I took a horticulture class at Foothill College, a year or so back, and as part of that class I identified many of the feral/invasive plants that grow in our back yard. One of them is called Thlaspi arvense (Field Pennycress); it's listed in CalIPC and other sources as an invasive species, and it certainly acts invasively in my yard, I could harvest many pounds per years of it if I wanted to... but, what if it's edible?? That might change the picture entirely...

It's very bitter raw, but various articles claimed that it was good when parboiled, so I tried that... and indeed, after steaming and then rinsing with cold water, it is REALLY tasty, rather like spinach but a little sweeter. I call it Feral Spinach. So I put about four cups in with four pounds of lean ground beef, sweet peas and Teriyaki sauce, simmered for an hour, and have been making lunches with it. It is *really* delicious!! If it wasn't for the issue that I'm writing this message about, I'd post a recipe here...

####### TMI Alert !!!! #####

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The only problem with it is, it gives me liquid runs for about a day afterwards!! I don't get any other problems, no upset stomach or anything, just the runs. I've read in various sources that this sometimes happens when one first starts eating wild vegetables, they aren't bred for gentleness, and it takes awhile for the body to figure out how to digest them.

My question is: (1) Is there anything I can do to avoid this reaction?? (2) if it *is* possible that I'll adapt to it after awhile, how long would I expect that to take??

TIA for any ideas that anyone has about this delicious plant!