20 Indigenous Crops That Can Be Grown in a Container Farm

A hydroponic (form of soil-free growing) system allows for a variety of crops to be grown. For the Makivik Corporation, which installed a Growcer system to supply Nunavik’s largest community Kuujjuaq with produce, one of the crops grown included mountain sorrel.

Mountain sorrel is considered a traditional plant food to Inuit, and it can be fermented and preserved for the winter. It is among 550 species - as of 1990 - of plants that have been documented in the literature as having been utilized in one way or another in the traditional diets of Indigenous peoples in Canada and neighboring areas. The knowledge of plants and their uses have allowed Indigenous peoples to thrive in diverse environments, with plants varying from region to region.

While a hydroponic growing system can’t grow all the green plants found coast to coast, a Growcer system can grow up to 140 different varieties of leafy greens, brassicas, herbs, and edible flowers. For the communities that grow native plants, the benefits are being able to grow produce that’s already part of their diets, having access to the plants year-round, and using the plants in traditional dishes and education programs.

We consulted with our customers and the resource Traditional Plant Foods of Canadian Indigenous Peoples by Harriet Kuhnlein and Nancy Turner, The Boreal Herbal by Beverly Gray, among others, to compile a list of what traditional plant foods you should try growing in a Growcer farm:

Arctic net-veined willow

Arctic net-veined willow is a green herb eaten by Inuit in the eastern Arctic and both Inuit and the Gwich’in make use of this willow. Twigs would be used as a fuel while the decayed flowers (suputiit) could be mixed with moss and used as wicking in the kudlik (qulliq).

The plant was used for several medicinal purposes such as relieving a toothache, stopping bleeding, curing diarrhea and indigestion, and being used as a poultice on wounds. Both the Gwich’in and Inuit in the Bathurst Inlet area were known to eat parts of the arctic willow, which is high in vitamin C and tastes sweet. It can be grown in a hydroponic system, but it’s unlikely to produce flowers.

Wild chives

Wild chives, of which there are two varieties native to North America with shorter, coarser leaves, can be used as flavouring for many dishes. The Fisherman Lake Slave and other Dene peoples of the Northwest Territories ate the chives raw with moose meat or boiled them in soup. The Chipewyan of northern Saskatchewan used to boil the bulbs with trout or other fish. The Woods Cree of east-central Saskatchewan ate the fresh leaves and added them as flavouring to boiled fish too.

Wild chives can be found in open, rock or gravelly areas, like the shores across the northern part of the continent, and from Yukon across the Prairies to Labrador and even the Maritimes. They can be grown in a hydroponic system but the chives won’t blossom.

Nodding onion

The nodding onion is similar to green onion, but much stronger in flavour. The bulbs were eaten by Indigenous peoples throughout the range of the plant, including the Ojibwa of Ontario, the Blackfoot and Stoney (Assiniboin) of Alberta, the Flathead and Kootenay of Montana, and many groups in British Columbia. The bulbs can be eaten raw, boiled with meat or in soup, or preserved for later use.

In a hydroponic system, the leaves will grow well but the flower clusters are yet to be determined.

Amaranth

Redroot pigweed or green amaranth grow in the southern part of the continent, Central America and South America. The leaves and stems of this weedy plant and its relatives have been widely used as a potherb (any herb prepared by cooking in a pot) by Indigenous Peoples of the Southwestern United States and Central and South America.

Amaranth has been grown in a Growcer system, but not the specific varieties found in Canada. It’s likely that the leaves will grow but not the flowers.

Lambquarters (pigweed, goosefoot)

These edible greens were introduced to Canada and now can be found across all regions. The young plants were cooked as a potherb by the Iroquois, Ojibwa, Forest Potawatomi, Micmac, Malecite, Nlaka'pamux, Lillooet, and Inuit of Alaska. The leaves are high in vitamin A and C, and these plants can be used as a spinach replacement as a wild/northern spinach. The plants also have medicinal actions, used as mild astringents as external washes for skin irritations or skin ulcers.

The leafy greens can be grown, but they probably won’t grow as tall as they could outside due to limited space (stems can grow up to 60 centimetres).

Mountain sorrel

Mountain sorrel, considered a traditional plant food to Inuit, is commonly eaten raw or cooked into soups. It has a “zesty” sour taste and high vitamin C content. It is found naturally from Newfoundland to Alaska, and is currently being grown in a Growcer system in Kuujjuaq in the Nunavik region.

Horsetail

Horsetail grows in damp, open woods and is found throughout the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Alberta. It can be eaten as a steamed vegetable, but also has medicinal uses as an astringent (for skin), diuretic (for high blood pressure), styptic (stopping bleeding) and vulnerary (promote healing).

Similar to lamb-quarters, pigweed, and goosefoot, horsetail can be grown in a hydroponic system but won’t grow as high as it does outside (almost 50 centimeters) because of space.

Lungwort

Lungwort leaves are edible and can be used raw in a salad, added to soups and stews, or eaten as a steamed green. Its medicinal properties include being an astringent, anti-inflammatory, antihistamine, among others. Two varieties of lungwort are found in Yukon and much of boreal North America. When grown in our system the only difference would be that the plant will most likely be unable to flower.

Field mint

Field mint, wild mint, Canadian mint - it can be used like any other mint! Mint is known to be good for indigestion, bad breath, anti-inflammation, and has antiviral properties to keep colds at bay. It is found across the regions from Newfoundland to B.C. to N.W.T and Alberta. It can be grown in a hydroponic system.

Plantain plant

Plantain (not to be confused with a kind of banana) is a perennial herb that is low to the ground and is common from coast to coast. Plantain can be chopped raw into salads, steamed, cooked in soups, or sauteed. The herb is full of vitamins, enzymes and minerals. The leaves of plantain have medicinal uses such as antihistamine, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, antiseptic, blood purifier, demulcent, diuretic, emollient, immune stimulant, styptic, and vulnerary.

It can be simply grown in a Growcer, but not its flowering parts.

Sheep sorrel

Sheep sorrel, like mountain sorrel, can be grown in a hydroponic system. For some, it’s a common weed, but it has blood cleansing, detoxifying and cell regenerating properties. Sheep sorrel tea was used as a diuretic and to treat fevers, inflammation and scurvy.

It is very tart in taste and its leaves have a tangy, lemon-like flavour. Sheep sorrel can be eaten raw, as a garnish, or cooked.

Sweetgrass

Sweetgrass has medicinal properties as an astringent and can be used as a tea. Sweetgrass is also one of the four sacred medicines used for smudging in First Nations’ ceremonies, among tobacco, sage and cedar.

Similar to other tall plants, its stems can get up to 60 centimeters high but when grown in a hydroponic system will be limited by space.

Learning more

If you’re interested in learning more about other native plants in Canada, there are a multitude of Indigenous books (for all ages) about plants available such as Rebecca Hainnu’s series of A Walk on the Shoreline and A Walk on the Tundra. The resource, Traditional Plant Foods of Canadian Indigenous Peoples: Nutrition, Botany and Use, is available for download by chapter on the website of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. There are also in-person learning opportunities such as at the Wanuskewin Heritage Park which offers a native plant walk that introduces visitors to the plants used by Plains Indigenous peoples.

If you’re interested in what can be grown hydroponically, check out our Everything guide for a full list.

Written by Molly Neave and Stephanie Gordon.