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My property and neighborhood have a pokeweed infestation. Half a decade ago I’d never seen one.
There’s a dish from the South called “poke salad” (or “polk salad”). People gather pokeweed, boil and leach it three times to remove the toxins, and fry it with bacon and onions. I guess I could eat my way through my pokeweed infestation, but it seems like too much work when there’s kale and chard around.
A Cajun musician, Tony Joe White, had a hit song in the late 60’s called “Polk Salad Annie.” Elvis covered it.
https://youtu.be/PQCPxckT6iM
Fascinating, Steve. You always come up with the most interesting information.
Oh yeah, I remember that catchy little tune! A sentimental story of hardscrabble folks. “Polk Salad Annie, the gators got your grannie”
Joanne, thanks for the photo, and the warning. I’d always wondered about those berries, and I confess that they looked edible. (Your photo and headline prompted me to look up poke berries. I learned animals can eat the berries without risk, but not so for humans. Good to know!)