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Tumbleweed two ways

June 29, 2025 By Erica M. Davis Leave a Comment

Do prickly tumbleweeds pile on your house or nearby fence lines? If so, dinner may be close by. Before the spines firm up, you can boil the green shoots and tender branch tips of the developing plants for a mild, spinach-like green.

Our prickly tumbleweeds belong to plants in the genus Salsola. Young plants are not prickly, however, and those are the ones you’re after. Look for thin-fleshy, linear leaves. Although the leaves are bristle-tipped, the bristles are soft at first. Plants start out as wispy seedlings that hide in plain sight because they resemble grass.

As they grow and branch, they produce clusters of long, thin leaves at the branch tips. Early stems may be smooth, glassy, and succulent, or darker and rough with short, stiff hairs. They are usually green-striped at first, becoming red-striped and red-blushed at the junctures. In time the longer leaves drop off and shorter, prickly bracts develop.

Salsola species occur from the western prairies to the Pacific Coast, south to Mexico and north to Canada. There are significant populations in the Upper Midwest and Northeast too, especially along railroad tracks. They like full sun and dry, saline or alkaline soils, from high plains to semi-desert shrublands. Seedlings often form a straight trail where the mother weed tumbled.

You might think they’re native because they star in Old West films—but they were introduced to North America in the late 19th century. Two are widespread in the West—the very-prickly Russian thistle (Salsola tragus), with spiny bracts that point back, and slender Russian thistle (Salsola collina), pictured below, with bracts that point forward. All species look similar when young and can be used the same way.

Salsola season starts in mid to late spring—typically May or June on Colorado’s high plains and June or July in the high country. Plants pop up and grow quickly after rain. The greens are best when plump with stored water. I prefer greener plants with thicker leaves and succulent stems. Pinch off the stem and branch tips where they snap easily, before the leaf spines harden enough to prick you. You can eat the leaves together with the tender terminal part of the stems and branches to which they attach.

They are not good raw. To prepare, boil until tender—I like a good 10-15 minutes until they’re quite limp. Then you can enjoy them in any dish that calls for mild greens. Some species have a smoother texture than others.

Our wild salsolas have much in common with agretti (Salsola soda), a seasonal vegetable of central Italy’s cucina povera, or peasant cuisine. In Japan, a related species called “land seaweed” (Salsola komarovi) is used in soups, or blanched and tossed ae-mono in variety of dressings.

Here are two small-batch dressings to get you started. I like to boil and shock my greens in cold water, then dress and serve the salads cold.

Tamari-Sesame “Land Seaweed” Dressing

  • 1 Tbsp honey
  • 1 Tbsp tamari
  • 1/8 cup rice vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 Tbsp sesame seeds

Classic Italian Agretti Dressing

  • 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1.5 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 1/8 tsp ground black pepper

Foraging Colorado Springs–June 2025

June 18, 2025 By Erica M. Davis

UPDATE 6/26/25: The Colorado Springs events are now SOLD OUT. Please see Colorado classes to learn … [Read More...]

Get your free web class!

June 4, 2025 By Erica M. Davis

Welcome foragers! For a limited time I'm giving away one free web class to everyone who signs up. … [Read More...]

Foraging Classes in Colorado’s Mountains

May 13, 2025 By Erica M. Davis

Interested in edible wild plants? You've come to the right place. I have a variety of plant walks, … [Read More...]

Biscuitroots Rediscovered

May 1, 2025 By Erica M. Davis

Across the West’s windswept prairies and desert foothills is a group of wild foods that make a brief … [Read More...]

Edible Plant Walks: May 2025 Loveland Colorado

March 20, 2025 By Erica M. Davis Leave a Comment

Looking to jump-start your foraging hobby? Or expand your knowledge of what plants are edible? In this 2-hour … [Read More...]

Healthy & Wild series

March 8, 2025 By Erica M. Davis Leave a Comment

The new Healthy & Wild series launched on March 15 but you can still check out the first presentation for … [Read More...]

Wild grain from field to plate

February 11, 2025 By Erica M. Davis Leave a Comment

Lamb’s quarters isn’t just another backyard weed—it’s a powerhouse of nutrition with seeds that can be … [Read More...]

Processing lamb’s quarters seeds into wild grain

January 28, 2025 By Erica M. Davis Leave a Comment

Have you ever wondered how to process lamb’s quarters or goosefoot seeds (Chenopodium species) into an edible … [Read More...]

Recipe: Creamy nettle soup

May 29, 2024 By Erica M. Davis 4 Comments

This stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) soup is quick, easy to make, and full of flavor. A lot of nettle soups … [Read More...]

Healthy vegan dandelion soup

May 13, 2024 By Erica M. Davis Leave a Comment

This is a healthy vegan version of my favorite dandelion soup. Called manest, it is an Italian soup … [Read More...]

Huckleberry, billberry, whortleberry, grouseberry

August 25, 2023 By Erica M. Davis 5 Comments

The other day I collected three precious pints of Colorado huckleberries (Vaccinium species). They may be … [Read More...]

New Podcast: Pinyon Pines & Mesquite

August 23, 2023 By Erica M. Davis 3 Comments

Did you know that piñon pines produce delicious pine nuts similar to those we purchase in the grocery store? … [Read More...]

WFG on Wild Fish & Game podcast

January 13, 2022 By Erica M. Davis 2 Comments

Hi folks, I just wanted to share this interview I did with Justin and Kory at the Wild Fish & Game podcast … [Read More...]

Wild jelly candies

October 24, 2021 By Erica M. Davis 7 Comments

This year I have been experimenting with wild jelly candies made from the concentrated juice of wild berries … [Read More...]

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Wild Food Girl

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Book reviews

Samuel Thayer’s ‘Incredible Wild Edibles’

Hank Shaw’s ‘Buck, Buck, Moose’

Katrina Blair’s ‘Wild Wisdom of Weeds’

Thomas Elpel’s ‘Foraging the Mountain West’

Dina Falconi’s ‘Foraging & Feasting’

Ellen Zachos’ ‘Backyard Foraging’

Rebecca Lerner’s ‘Dandelion Hunter’

John Kallas’ ‘Edible Wild Plants’

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