• Thursday-What'sUP July 18 - 12:18 am

On a recent evening, Brenda Leigh decided to take a walk on the shores of Lake Superior near her home in Brimley. She said it was so peaceful in this spot, with the small waves rolling in and the pretty plant life growing along the beach there.

Brenda fills us in on that pretty plant life, which grows not only along the shores of the Great Lakes, but on many coastal beaches in the U.S., as well as over in Europe and Asia. She said that the "peas" on this plant are eaten by animals, such as deer, mice and birds, but that they are not safe for human consumption, as they contain a paralyzing agent. So, I guess they're pretty to behold, but not so pretty to consume.

Thanks for the Superior shots and the plant info, too, Brenda!

Thanks for the beach stroll, Brenda. Beautiful!

"Please don't eat the peas". ;>

very interesting little flower, pretty but dangerous. :O)

Ap-peas-ing pix!

Simply Superior!

We are so blessed with the beauty of Lake Superior.
Awesome photos!

Have popped these open and eaten the peas for fifty years, never knew they were considered poisonous. A google search confirms toxicity but usually when a large portion of your diet. A few sites say they are unedible, but alot of people gather and eat these every year - eating and prepartion hints all over the web. I'll probably eat a few at the beach again this year and make sure I don't over indulge.

Not real sure why you shouldn't eat the peas. I spent 31 years on Isle Royale and ate them all the time. They haven't killed me yet. Not arguing, just saying. Does anybody else eat them?

As for me, I know nothing about these peas ~ was just following Mary's lead. And my 'silly' extra comment was just a play on the movie title "Please Don't Eat the Daisies".

I love peas, so I might like these too.;9

Beautiful, as always, Brenda :-)

Thanks for all the comments. Now it has me wondering
if I shouldn't pick those beautiful peas and try
them. I did a search and it stated that they were
not edible for human consumption. I will look at
more sites now and see what they state. So glad that
Duane and fy1 sent in comments. Wow with the web you
wonder what to believe when doing research.

Nice Pic's, I'll stick to the Jolly Green Giant!

Beautiful.

Hi
This is belated, but I also have eaten beach peas. Not in quantity, just a few from a given pod. It may come back to a toxicology principle: everything is dosages. In other words, it may depend on how much you consume.

Beach Pea (Lathyrus japonicus)

Seeds

Habitat: Coastlines, gravelly shores, beaches, east and west coasts of Northern America.

Description: Trailing perennial, arrow shaped stipules, pink to lavender pea like flowers, stalk less seed pods, seed pods similar to garden peas but smaller, leaves terminate with curled tendrils.

Harvest: Flowers June-Aug, Harvest when younger bright green pea pods form.

Dangers: Only experienced foragers should identify the plant because other members of the pea (i.e. Ocean Peas) family are poisonous and have cause death in the past.

Preparation: Highly nutritious, cook like any other pea; young peas are best, as they become dry and tasteless as they age,; if you can pinch through pod with your fingernail then they can be eaten whole.