Subject: Re: Found some chicory, I think...

From: [email-masked] (Meow Mew)
Date: 8 Aug 1995 21:34:11 -0400

Chicory is pretty easy to identify and i don't think it has any deadly
twins, but to be sure,you could get a few good herb books at the store or
library and check. none of my books warn of look alikes, and the flowers
are an unusual shade of blue.

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From: [email-masked] (Norman L. Rust)
Date: Sat, 12 Aug 1995 08:57:56 -0700

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked]
(Kathleen McConnaughay) wrote:

> I think I've found a huge field of chicory in an abandoned lot by my
> house.  I'd like to pick the roots and grind them, are there any precautions
> I should take?  Is there any chance of making a mistake in the identification
> and killing myself?  Just though I'd check first.  Thanks!
> Kate 
 
 How long have you lived near this abandoned lot? Besides identifying it
properly, you also need to be sure it isn,t growing in contaminated soil.
Where i use to live there was some chicory that grew in the alley where
the neighbor dumped his car oil, he kept pouring the oil on the chicory,
probably hoping to kill it and it kept thriving. In an abanonded lot my
concerns would be if industrial chemicals would be there or old lead paint
if a house ever stood on the site, if the plants are in the old yard
proper it probably isn't contaminated, but if around the old foundation
the danger exixts. Sharon