thanks jay, i thought maybe sow could also be mixed up but that catsear can really fool someone.
try here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thistle
they have some common names and some images of thistles that may help, then do a search for the nutritional value using the scientific name if you think you found it.
and yes weeds are great greens for compost piles, you want more browns then greens.
also my soil is pretty much all sand, some clay and like 2% organic matter. im added more and more organic matter and letting weeds grow a decent size then green mulch or compost the material.the weeds im sure help harbor native microbes who im sure make use of all those minerals(sand) in my soil.
in one year i noticed a huge increase in worms(coffee grounds & fall leaves) , centipedes, pill bugs, earwigs (life) and the garden is looking better and better.
I also have gotten a lot of edible weeds/beneficial weeds from composting fresh manure from the local dairies in my parts. Damn near all the weeds that grew out of manure are edible, those damn cows know what to eat. Most people don’t like using fresh manure because they harbor weed seeds but those weeds do much for my soil and the manure just gets treated with lots of fall leaves, shredded news paper and saw dust for a few months and its good to go. Just be careful because not all manure is good quality poop
ther are many different sow thistles and thistles, some of mine give yellow, to pale white flowers and i think ive seen pink as well.Those sow thistle are similar to what i have, however i noticied on some of the plants the flowers are pink. Also the leaves don't look exactly the same
try here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thistle
they have some common names and some images of thistles that may help, then do a search for the nutritional value using the scientific name if you think you found it.
and yes weeds are great greens for compost piles, you want more browns then greens.
also my soil is pretty much all sand, some clay and like 2% organic matter. im added more and more organic matter and letting weeds grow a decent size then green mulch or compost the material.the weeds im sure help harbor native microbes who im sure make use of all those minerals(sand) in my soil.
in one year i noticed a huge increase in worms(coffee grounds & fall leaves) , centipedes, pill bugs, earwigs (life) and the garden is looking better and better.
I also have gotten a lot of edible weeds/beneficial weeds from composting fresh manure from the local dairies in my parts. Damn near all the weeds that grew out of manure are edible, those damn cows know what to eat. Most people don’t like using fresh manure because they harbor weed seeds but those weeds do much for my soil and the manure just gets treated with lots of fall leaves, shredded news paper and saw dust for a few months and its good to go. Just be careful because not all manure is good quality poop