Common Bittercress

This is a small inconspicuous edible weed

binomial name : Cardamine hirsuta
common name : common bittercress, splitting jenny or flickweed

latin cardio - heart shaped and hirsuta- hairy - the first few leaves on the young plants are slightly hairy and heart shaped.
The hairs are very indistinct on the plants here, and I really cannot fathom why it would be called hairy. Also, the heart shaped leaves are a bit of a stretch as well.

Identification:

This weed is of the mustard family and is quite common in the lawn at present (winter) in several areas, but mainly where the grass has thinned out somewhat. It has pinnate leaves in a rough looking rosette and that also occur on the one or more flowering stems. It has distinctive seed pods, about 2cm long that look like tiny pods of peas. These explode when touched, if ripe, thus spreading the seed. Height to about 15 cm on my property.

History :

Not specifically mentioned, although Hammurabi from 2000 BC mentioned mustard as a medicinal drug.

Nutritional :

No information, but undoubtedly has Vit A/carotenoids and Vit C and other phytochemicals that would be beneficial to us when eaten.

Uses :

It is not bitter, in spite of the name, and can be added to salads or stews - due to the small size the complete plant should be used by simply dicing up the stems,leaves and seed pods.

Medical : no reports relevant