A dreamy view of Wild Radish flowers. Photo by Myriam Mahiques, 2021. Personal archives
The beauty of the Wild Radish purple flowers. Photo by Myriam Mahiques, 2021. Personal archives
I like to find edible wild plants and flowers, and I try them if I can. Usually I can find a few edible plants at the Huntington Beach Central Park, but I don't dare to cut the plant or flowers, due to respect to the park and all the volunteers working there.
Anyway I can enjoy the view of those plants close to the local lake. Though the flowering period is Summer, the mild weather of California allows the Wild Radish to be in full bloom even in Winter, by the time I have taken all the pictures posted here. All pictures belong to my personal archives, please do not share without my permission.
Close up of Wild Radish leaves.
Close up of Wild Radish flowers
The following excerpts are from Wikipedia:
"Raphanus raphanistrum, also known as wild radish, white charlock or jointed charlock, is a flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae. One of its subspecies, Raphanus raphanistrum subsp. sativus, includes a diverse variety of cultivated radishes. The species is native to western Asia, Europe and parts of Northern Africa. It has been introduced into most parts of the world and is regarded as a habitat threatening invasive species in many areas, for example, Australia. It spreads rapidly and is often found growing on roadsides or in other places where the ground has been disturbed."
"Wild radish is an annual that grows up to 75 cm tall, variously branched to multi-stemmed, with a distinct slender taproot which does not swell like that of the cultivated radish. The stems are green and sometimes purple at the base and nodes, round in cross section and slightly ridged, and bristly-hairy all over."
Wild Radish in our local environment. Huntington Beach, CA.
Wild Radish white flowers with the purple flowers background.
"The flowering period is between May and October in northern Europe, or between June and August in Minnesota. The inflorescence is a lax raceme, terminal or arising from the leaf axil, up to 34 cm long with up to 42 flowers. The flowers have four white (sometimes yellow or purple) petals, up to 24 mm long, sometimes with dark veins (especially on the underside). Each petal has a rounded "limb" above a narrow "claw", both about the same length."
"All tender parts of the plant are edible. The leaves and flowers have a spicy taste or aftertaste. The seedpods can be eaten, as can the outer skin of the root (after being washed).It is said that John Walker cultivated sea radish root as an alternative to horseradish after discovering the plant on the west coast of Scotland as early as 1753."
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