Okinawa Spinach anyone?

[TommyTheV]

Hi all,

Don't freak out, it isn't real "spinach" from what I could research but beyond that couldn't find anything on the T table.

Okinawa Spinach

Okinawa spinach is comprised of small to medium-sized leaves growing in dense clusters on upright stalks. The leaves are elongated, averaging 3 to 8 centimeters...

specialtyproduce.com

All the nutrients checks out:

Nutritional Value​

Okinawa spinach is a source of vitamin C to strengthen the immune system, vitamin A to maintain healthy organ functioning, potassium to balance fluid levels within the body, and calcium to build strong bones and teeth. The greens also provide iron to develop the protein hemoglobin for oxygen transport through the bloodstream, vitamin K to assist in faster wound healing, and other nutrients, including manganese, flavonoids, zinc, and magnesium.

My family and I put these in our salads. Taste amazing and they grow fast here in CA so figured if it all checks out could be a great add to their diet

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Wikipedia is a bit less optimistic on this plant as it contains "pyrrolizidine alkaloids" toxic to liver. Some of the Synonims (and close species) mentioned in the Wikipedia article could be found on TortoiseTable marked as "Do not feed" for the same reason - e.g. Senecio.
To be fair, alkaloids concentration in this specie is 3-4 times less than regulatory permitted (for humans, yes). So a tortoise probably would be fine after munching a leaf or two, but I would avoid feeding it on a regular basis in large amounts.
Disclaimer: I'm not an expert and only learning things, you can just ignore me )

 

[TammyJ]

I'd not bother.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Sorry, with spinach or with potencial toxicity?

 

[RosemaryDW]

I'm not at all worried about oxalates and thus not worried regular spinach. This plant isn't too far down in the sunflower tribe; I'd be open to it if were in a better known plant genus. That said, it's a genus that very little is known about so I wouldn't feed it. There are a billion well known plants we can grow or buy in Southern California so you've got plenty of solid options.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Why did I look at this post expecting someone to be talking about Marijuana?