Sourdock (Rumex Cripus, Linn.)

Sourdock contains a small amount of oxalic acid and cannot be used in ordinary sick diet unless ordered by a physician. It is cooked the same as spinach.

Sorrel (Rumex Acetosella, Linn.)

What is true of sourdock is true also of sorrel. Cultivated sorrel contains less acid than the wild variety. It is not palatable alone, as a salad, but chopped and sprinkled over lettuce gives variety to the diet in diabetes.

Poke Shoots

The young shoots of the Phytolacca decandra may be boiled and served on toast with cream sauce or melted butter alone, same as asparagus. When well cooked, they are tender and easy of digestion; good in cases of chronic constipation.

Lambs' Quarters (Chenopodium Capitatum, Watson)

Lambs' quarters grow in almost every garden and make the most delicate of the greens. Cook them the same as you would cook spinach; they are much better.

Purslane (Portulacca Oleracea, Linn,)

Purslane is a hardy annual plant, a common weed in most yards. If it grows in a garden where it is slightly cultivated, it is much better. Boiled in plain salt water makes an exceedingly good green. Is valuable in chronic constipation, chronic rheumatism or gout.

Shepherds' Purse

(Capsella Bursa-Pastoris, Moench)

This is also a common weed, which may be washed, boiled and served same as spinach.

Dandelion (Taraxacum Officinale, Weber)

Almost everybody knows that the early shoots from the dandelion roots make a very good "green" as well as a salad. From a medicinal standpoint, the tender shoots served raw are best. If boiled, use as little water as possible; cook them the same as spinach. The tender shoots soaked in cold water, make an admirable salad when dressed with French dressing. Good for rheumatics, liver and certain urinary troubles.

Mint

The ordinary spearmint (Mentha viridis, Linn.) is used with vinegar in mint sauce. Without sugar it makes an agreeable addition to lamb in diabetic diet. It is also nice chopped and sprinkled over a cabbage salad. A bit of mint cooked with string beans gives them a new and attractive flavor.

Parsley (Carum Petroselinum, Bentham)

A little chopped parsley over a dish of creamed potatoes, lettuce salad or carefully-cooked turnips makes a pretty garnish and gives a nice flavor.

Curly parsley is the most popular garnish for meats and fish.

The Common Salad Plants

While many of the plants in this group are frequently-cooked, they are decidedly more palatable and attractive when served raw. They are quite free from starch and sugar, are very succulent, containing about ninety-five per cent, water and a small amount of mineral matter. They are valuable waste food. Many contain pungent volatile oils, to which they owe their flavor.

Chicory (Cichorium Intybus, Linn.)

Young and tender chicory makes one of the nicest of salads. It comes in the winter when lettuce is not good. It should be washed in cold water, put into a dry napkin or small bag and hung up in a cold place or put on the ice until serving time. The outside leaves of chicory may be cooked the same as spinach.