spinach tree

[namdocmai]

Does anybody grow this tree to eat the leaves? I would like to know if they are really good to eat.

[troysantos]

I believe another name for this is Chaya. Looks like Chaya. Apparently there are two varieties. One is inedible raw while the other may be edible raw. Apparently there is a high amount of cyanide which cooking breaks down. I used to live in Belize where the plants are native. I was told that I could eat one or two leaves a day raw so I did. It was okay but if I remember correctly it was a little sappy. Here in Thailand, I ate a variety that tasted pretty good raw and I'd eat several leaves and had no negative reaction. I was living with the Santi Asoke Buddhist group in Ubon where we had some plants that we ate raw with no apparent problems. I have read about two different varieties and saw where others also say they're eating lots of it raw without negative reactions.

Do you know ECHO in Chiang Mai? They sell the stuff but they say it should be cooked. I sent them some cuttings from the plant we had in Ubon. They planted the cuttings and later told me the variety they have and the one I gave them are the same. I think this was brought over from Cambodia but I'm not sure.

I've gone on and on but I'm not even certain that this plant is Chaya!

[namdocmai]

Yes this is Chaya. Well i wouldn't eat the leaves raw if that's dangerous but boiled is fine with me.

I live in BKK so don't know ECHO but i can find this plant on the chatuchak market i think.

Yes i read it is from the other part of the world but if it tastes so good as i read it can be a good crop to grow in the backyard and eat it.

thanks for the reply.

[troysantos]

Grows from cuttings quickly and easily. Tolerates quite a bit of shade too. Might even prefer shade. I'm not sure. Soil doesn't even need to be all that great. Ask the seller at Chatuchak.

Stands up well to mistreatment too! I remember the lady at the farm I was living at, she hardly watered it, and it did real well. Someone gave her some cuttings, she stuck them in the ground where she didn't do anything to improve the soil, it got whatever incidental water arrived at it's feet, and kept on growing. It had a pretty mild taste, the one I had here in Thailand.

Nice tasting. Try a leaf or two raw and see if you have any reaction. I'm real curious about this ... you can be my guinea pig! Seriously, we all ate lots of it raw with no trouble.

[namdocmai]

Grows from cuttings quickly and easily. Tolerates quite a bit of shade too. Might even prefer shade. I'm not sure. Soil doesn't even need to be all that great. Ask the seller at Chatuchak.

Stands up well to mistreatment too! I remember the lady at the farm I was living at, she hardly watered it, and it did real well. Someone gave her some cuttings, she stuck them in the ground where she didn't do anything to improve the soil, it got whatever incidental water arrived at it's feet, and kept on growing. It had a pretty mild taste, the one I had here in Thailand.

Nice tasting. Try a leaf or two raw and see if you have any reaction. I'm real curious about this ... you can be my guinea pig! Seriously, we all ate lots of it raw with no trouble.

Well the Thai eat many more things that i wouldn't eat.

I just love spinach and would like to eat vegy from my own garden. Now i have pakwan growing and need some more tree's. If they can grow in the shade that would be perfect because the sunny spots i use for growing fruit.

I think i can find this plant on chatuchak so i will try to grow it.

[troysantos]

If you're considering this as an alternative to spinach, I'd balk. Comparing chaya to spinach doesn't resonate with me. But if you grow it and don't want it, I'll come by and take if off your hands. Have you considered ผักปลังขาว Malabar Spinach / Ceylon Spinach (+100 other names)? Grows also incredibly easily and maybe in the shade. I forget now. I used to grow the red variety in the shade but seems to me I had the green stuff in the sun. Some people say this tastes a lot like spinach. But, that comparison also doesn't ring true for me.

[namdocmai]

If you're considering this as an alternative to spinach, I'd balk. Comparing chaya to spinach doesn't resonate with me. But if you grow it and don't want it, I'll come by and take if off your hands. Have you considered ผักปลังขาว Malabar Spinach / Ceylon Spinach (+100 other names)? Grows also incredibly easily and maybe in the shade. I forget now. I used to grow the red variety in the shade but seems to me I had the green stuff in the sun. Some people say this tastes a lot like spinach. But, that comparison also doesn't ring true for me.

No i have never eaten that one as far as i know. I liked the spinach tree because it is a tree. Growing crops in soil gives problems with snails and insects.

The problem is i can't read thai so when i see plants for sale i have to ask them what it is (in Thai) and even then they can still give me any plant they want and i 'll buy it. I am looking for nice vegetables that grow easy on tree's and in the shade if possible so if you know some more then let me know. I 'm pretty lazy though and prefer tree's that don't need special attention. just water and fertilizer is what they get.

[troysantos]

Have you considered amaranth? There are several edible varieties everywhere in Thailand growing wild. Growing in shade shouldn't be a problem. Also, you might consider purslane which also grows all over Thailand, also wild. You probably know purslane, but if you're like everyone else in the world, never noticed it much. Grows in cracks in sidewalks but those are the really low to ground varieties. You can find higher growing varieties that are nice and tart and a bit crunchy if you look around. Do you know where to find it? Should also do fine in shade.

[namdocmai]

Have you considered amaranth? There are several edible varieties everywhere in Thailand growing wild. Growing in shade shouldn't be a problem. Also, you might consider purslane which also grows all over Thailand, also wild. You probably know purslane, but if you're like everyone else in the world, never noticed it much. Grows in cracks in sidewalks but those are the really low to ground varieties. You can find higher growing varieties that are nice and tart and a bit crunchy if you look around. Do you know where to find it? Should also do fine in shade.

Okay thanks i will look for them. They must be on chatuchak somewhere but i hope i can find it.

[troysantos]

Please don't traipse on down to the market just yet.

This is just one kind of amaranth that grows everywhere in Thailand. Oddly enough, Thais all over the country call this The Popeye Plant. Maybe spinach and amaranth are closely related ...? They both have high levels of oxalic acid, so many people say don't eat a lot of it raw. Thai name is ผักขม sometimes spelled ผักโขม.

Look at the Wiki page for Amaranth. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amaranth The pictures aren't very helpful but the information is interesting, at least to me! Amaranth was introduced by Europeans hundreds of years ago and it's been growing wild for a long long time now. So, I don't doubt at least one variety is going to thrive in the shade. You can buy seeds, which I'm sure you can get at Chatuchak. I just think it's a good idea to get familiar with the plant first.

The English Wikipedia page on Purslane is interesting. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portulaca_oleracea Following the link to the Thai page however brings up a related but different plant. That one is an ornamental.

Good luck, and enjoy.

Edited June 9, 2014 by troysantos

[namdocmai]

I love amaranth, in Foodland they sell baby amaranth. It would be nice to grow if that's easy done but i also like the idea of a tree that gives food.

[troysantos]

You want a tree that produces food? Have you considered any of the many local small trees. Lead Tree / กระถินบ้าน, Sesbania grandiflora / แค, Casia? / ขี้เหล็ก, and Moringa / มะรุม. This is all that comes off the top of my head. Thing is, I don't know how well they'd do in the shade. My uneducated hunch is that Lead Tree would do best in the shade. Thais routinely eat various parts of all these. I'm not sure about ขี้เหล็ก but the others are all leguminous and that's usually a positive thing.

I'm sure there are others but this is all that comes to mind at the moment.