Nettle Soup

Nettle Soup with potatoes and carrots. It took several years to get a few good clumps of nettles (Urtica dioica) established here and there on the property. I grew the first plants from seed and it took a couple of years for them to establish healthy root systems. Once you have some good roots, it's much easier to establish a colony of stinging nettles. It may also be a misdemeanor in your neck of the woods, but why let that stop you? Once established, Urtica is difficult to almost impossible to eradicate (Hooray!). I once lived in a house with a large stinging nettle patch beside the garage and we'd mow it every week until the leaves were tiny and flattish -- almost like a dense mat... it still persisted and came back every year, even though it was never allowed to gain more than a couple of inches in height. You could dig up a spadeful from a clump like that and just plop it into a hole of similar size and they'd probably grow like crazy!

Spring nettles are one of the tastiest and most healthy things you can eat. Just don't eat them raw, unless you juice them first! Later in the season, when they grow larger, they are not supposed to be good for you to eat, but in the early spring you can get a trimming or two for your health and enjoyment. Tweet