American Basswood (Tilia americana) has large edible leaves
Tired of sowing, growing & munching lettuce? A pollarded tree can provide you with a salad leaf crop
I love the Edimentals & Perennial Vegetables group. Facebook profits from division and disinformation but this group is one of the few plus points, a veritable silver lining.
I have one pollarded White Mulberry (Morus alba) and two Small Leaved Limes (Tilia cordata) in the forest garden. You can eat the delicate new leaves in a salad. However, I don’t get that much of a crop from the Lime trees, so I asked on the group if pruning throughout the growing season would help increase the crop of young leaves. The answers were mixed and interesting
- Do some research online to see if constant pruning would damage the tree
- It’s best as a spring crop
- Give it a go and report back
- Make sure to feed it nitrogen, either with a nitrogen-rich mulch or with a nitrogen fixing plant nearby
- Rotate them for cropping, to prevent tree getting exhausted
I also learned that American Basswood (Tilia americana) can be used in the same way but has much bigger leaves. So, I might have to buy yet another tree!
Thank you everyone for your suggestions 🙂