India, March 22 -- Suresh Kumar G doesn't like the word "weeds". It's problematic, he says.

A lot of "weeds" are simply hardy plants we haven't found a use for, he adds. And in some cases, an ideal kind of use is staring us in the face. Many are, well, delicious.

Kumar, 52, a visual artist and urban farmer, grew up eating a range of vegetables and wild greens at his maternal grandparents' home in Volagerekallahalli village, about an hour from Bengaluru.

He would only later realise these weren't widely eaten outside the villages; and often weren't even acknowledged as food. Now, even in places like Volagerekallahalli, these plants are disappearing from people's plates, Kumar says, and this concerns him.

What could he do about it, he wo...