Blitum Species, Strawberry Blite, Strawberry Goosefoot, Indian Paint, Strawberry Spinach

Planning on trying to grow this plant this year. Found that Park's Seeds carries the seed and fairly cheaply. We eat a lot of greens and ...Read Morefigure that this could be a fun one.

I planted this from seed one spring and it didn't come up till 2 years later. Now, it appears every year in about the same places. It's...Read More pretty amongst other things. Yes, it does come up in odd places but is easily uprooted or transplanted. The berries taste to me like a very seedy mulberry but more bland, it might add visual interest in a salad and taste ok if it had dressing on it. But I wouldn't waste time juicing those berries. Chickens love them, a nice treat for them since the mulberries aren't ready yet when they are ripe. The foliage makes a decent spinach and it comes up so dependably every spring that it's almost like a perennial.

The neutral rating is due to lack of long-term experience with strawberry spinach; last year was the first I've tried it, so I don't yet ...Read Moreknow if it'll be real "pesky" (invasive-wise) or not.

I found it to be a delightful plant, leaves & "berries" alike. I like the flavor of the sweet red things - sort of corn-like, but with lots of other overtones. Great in salads.

It does contain oxalic acid, but that's not a concern unless you plan on using it as a mainstay of your diet!

We'll see what I think after the 2010 growing season.

It was a nice trial in my vegetable garden for the first year, growing with fennel and making a lovely scene. But strawberry spinach is a...Read More real weed since it produces tons of seeds ! I now have to dig it up each spring in my yard. Leaves are suitable as a substitute of spinach but don't expect something of the fruits : it looks like a strawberry but tastes like a sickly sweet beet !