I found this tutorial that looks pretty good on dying fabrics with various plant stuff. Although malabar spinach isn't listed LOL I'd say use the berries like pokeberries, and use salt rather than vinegar as a mordant

Jill, do you have a link for the tutorial? I'd love to read it !

I think I mentioned this before but can't find it so sorry if I'm repeating myself. I've used the berries from malabar spinach as a food coloring for frosting. It makes a pretty fuchsia color that children like on cupcakes. It has no flavor at all so it's perfect.

Thanks for that tip! I hadn't even thought of using them as food coloring- love it!

Growing these for first time with seeds from piggy swap. Have four growing out in garden, I transplanted outside at the time I did my other greens...oops this is an Asian heat loving plant. So I babied the four seedlings with cloches and three made it but now the one frost killed seedling looks to be coming back from roots. Now from this thread ive learned that I can keep my vines indoors overwinter===am happy to try that.
Also found these seeds for sale at Asian market in my city... they had a seed rack of Asian veggies, never tonight to look at ethnic markets for seeds, of you have an Asian grocwr on youe town have a look.

Hey Judy, from my experience growing these is that they are very slow going at first but then at the peak of summer will take off. They do the best direct sow (they don't do well getting transplanted), so I normally sow them in long planting boxes inside while it's still frosty outside. Then when it starts getting averages of 60s and 70s during the day I put them out. I'm glad yours made it thru the frost you'll have to let us know how it goes!

They are real slow until it heats up. I've had them show up as volunteers from the previous year's seed falling on the ground.

SCButtercup said:... Also found these seeds for sale at Asian market in my city... they had a seed rack of Asian veggies, never tonight to look at ethnic markets for seeds, of you have an Asian grocwr on youe town have a look.

Oh, DROOL!

I will start checking those Asian stores for seeds. I keep "my" best Asian seed vendors in my signature block: Kitazawa and Tainong.

If you go back there, could you take a photo of the seed rack? Just to make us more envious!

Once a waiter at a Chinese restaurant overheard that I collected seeds. He had no interest in my prized Asian Brassica seed varieties, but he had been looking for a Mother's Day present for his mother back in mainland China. He was thrilled to get a wide variety of tomato varieties in clear 2x3" Ziplocs, tucked into a baseball-card-collector's vinyl holder!

I had some experiences in the NYC Chinatown where everyone inside the store was pressed together closer than elbow-to-elbow. I discovered I had "crowd claustrophobia"! That's where I got my best cleaver.

But it can't be that bad outside New York City!

"everyone inside the store was pressed together closer than elbow-to-elbow."

UGH!! This would be why I live in the Michigan Upper Peninsula...

All of NYC was bad that way, but inside the shops in Chinatown was too much for me.

One thing I noticed about NYC, walking around with a cane.

Guys in three piece suits that cost as much as my car would elbow me out of their way and into traffic if I didn't dodge fast enough.

Thuggy-looking scary guys in black leather jackets with studs smiled, got out of my way, and held doors for me.

If I had to pick between a lawyer or CEO and a mugger, I would pick the less sociopathic one ... often the mugger.

I can't even imagine what they would do to a Yooper !!

Nothing to do with plants...
I had a positive experience in NYC with a lovely Chinese man. Walking down the street just two blocks from Grand Central Terminal one of my shoes broke a strap. A very smart (and obviously successful businessman) came running out of his shop waving some shoes over his head as he chased my down the street yelling, "You need sandal, you need sandal." Naturally, I purchased what he was offering...royal blue velvet flip flops. And happy to wear them. :hearts:
I have always found New Yorkers to be the most friendly people in the world, even if I wasn't buying anything.

I used to live in NYC for years, I loved it, and there are many very friendly people there. The biggest problem is that because there are so many people they normally keep to themselves as a means of privacy and protection for themselves. It's hard to have me time on a morning commute when you are surrounded sardined into a subway. I found out fast that if you give the friendly southern welcome to people I the street you sometimes got more attention than what you would like. I remember one time trying to get through a crowd because I was late and saw some nice elderly lady afraid of me elbowing her because I was trying to walk against the crowd. That made me remember why people think New Yorkers are mean. I now live in tn where my house is at least triple the size of my small apartment. (It's still considered a small house lol) I don't miss the space issues that's for sure.