EDIBLE STEMS AND LEAVES 



sight of spring days to see these new-fledged Ameri- 

 cans dotting the fields and waste lots near our big 

 cities, armed with knives, snipping and transferring 

 to sack or basket the tender new leaves of the well- 

 beloved plant, which, like themselves, is a translated 

 European. The leaves are best when boiled in two 

 waters to remove the bitterness resident in them; 

 and then, served like spinach or beet-tops, they are 

 good enough for any table. Old Peter Kalm, who 

 has ever an eye watchful for the uses- to which people 

 put the wild plants, tells us the French Canadians 

 in his day did not use the leaves of the Dandelion, 

 but the roots, digging these in the spring, cutting 

 them and preparing them as a bitter salad. 



Then there is Chicory, which has run wild in 

 settled parts of the eastern United States and to 

 some extent on the Pacific coast, adorning the road- 

 sides in summer with its charming blue flowers of 

 half a day. Its young leaves, if prepared in the 

 same way as those of the Dandelion, are relished 

 by some, ^^referably, though, the leaves are 

 blanched and eaten raw as a salad. The blanching 

 riay be done in several ways. The outer leaves may 

 be drawn up and tied so as to protect the inner foliage 

 from the light and thus whiten it, or flower-pots may 

 be capped over the plants. Another method is this : 



117 



