Spiked Boehmeria (Boehmeria spicata)

Family: Urticaceae | Edibility: Edible (1/5)

Boehmeria spicata is a deciduous Shrub growing to 1 m (3ft 3in). It is in flower from July to August, and the seeds ripen from August to September. The species is dioecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but only one sex is to be found on any one plant so both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required). . The plant is not self-fertile.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Leaves

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Spring

Flavor & Culinary Uses

Young leaves - cooked. The stems and the leaves are dried and ground into a meal then used in dumplings. — Young leaves - cooked.; The stems and the leaves are dried and ground into a meal then used in dumplings.

Habitat & North American Range

Common in mountains, C. and S. Japan. Thickets, grassland, edges of forests, by ditches in hills and mountains at elevations of 100 - 1600 metres. (Zone 4, Zone 5, Zone 6, Zone 7, Zone 8)