***OKIES in the BYC III ***

[Kassaundra]

Is poke salad dandelion greens? My mother said her grandma used to pick dandelion greens and wilt it with bacon grease and call it poke salad.

No, both are edible wild weeds, but they are not the same at all. Poke grows tall and woody and has purple berries.

 

[NanaKat]

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My new to me foraging book says peel young poke sprouts & dip in cornmeal & fry. I only knew about boiled & poke cooked in bacon. Bought 3 lbs of bacon tonight to go with my poke salad!
Also found a chicken use for poke salad. Take pieces of the root & put in the chickens water to prevent disease. Doubt I will add the root to my birds water, but I sure plan on eating some greens.
ETA--- everyone needs a copy of stalking the wild asparagus! Pure entertainment! Just came to the section that tells you how to prepare raccoon, opossum, muskrat & woodchuck! Seriously!!!! Wonder how many books published today would provide suggestions on how to prepare such items for a meat course -- actually I don't think I have ever read a book that even uses the term meat course!

I have never eaten it, I was raised by northerners (from Maine) who always thought of it as poison, and when grown I just never got around to trying it. I might this year, it grows wild in my yard. The article said it tasted like asparagus, I always thought or assumed it was bitter.

Poke is more a cross between the taste of spinach and maybe asparagus. We clean and boil once, rinse completely and then use chicken broth and a little bacon fat.
Hubby loves it with eggs scrambled into the pan.
Yes, you can fry the stems just like okra..in oil and cornmeal in a hot skillet. Just crosscut the tender stems. don't use the harder stems.
The flavor of poke is too bitter for eatting raw in a salad.

 

[RetiredArmyWife]

No, both are edible wild weeds, but they are not the same at all. Poke grows tall and woody and has purple berries.

Hmm that is interesting. My mothers grandma was from Texas so I thought it might be the same. Maybe she just used the dandelions and called it that because it is made in similar ways. Kinda like chicken fried steak. LOL

 

[artsyrobin]

I've never heard of it not being legal to plant along property lines....

Okay guinea people, need some help. The loner I couldn't get in the barn the other night doesn't seem to be getting along with the flock now. She's keeping her distance and then I notice them chasing one of the blues occasionally so I assume it's her. Only solution here to get more adult guineas so it changes the flock dynamic or what?

well, it could just be the time of year? I have 2 flocks of 3 each, they are still working things out and never seem happier than when chasing eveyone around or in the case of the boys, banging on each other- and i do have a loner, but she sleeps with the older bunch, the rest the time she is on the fringes

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me too, gonna have to check the junk pile that is such an eyesore, maybe there is something like that lurking under everything



Mitzi, yes, the new bator- i think i should have taken them out last nite, the ones that were dry- learning curve- have had 6 hatch- one i am waiting on since i don't know how far along it was, it was from a broody that quit- so actually thats pretty good i think.. considering 7 were shipped and of those, 5 hatched, not to mention those of Joes that coral is hatching for me...

 

[Oakieridge]

We have 2 loner guineas, both males. One from our first flock, I put him in with our babies that are in the Jr. High coop (10-14 week olds). He loves it and couldn't be happier. The other one we bought at auction and the rest of the flock won't let him eat or be anywhere without picking on him. We put him in the Jr. High coop with the other one. While he isn't being picked on he sure is spastic. He is a bit not right in the head IMO, lol. But at least he isn't being chased and picked on now so I am leaving him there for now.

 

[Oceanseve]

I'm pretty sure it's a girl. Only the girls do the buck wheat call right? That's why I was suprised she's being singled out. I would have thought they'd accept any female.

 

[Kassaundra]

Thank you Okla

Got the seeds today, they are awesome!!!! Couple of questions, Which one is the vining okra?, none actually say that. What are the seeds in the pkt marked night shade? and What are the seeds that look like watermelon in the clear pkt?


With one of the pkts I'm now armed and dangerous! lol lol I could start working on a hit list!!!! lol lol lol

 

[Kassaundra]

I had a thought about the cool bird / small animal cages Sooner posted, if you placed them so that you could grow vining plants up the sides around them that would act as a cooling shade, and green food and attract insects for insect food.

 

[Oakieridge]

Yes

I'm pretty sure it's a girl. Only the girls do the buck wheat call right? That's why I was suprised she's being singled out. I would have thought they'd accept any female.

Yes they all make the allert call but only the female makes the buckwheat call. Can you maybe put her in a pen with one of the males (try for one of the less agressive) and see if that doesn't help. I am with you though I would think they would take a female in with no issues.

 

[Oceanseve]

I don't have any empty pens. I have a 4x6 all my young chicks are in and another 4x6 we are picking up today for the ducks that are in a old fish tank stand right now and they are miserable. Everybody else free ranges right now. Everyone finally made their way back into the barn so hopefully they are being nice to her now. I didn't count heads cause my youngest wanted to chase them around the barn, but I thought I saw three blues