Milkweed

[Jedi_Sena]

I've just got to report this. I had a volunteer Showy Milkweed in my flower garden last summer. It must have piggy-backed on our camping gear last year. It was rather ill-fitting to my decor, but since I am always in search of new natural foods for hermit crabs I let it continue to grow there. Well, I read an edible plants of the Rocky Mountains book and found that it is one of the better tasting potherbs (stuff you cook like spinach), so I dried a leaf and set it aside for the crabs. Well it got ignored for some time so I removed it. On the second try, however, they ate the entire thing down to the stem! It is demolished! So, if no one has any bad reaction to it, then perhaps it is a safe food. I thought that anything milky inside was to be avoided, but the book said that was not true and gave dandelions as an example. My guess is that it will prove to be safe. In my experience w/ food trials, when the crabs enthusiastically try a new food, then it turns out to be safe. But, only time will tell . . . .

[Jedi_Sena]

http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/doc/cs_assp.doc
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=ASSP
http://www.bentler.us/eastern-washingto ... kweed.aspx

also aphids love these plants and the leaves I picked where covered w/ aphids!