Warrigal greens Tetragonia teragoniodes is a trailing leafy groundcover native to Australia, Eastern Asia and New Zealand – hence its other name, New Zealand spinach. In Europe it is now an invasive species, which belies its historical use as a great source of vitamin C for scurvy-riddled sailors and settlers during colonisation. Botanist Joseph Banks took warrigal greens back to England’s Kew Gardens, from where it became a popular cultivated vegetable for a while.
The word warrigal comes from the Darug indigenous people of the Sydney area, although not much is known about how they used this hardy plant. Warrigal greens is now grown commercially in Australia and is marketed as a bush food in restaurants and cafes.