"AJP" wrote:

An elderly lady was telling me she would make some good greens from
weeds that grew NEAR the garden.

They called them silvertops, and tasted sort of like spinach, but a
little more tender.

Does anybody know what this plant was??

If the other folks are correct -- and I think they probably are-
you're in for a treat with Lambs Quarters. I used to have them
as a pernicious weed in my garden, but I seem to have ammended my soil
& eaten them into oblivion. Now I have to look for them.

I'm surprised they aren't cultivated - at least I've never seen seeds
for sale. They are good raw in salads or wilted in a steam bath for
a minute or so. I prefer mine with a dab of butter & what must be a
companion plant/weed as I find them together often-- Purslane.
http://landscaping.about.com/cs/weed...a/purslane.htm
[I just learned that Purslane has Omega 3 fatty acids as well as its
concentration of Vit. C]

Purslane is more of an acquired taste-- it has a mucilaginous texture
and an almost citric flavor. [the above site calls it peppery. . .
I'll have to think about that next time I see some] But it goes well
with the very muted flavor of the lambs quarters.

Either are good by themselves.

Jim