XRumex acetosella - Sheep's SorrelX
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Sheep's Sorrel -or- Red Sorrel -or- Field Sorrel -or- Sour Weed -or- Common Sheep Sorrel (Rumex acetosella), family Polygonaceae (Knotweed)
A perennial herb with 55 species in the genus. This is another species that blankets the United States and Canada and is often considered an invasive weed. That said, there are numerous benefits from the plants. Read on:
USES: From Native American Ethnobotany: Aleut Drug (Dermatological Aid) Poultice of steamed leaves applied to warts and bruises. Cherokee Drug (Dermatological Aid) Poultice of bruised leaves and blossoms applied to old sores. Species used for food. Leaves used for food. Mohegan Drug (Gastrointestinal Aid) Fresh leaves chewed as a stomach aid. Squaxin Drug (Tuberculosis Remedy) Raw leaves eaten for tuberculosis. Anticosti Food (Unspecified) Leaves eaten fresh by children. Bella Coola Food Leaves eaten raw. Chehalis Food Leaves eaten raw or boiled. Delaware Food Plant used as filling for pies. Hanaksiala Food Leaves eaten by children. Hesquiat Food (Sour) Tart, tangy leaves chewed by children. Iroquois Food (Spice) Used with salt in a brine for cucumbers. Iroquois Food (Vegetable) Eaten raw, sometimes with salt. Thompson Food - Leaves chewed by children for the tangy, sour taste. 
Plants For a Future: Leaves - raw or cooked. A delicious lemon-like flavour, most people consider them too strong to use in quantity, but they are excellent as a flavouring in mixed salads. The leaves should only be used in small quantities due to the oxalic acid content. The leaves can be used as thickeners in soups etc, they can also be dried for later use. Root - cooked. It can be dried, ground into a powder and made into noodles. Seed - raw or cooked. Easy to harvest, but the seed is rather small and fiddly to use. A drink similar to lemonade (but without the fizz) is made by boiling up the leaves.
Flower -
Plant location: Marshall Valley Trail in a Boulder County Open Space on May 16, 2009.Plant -
Bloom season: May to October - June through August in Colorado.Foliage -
Marshall Valley Trail - Boulder County Open Space - Colorado - May 16, 2009
Note the interesting "wings' appearing at the base of the leaves. This is an identifying characteristic of the species. Compare with the illustration shown by Flora of North America, here. -
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Marshall Valley Trail - Boulder County Open Space - Colorado - May 16, 2009
A good representation of a paniculate inflorescense (flowers maturing from the bottom upwards). -
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