Goatsbeard

PEI has several yellow wildflowers that are sometimes mistaken for Dandelions. In early spring it’s Coltsfoot; in summer, it’s the Hawkweeds (which I’ll feature next week), along with today’s plant: Meadow Goatsbeard (Tragopogon pratensis).

Photos: Goatsbeard plant, flowers, leaves, and root on PEI.

Goatsbeard is native to parts of Europe and Asia is thought to have been brought to North America as a garden plant in the 20^th century.  It’s a relative newcomer to the lsland, having been first confirmed here in 1943.  Many of those early records were along the railway, and it’s likely that Goatsbeard seeds hitchhiked here on trains from the mainland. Today, this plant is widespread in fields and coastal areas, as well as along roads and trails across the Province.

Meadow Goatsbeard is a biennial: in its second year, it grows flowering stalks up to a metre (three feet) tall, each topped with a single yellow bloom (main photo). Another – albeit unwieldy – name for this plant is ‘Jack-go-to-bed-at-noon’, a reference to the flowers’ habit of opening at dawn to face the rising sun but closing again by early afternoon (top right photo). Once pollinated, flowers develop into fluffy, Dandelion-like seed heads. Each seed is attached to its own aerodynamically-efficient parachute, helping the wind carry Meadow Goatsbeard seeds as much as 250 metres (820 feet) from the parent plant.

While Meadow Goatsbeard’s flowers and seed heads may superficially resemble Dandelion, its leaves are distinctive. The wide bases wrap around the flowering stem and quickly narrow toward noticeably recurved tips (middle right photo). Goatsbeard leaves always remind me of ribbon that’s been curled by pulling it across the blade of a pair of scissors.

The commercially grown vegetable Salsify (aka Oyster Plant) comes from the closely related Tragopogon porrifolius. Although this purple-flowering species hasn’t been found wild in the Maritimes, our yellow Meadow Goatsbeard is similarly edible. Young leaves can be eaten as greens when they first appear in early spring, flower stalks can be cooked like asparagus, and flowers can be enjoyed raw or pickled. But – like Salsify – the most coveted part of Meadow Goatsbeard is the root (bottom right photo).

Meadow Goatsbeard root is best harvested from late first year plants in fall or from early second year plants in spring, before a flowering stalk appears. Like other wild root vegetables I’ve featured (including Evening Primrose, Burdock, and Wild Carrot), once Goatsbeard starts flowering, the energy stored in the root get used up; its nutrition, texture, and palatability all decline at that point.

Goatsbeard roots oxidize quickly, so keep a bowl of vinegar water handy to store peeled and cut roots until you are ready to cook them. They can be cut into rounds and boiled or roasted, finely sliced and sautéed, or added to stir-fries. I’ve seen the taste described as reminiscent of oysters or asparagus (two very different flavours!), but I find it’s more like a nutty parsnip.

Meadow Goatsbeard is just one of the hundreds of edible plants you can find on PEI Untamed!