Oxyria digyna

Oxyria digyna

OK, this is probably not a plant you will be eating very often. Mountain Sorrel (Oxyria digyna) grows in high alpine habitats (about 9000 feet and upwards), so unless you are stranded on top of a rather high mountain with no way down (down is easy; there's always a way down), there won't be much demand for it.

But I was fortunate to find an area with a good amount of healthy, tender Mountain Sorrel thriving, so it was a good time to give it a try.

The leaves when raw have a fresh, lemony taste, very much like members of the Rumex genus, but with no bitterness at all. Even so, I personally find the lemon flavor rather strong, but it might work well mixed with other greens. If you like raw Curly Dock, you will probably like this even more.

I tried boiling the leaves for about 3 minutes, because I had excellent results with cooked Curly Dock leaves. Cooking had mixed results. The bad news is that the bright green leaves turn a darker grayish-green as soon as they hit the hot water. The good news is that, just like Curly Dock, the cooking tones down the lemon flavor, and as long as you don't mind the color and limpness of the leaves, the taste is rather good. I would eat much more if the color were better... and it was more common... and it grew a few thousand feet lower...

close view of leaves and seeds

To identify this plant, first be in a very high, alpine environment. As I said, you are only likely to find this at 9000 feet and upwards. It appreciates wet places, but with all the precipitation being squeezed out of the clouds as the air moves over the mountain, it is not restricted to such places, and is often found in rocky outcroppings as well. The leaves are all basal and are about three quarters or more of a circle. The seeds are very distinctive. Unlike their cousins, the docks (Rumex species, which have three wings on seeds), these seeds have two wings so they can lay flat. They also develop a bright red color on the outside fringe of the wing.