Grasses question!

[Doktormartini]

Hey guys! So, I know grasses like Wheatgrass and Barleygrass are really good for you. My question is what about the regular grass on your lawn? It must be of some benefit since it is the primary food source for animals such as cattle and they seem to do fine. Is it possible to juice the grass on your lawn? What type of grass is it? Is it very nutritious or anything?

My reasons for asking this question is because I have gained a big interest in foraging for my own food. I recently purchased a book on edible wild plants around my area and it's awesome. It would be great to hear if the grass that I cut on my lawn is also of nutritional value. Thanks

[dandelion]

Guess there is no harm in trying! Grass is very nutritious, only the hard fiber makes it unsuitable for use, but they are not poisonous! We tried a long time ago, but can't remember what the problem was, either the juicer did not take it, or the taste was not acceptable. Wheatgrass is sweet as you know, but lawn grass isn't! And I assume you don't use chemicals on your lawn...

Another option is eating grass seeds, they are super nutritious!

[Starshower]

My grandfather used to add grass to his diet. He was a great gardner and knew a lot about growing veggies. He observed nature, animals, stars, etc.
So I am sure grass is very nutritious.

[Double Helix]

Grass really isn't a food for humans, although it's chock full of nutrients and animals love it. I do know that some people have helped themselves heal of many ailments while juicing grasses.

I don't know about the grass on your lawn. Most lawn is fertilized and walked on/peed on by animals. So I don't know how appetizing it is to me.

You can try eating a patch of it and seeing how you feel, if it's something you want to experiment with.

[jroo]

Part of the reason for eating wild edibles is because they have tons more nutrients than cultivated plants. This is due to the hybridization process to increase one or more desirable attributes. I suppose it's possible to increase nutrient density by hybridization, but that is usually not the goal; the goal is usually look, texture, size, color, etc.

The grass in your backyard is cultivated for color, texture, and uniformity, not for nutrition. If you are just looking for free food, it might be sufficient. But if you are looking for the best food you can find for free, then maybe you should allow some of the 'undesirable' weeds to take over.

Or perhaps you could plant part of your yard with more traditional edible grasses, like wheatgrass. Ann Wigmore's books have a lot of info on growing wheatgrass indoors, which could also be adapted for outdoors.