art and More). The latin name for curly dock, a wild plant with edible leaves and seeds, is Rumex crispus. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place. fenestratus, Rumex articus , Rumex paucifolius, Rumex rugosus , Rumex sagittatus, Rumex vesicarius , and Rumex scutatus . Using Curly Dock Roots. If you are planning to grow this species then you should be aware that it could spread like crazy via its long tap-root system. Senna and tamarind also possess laxative properties, whereas aloe and nettle can be used as alternative sources for anti-inflammatory benefits as well. Edible Parts. are easily recognised with their large leaves and distinctive seedheads. “Yup, there they are,” you’ll quickly note each time your eyes scan the scenery. Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) You might spot purslane in your favorite seed catalogs, but it can also … That was the fault of the coconut flour though, which tends to suck all the moisture out of your mouth (Tiffany had a ton of it and had asked me to find uses for it). Foraging Dock Seeds ~ Wild Foraged Flour. Only the very young leaves should be used, preferably before the stems have developed, and even these are likely to be bitter[12, 95, 257]. Docks are difficult for gardeners to control by cultural methods once established. The branched taproots are yellow in color and may be harvested. 5. Note:  This article was originally published in Daryl's Cooking with Kids column at examiner.com in September, 2013. They are a common weeds in garden and difficult to eradicate. Its stalk, root, and seed are also edible. Steaming, boiling or sautéing improves the texture of large, mature leaves. People gobbled them up before I got a proper picture and I quickly used my cell phone to take a photo of the last three on a saucer as the kids were asking for them. Special Diet. In addition, hepatoprotective, antiviral and antidiabetic activities should have priority in future pharmacological studies. The root grows large and deep, and it can be harvested for potent herbal medicine anytime. Dock grows as an invasive weed all over the world. Bittercress edible parts/uses: The leaves, flowers, and … Docks are difficult for gardeners to control by cultural methods once established. Despite the name, burdock (burr dock) is actually in another plant family (Articum spp), though it is also healthy and useful. Curly dock is a well known wild edible plant and it is also one of the early perennial plants that comes in spring. Mix it with milder greens to cut the flavor more. Since dock plants are common around the world, this is an easily accessible source of wild foraged flour. So how to go about foraging curly dock? In the UK the two common species that you are likely to have come across are, Broad Leaved Dock (Rumex obtusifolius), and Curled Dock (Rumex crispus), which in the US is called Yellow Dock. Curly Dock. Herbs . It is important to have good leaf coverage so that as much chemical is absorbed as possible, Sprays are most effective if applied from early June to mid-August, As this weed is so persistent several applications may be necessary. Some people will cook leaves in at least one change of water in order to reduce the bitterness. Collect a bunch of the plants seeds after they have dried on the plant, then use a rubbing motion in your hands to rub off a good bit of the husk. Eaten for their tart flavor are: Rumex acetosa, Rumex acetosella, Rumex aquaticus var. Miscellaneous: Large genus of 200 species containing both useful plants grown for their edible leaves in soups and sauces (e.g., Common Sorrel: Rumex acetosa), and to wrap butter (Butter Dock: (Rumex obtusifolius) and all out weeds such as Dock. My first experiment was with crackers. Rumex crispus is closely related to a number of other docks and sorrels in Australia including native Rumex brownii (Bilili in Wiradjuri or swamp dock in English) or naturalised Rumex obtusifolius (broadleaf dock) or native Rumex cristallinus (shiny dock) or native Rumex tenax (also shiny dock). 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