Hey everyone, hope your having a great day. I am currently thinking about getting a stinging nettle plant from some folks I know. They have it all in the backyard they said I could just take a whole plant and transplant it into my yard. So with that being said I was just wondering if I could dig a nice (approximately 5 gallon) size hole fill it with compost like I would a comfrey root and plant the nettle. Would this be a good approach to this? I hate having to drive to get something I can have right in my yard.
How nice of them to let you take their stinging weeds away lol You could do exactly what you're describing, that would work fine. I would grab like 3-4 young ones, so you can get most of the root system..... an adult plant you might end up cutting off a big chunk of roots. You could also buy a pack of 500 Nettle seeds for $2.50 and be stocked for years...... Either way is fine
Lol. Yeah I don't think I need 500 nettle plants. I don't even know if I have space for 500 nettle plants maybe 5 but not 500 lol. I am just going to put them on the side of the house away from everything else and there is not much space. I don't think too many people would appreciate more than the few I am going to put in, if that. But my plants appreciate it so that is good enough for me. I have not tried the comfrey teas yet but this stinging nettle works wonder. Not just cannabis either. I also hear stinging nettle helps with PM that seemed to be an issue on my squash last year so hopefully this tea will do the trick.
That is true indeed. I can always save seeds too. If I started from seed how long would you estimate it would take for there to be something worth harvesting?
I probably wouldn't harvest any I plant that same year unless it takes off like the comfrey did. "Stinging nettle is a native perennial that is widely known for its unpleasant stinging hairs on the stems and lower leaf surface. It reproduces by wind-dispersed seeds and creeping underground rhizomes and grows in dense clumps, often forming large colonies. Root system - Extensive underground network of rhizomes can spread 5 feet or more in a season. Fibrous roots are produced along the rhizomes. New plants are often established from rhizome fragments that have been spread by machinery." http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/tcweeds/docs/ipm-prescription-stingingnettle.pdf
I remember stepping into nettle weeds in my grandpa's backyard all the time growing up..took me awhile to understand just what was making my feet break out with those bumps and itch/hurt really bad, then I started wearing shoes out there..those damn nettle weeds were everywhere in that yard
i get my nettle by the river as it seems to love growing near water and in the woods and to be honest, i never have seen it grow anywhere else in my area of the world. dunno if that helps for where you may plant it, but it seems to suite them fine in the wild. P.S. i use it not only in my teas and compost, but we use it as well for allergies in a drinkable tea, it's actually very tasty.
lol I'm planting my nettle seeds today, so I'll let you know lol It might be worthwhile to go get a few plants so you have plant material ready to go much sooner, and get the seeds for more of a long-term gardening strategy Edit: Yeah... more or less what GiMiK said lol..... I don't know how quickly nettle grows from seed..... if it grows like wildfire then you could definitely harvest this year..... but it might grow much more slowly.... If you planted it in compost like you said, and gave it plenty of water.... my money would be on being able to harvest by fall.
Hey everybody thanks for the great answers. Very helpful. I will probably go for a few plants maybe 3 or 4 and possibly get seeds as well. Like I said not much space in my yard, especially with all the veggies going. Al - The folks I will be getting the plant(s) from harvest the leaves for some other people that like to make tea. I personally do an all raw diet and I don't know how tasty it would be raw, although, IIRC LD talked about some crazy nettle festival with all sorts of edible nettle things such as salad and pizza or some crazy stuff. I think that's what I read.
eating nettle raw, now that's some serious business, hell i cry like a baby when i get into harvesting it without long sleeves on and cannot fathom eating it raw. lol