Lamb's Quarters Wild Edible Food

Lamb's Quarters Identification:Lamb's Quarters aka pigweed, is an annual that has a white powdered look. It makes very small green flowers that form in clusters on top of spikes. The leaves are light green on the top and whitish underneath, some teeth along edges. The plant usually grows to about 3 to 4 feet high (1-1.2 meters).

The leaves are shaped like the air freshener Christmas tree shaped air fresheners that you see hanging from peoples rear view mirrors. Also if you look at the main stalk you will see that it is two colors in up and down stripes like an old time prison uniform.

Edible parts:You can eat the leaves, shoots, seeds and flowers of the lamb's quarters. The seeds however can be toxic and should not be eaten. Lamb's quarters contain some oxalic acid. Cooking in water and discarding the water will alleviate this problem, although most people will not bother with this step if small quantities are being consumed.