Wild & Green - 3 seasonal wild plants to add zing to your day

I love this time of year, listening to the lambs bleating in the fields around me and the sunshine land on the Dublin mountains. In spite of lockdown, I’m loving the coming of spring. Picking and eating anything fresh and green helps me to connect with that wild freedom scent drifting off the hills, keeping me grounded and hopeful!

Coming in the gate the other day I saw some wild garlic beside the daffodils and remembered a clump we had transplanted from a woodland elsewhere a few years ago. This is a great time for picking all the wild young leaves coming up in your garden or a local park or woodland.

 Wild garlic is flourishing at the moment, it likes the darker, damper woodland areas so keep your eyes peeled if you go down to the woods today.  The leaves can be chopped into salad or added to a sandwich, it has such a delicious fresh taste. It’s also great made into pesto.

Researching just now, I discovered that wild garlic has high levels of folic acid and has positive benefits on the digestive system, acting as a prebiotic, encouraging the growth of friendly bacteria. It also has mild antibacterial properties to ward off spring coughs and sniffles. What’s not to love?

 Young dandelion leaves added to a salad will give a zesty tang and will add some extra nutrients and enzymes as well as that extra flavour. I like to tear them into small pieces and scatter them into a salad so as not to overwhelm it, as they can be quite bitter. But mixed with other salad veg it works really well to create a zingy taste. The freshness is great to wake up your taste buds and get you into a springy mood!

 Baby nettles are on the way too, and nettles are full of goodness   made into a tea or added to soup they bring all kinds of benefits:

 Nettle tea  is great for giving the liver and kidneys some love! The ultimate low cost detox.

 Nettle leaf contains high levels of protein, calcium, phosphorus, iron, magnesium, and beta-carotene and high amounts of the vitamins A, C, D, and B complex.

 I use a cafetière and let the nettles sit for 30 minutes – 1 hour infused in boiling water, then drink it as a tonic throughout the day.

 Next time you’re passing a wild verge, meandering through the park or casting an eye over an untended clump in the garden see if any of these wild plants are sprouting up and may be ready to add some spring to your step!

Siobhán Daffy runs Natural Rhythms Natural Health Practice for women looking for hormonal and emotional balance in their lives.