Echo has both kinds of 'spinach."  I strongly recommend Malabar spinach and Chenopodium giganteum as greens for hot weather.  Also, Moringa sp. can be grown as an annual or will be perennial where Okinawa spinach is perennial (comes back from the ground if knocked back by frost.  Most of ours resprouted after an especially severe winter here.)  Moringa is and C. giganteum are undoubtedly the tops both for nutrition and for flavor. Moringa comes on strong after the annuals have bolted.  Pinching back only delays bolting for so long.  If you get extra Okinawa spinach, I'll send seed of C. giganteum in exchange.  I've got about a quart of the tiny seed on hand.  Depending on where your friend lives, various species of Bidens are outstanding greens--a common weed around here and reportedly high in nutrition.  One party told me that it has anti-viral action, but I've not been able to confirm that.  Generally, any leafy greens that rabbits will eat more than once are edible by people (except for a few obscure species of the deep tropics.)  Moreover, many garden vegetables grown for other parts have edible leaves, e.g., common beans, squash, carrots, etc.  Sweet potato leaves are an outstanding potherb, and plants bear more tubers if the vines are pinched back after they have put on some growth.  This also keeps the vines from overwhelming their neighbors.  Ornamental Celosia plants have edible leaves, tolerate hot conditions, and of course produced attractive flowers nd foliage.  They can be successively planted for greens late into the summer and early fall, after which cool weather greens will be producing.  

Dan Hemenway



-----Original Message-----
From: Cory Brennan <cory8570@yahoo.com>
To: lapg <lapg@arashi.com>; scpg@arashi.com
Sent: Tue, Jun 8, 2010 11:15 pm
Subject: [Scpg] Need cuttings of several plants

I''m looking for cuttings of Okinawa and New Zealand spinach and comfrey. Anybody like to donate some or sell them to me?  I'm also interested in rare and exotic herb varieties, and other perennials.  Also small, inexpensive fruit trees lovingly grown. Starting a small food forest for a friend, no charge so trying to go inexpensive.

Cory

--- On Tue, 6/8/10, John Valenzuela <johnvalenzuela@hotmail.com> wrote:

From: John Valenzuela <johnvalenzuela@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: [Lapg] Local seed sources / shop ? new zealand spinach seeds ?
To: l.a@earthlink.net, "lapg" <lapg@arashi.com>, scpg@arashi.com
Date: Tuesday, June 8, 2010, 7:39 PM

Tina,
I suggest you forage for cuttings to root from wild plants that are found right along the cliffs along the coast in many places. They are easy to root. Some seeds should be ready to harvest also- they take a while to get going.

Anyone in LA know where some is growing wild down on the cliffs of Santa Monica, or nearby?

You can find seeds for sale everywhere, (also known as Tetragonia tetragonioides) but I like to support great little seed companies like:

Redwood City Seeds (incredible pepper selection)
http://userwebs.batnet.com/rwc-seed/

Or
J.L.Hudson Seed Company (very diverse selection of plants, with great ethnobotanical info)
http://www.jlhudsonseeds.net/VegetablesS-Z.htm
use the search box, or find it under Specialty Veggies, under Spinach.

JV

Cornucopia Kitchen Gardens and Food Forests
John Valenzuela Permaculture Services
Horticulturist, Consultant, Educator-
California, Hawai'i  phone: (415) 246-8834
e-mail: johnvalenzuela@hotmail.com



> From: L.A@earthlink.net
> Date: Tue, 8 Jun 2010 11:47:20 -0700
> To: lapg@arashi.com; scpg@arashi.com
> Subject: [Lapg] Local seed sources / shop ? new zealand spinach seeds ?
>
> I am looking for New Zealand Spinach seeds. Anyone have some I can purchase , or know of good local sources for seeds ?
>
> Tina Mata
> Mid Wilshire
> _______________________________________________
> Lapg mailing list
> Lapg@arashi.com
> https://www.arashi.com/mailman/listinfo.cgi/lapg

The New Busy is not the too busy. Combine all your e-mail accounts with Hotmail. Get busy.

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