I'm in East Texas (Houston). This guy has is growing rampant in my raised garden beds. He's a spreader and these green stalks seem to get up to 1-2 feet long, and can root when in contact with the ground.

Does it have an aroma? Our area is covered in vines and weeds normally that are a nuisance, they are still a nuisance and blow in with the winds and rains.

No discernible aroma or taste (I didn't eat it, just chewed a leaf). I would describe the flavor to be clean like lettuce or spinach.

Maybe alligator weed?

Does it flower?
Seems familiar...

Any chance of a pic or two of the growing plant ?

Sure thing, here are a couple more photos. One showing young shoots in a tomato bed, and the other showing a massive takeover in an asparagus bed. I've found if I'm diligent about weeding it out young I can control it OK, but it's recurring work.

Oh, also... I can't recall if it flowered last year or not. It's certainly not flowering at the moment.

Also, the roots on these guys seem to run pretty deep.

rlane728 said: Maybe alligator weed?

with the new pictures, I agree.
Supposed to be edible.

Yep. They say that it's a toxic accumulator (in contaminated waters), and advise to eat it in small quantities. However with it growing in my garden beds I don't see why I shouldn't give it a try. I'll saute some and let you know how it turns out.

I have a lot of it here. I will be interested to hear whether it is tasty.

So, I'm definitely calling it ID'd as Alligator Weed
(Found a solid ID on a foraging Texas website, but can't share the URL because my account is too young).

As for eating it. I went out and chose mostly young stems, but took some with mature leaves as well. I left the leaves whole and diced up the stems. Sauteed a little spring onion in butter, then in went the greens, sauteed them for a minute, then added some mirin to steam them (didn't have any white wine handy).

They wilt nicely, but don't get soggy like spinach does. Have no discernable flavor other than "green leafy vegetable", and the stems maintain a nice little crunch. Altogether a good, toothsome little side dish.

And bonus - it turns out that using some mirin to finish off your sauteed greens is awesome because it adds some sugar to them. A combo I will certainly remember.

I'm calling this a win all around. As long as your soil is clean and you cook them to reduce the oxalates, it's free greens as far as I'm concerned.

Just imagine, the next time you serve a chicken cordon bleu it can be with a side of creamed alligator weed.

Outstanding!
I've tasted it raw, sounds like I need to cook some...

... And maybe compare recipes with you.
It sounds like you know your way around the kitchen...