List of beneficial weeds
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a list of undomesticated or feral plants, considered weeds, yet having some positive effects or uses, often being ideal as companion plants in gardens.
Beneficial weeds fall into several categories:
Contents |
[edit] Pest-repellant
- Crow garlic -- a wild allium which repels certain insect pests and is edible
- Cocklebur -- repels armyworms
- Goldenrod -- repels some bad insects, and shelters several useful predatory species
- Milkweed -- repels wireworms
[edit] Edible
- Cornflower flowers are pretty little baskets, of various colors, which can be served as edible garnish to decorate salads.
- Painter's brush weed
- chickweed -- good chopped, in salad, also good ground cover
- Burdock -- roots are edible
- Lambsquarters -- leaves and shoots, raw, also prevents erosion, also distracts leaf miners from nearby crops
- Shepherd's purse -- blanch and saute the leaves
- Stinging nettle -- High nutritional value. Wear gloves while picking the leaves. Use in soups, etc. as you would with spinach.
- Purslane -- prepared raw for salads or sauteed
- Watercress -- can be eaten raw or cooked; is considered a weed in some cultures
[edit] Provides habitat for beneficial insects
- Solanum -- provides cover for predatory ground beetles which hunt aphids
- Pigweed / Amaranthus -- also shelters ground beetles, breaks up hard soil, allowing other plants to develop deeper roots
- Queen Anne's lace -- attracts predatory insects like lacewings, its seeds contain estrogen and are used in folk/herbal medicine as a contraceptive, and its root breaks up hard soil/deadpan. This plant is also the ancestor of the cultivate carrot; in fact it's the same species, and carrots will gradually return to this state if left to breed in the wild.
- wild blackberry -- attracts predatory insects, and produces berries
- motherwort -- attracts bees
- wild mustard -- protects predatory insects
- Joe-Pye weed habitat for pollinators and predatory insects
[edit] Provides shelter
- normal grass can be used as ground cover, especially when very fertile soil may otherwise provide too much nitrogen to plants like tomatoes and peppers, which will then stay in leaf-growing mode and fail to produce fruit
- Purslane -- can be used to protect soil from erosion
[edit] Pest-distracting
- multiflora rose -- distracts Japanese beetles from good crops
[edit] Medicinal use
- Bashful mimosa -- various herbalist uses
- Rumex -- Dock, which commonly grows in association with nettle, is rumoured to cure or ease their sting. Crush a leaf before applying to affected area.
[edit] Other
- Cannabis -- clothes can be made out of hemp. Also research has shown that it can provide an alternative form of energy.
- Dandelion -- Breaks up dense soil, helping vegetable roots go deeper. If picked while in season, leaves and flowers are edible as a salad component. Repels armyworms
- Nightshade -- breaks up hardpan, allowing roots to grow deeper
