Sorrel
Introduction
With a distinctive lemon like flavour, sorrel adds interest to salads and the leaves can be cooked too (treat like spinach). The plant is a hardy perennial, but the best leaves to eat are fresh young growth.
Planting
- Sow seed outdoors when the weather warms in spring
Harvesting
- Pick the young leaves regularly to encourage the plants to continue producing new leaves
- Remove flower heads as they appear
(inside)
(outside)
(fresh)
(stored)
= jar, 
= freeze, 
= store
Varieties
There are two main types:
- French sorrel which is a smaller plant with a more delicate flavour and tender leaves
- Common sorrel that has slightly thicker leaves and a sharper taste
In addition to green leaves with white veins, there are also varieties with striking red veins.
The easy way for a gardener to organise their growing and discover gardening ideas.
Growing
My experience with sorrel is that it is extremely hardy and self seeds around the garden. It is an excellent plant to grow, providing a gardener likes the tangy taste of sorrel.
Sorrel can be grown in large pots, but to prevent the leaves becoming chewy, they should be picked young and the plants kept well watered, especially in hot weather and growing in pots. Any flower heads should be removed as these can affect the quality of the leaves.
The seeds can be started early spring and planted out after the last frost. Mature sorrel plants are very hardy and can survive all weather outdoors. A partial shaded position is ideal.
In winter the plants die back, with fresh growth the following spring.