I forage sometimes! We've got wild onions, dandelions, wild strawberries, and violets. By far the most exciting thing around here are the pawpaws. The critters usually get to them before I do, though. :(
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General Discussion
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TOPIC | Foraging IRL?
I forage sometimes! We've got wild onions, dandelions, wild strawberries, and violets. By far the most exciting thing around here are the pawpaws. The critters usually get to them before I do, though. :(
@randomdaisy ohh yes, i'm so into that stuff! aside from all the herbs i grow, i like to go dig up dandelion roots, get pine needles and rose petals for tea and sometimes go in the field behind my house for wild garlic ovo
@randomdaisy ohh yes, i'm so into that stuff! aside from all the herbs i grow, i like to go dig up dandelion roots, get pine needles and rose petals for tea and sometimes go in the field behind my house for wild garlic ovo
oh man, all of these plants sound so cool! i've only recently heard of miner's lettuce, @CatDetective , and this is the first i'm hearing of Manzanita bush. i think i'd love to try that if it's kind of like honeysuckle.
@Amazonite , that's awesome that you have pawpaws near where you live!! i've heard about them being rare because of critters. are they any good?
@GruesomeGoo , i'm sorry to hear not much grows there. the dirt is kind of weird at first, yeah, but the plants should be fine to eat so long as you wash them well (most plants you cut off the root anyway).
@Fizzywings , oh god that sounds terrible. the worst i've had to deal with are the mosquito boom in the summer, but that just sounds dangerous. D: what kind of foods do your parents grow? my dad always plants a ton of tomatoes every year, so we have an overabundance of them by fall. it was helping out in the garden this summer that got me into researching edible weeds. it felt weird to me throwing out these plants just because they're growing in the wrong place, and i wanted to find out if there was more to them i was missing. turns out i was missing a lot! except i think my dad is a tad frustrated that i'm asking him to keep some of the patches intact, haha
@terralockhart , i'm glad i could help! wood sorrel is one of my favorites. it takes a large handful to make a good tea since the leaves are so thin, but it's very good, kind of like a warm lemonade. and yeah, i have to stick to areas near the roads in my neighborhood (although i'm a little wary from car runoff...), but there is a pond in the middle of it that i like to walk by. there's surprisingly little to harvest there though... i've found some wood sorrel and a bit of curly dock once, but that's about it. :c
@Amazonite , that's awesome that you have pawpaws near where you live!! i've heard about them being rare because of critters. are they any good?
@GruesomeGoo , i'm sorry to hear not much grows there. the dirt is kind of weird at first, yeah, but the plants should be fine to eat so long as you wash them well (most plants you cut off the root anyway).
@Fizzywings , oh god that sounds terrible. the worst i've had to deal with are the mosquito boom in the summer, but that just sounds dangerous. D: what kind of foods do your parents grow? my dad always plants a ton of tomatoes every year, so we have an overabundance of them by fall. it was helping out in the garden this summer that got me into researching edible weeds. it felt weird to me throwing out these plants just because they're growing in the wrong place, and i wanted to find out if there was more to them i was missing. turns out i was missing a lot! except i think my dad is a tad frustrated that i'm asking him to keep some of the patches intact, haha
@terralockhart , i'm glad i could help! wood sorrel is one of my favorites. it takes a large handful to make a good tea since the leaves are so thin, but it's very good, kind of like a warm lemonade. and yeah, i have to stick to areas near the roads in my neighborhood (although i'm a little wary from car runoff...), but there is a pond in the middle of it that i like to walk by. there's surprisingly little to harvest there though... i've found some wood sorrel and a bit of curly dock once, but that's about it. :c
oh man, all of these plants sound so cool! i've only recently heard of miner's lettuce, @CatDetective , and this is the first i'm hearing of Manzanita bush. i think i'd love to try that if it's kind of like honeysuckle.
@Amazonite , that's awesome that you have pawpaws near where you live!! i've heard about them being rare because of critters. are they any good?
@GruesomeGoo , i'm sorry to hear not much grows there. the dirt is kind of weird at first, yeah, but the plants should be fine to eat so long as you wash them well (most plants you cut off the root anyway).
@Fizzywings , oh god that sounds terrible. the worst i've had to deal with are the mosquito boom in the summer, but that just sounds dangerous. D: what kind of foods do your parents grow? my dad always plants a ton of tomatoes every year, so we have an overabundance of them by fall. it was helping out in the garden this summer that got me into researching edible weeds. it felt weird to me throwing out these plants just because they're growing in the wrong place, and i wanted to find out if there was more to them i was missing. turns out i was missing a lot! except i think my dad is a tad frustrated that i'm asking him to keep some of the patches intact, haha
@terralockhart , i'm glad i could help! wood sorrel is one of my favorites. it takes a large handful to make a good tea since the leaves are so thin, but it's very good, kind of like a warm lemonade. and yeah, i have to stick to areas near the roads in my neighborhood (although i'm a little wary from car runoff...), but there is a pond in the middle of it that i like to walk by. there's surprisingly little to harvest there though... i've found some wood sorrel and a bit of curly dock once, but that's about it. :c
@Amazonite , that's awesome that you have pawpaws near where you live!! i've heard about them being rare because of critters. are they any good?
@GruesomeGoo , i'm sorry to hear not much grows there. the dirt is kind of weird at first, yeah, but the plants should be fine to eat so long as you wash them well (most plants you cut off the root anyway).
@Fizzywings , oh god that sounds terrible. the worst i've had to deal with are the mosquito boom in the summer, but that just sounds dangerous. D: what kind of foods do your parents grow? my dad always plants a ton of tomatoes every year, so we have an overabundance of them by fall. it was helping out in the garden this summer that got me into researching edible weeds. it felt weird to me throwing out these plants just because they're growing in the wrong place, and i wanted to find out if there was more to them i was missing. turns out i was missing a lot! except i think my dad is a tad frustrated that i'm asking him to keep some of the patches intact, haha
@terralockhart , i'm glad i could help! wood sorrel is one of my favorites. it takes a large handful to make a good tea since the leaves are so thin, but it's very good, kind of like a warm lemonade. and yeah, i have to stick to areas near the roads in my neighborhood (although i'm a little wary from car runoff...), but there is a pond in the middle of it that i like to walk by. there's surprisingly little to harvest there though... i've found some wood sorrel and a bit of curly dock once, but that's about it. :c
@gaysheep oh whoops, i missed your post as i was writing. ooh, what kind of herbs do you grow? i've been wanting to start an herb garden myself. so far i've just been growing small pots of various weeds i've found around my college campus in cut up styrofoam cups. i've had pine needle tea before (i want to try making pine vinegar once spring comes around), but are dandelion roots any good? everything but the flowers taste very bitter to me, so i only occasionally nibble on the flowers.
@gaysheep oh whoops, i missed your post as i was writing. ooh, what kind of herbs do you grow? i've been wanting to start an herb garden myself. so far i've just been growing small pots of various weeds i've found around my college campus in cut up styrofoam cups. i've had pine needle tea before (i want to try making pine vinegar once spring comes around), but are dandelion roots any good? everything but the flowers taste very bitter to me, so i only occasionally nibble on the flowers.
@randomdaisy i grow basil, oregano, parsley, rosemary, thyme, and lavender! i also really like lemony stuff, so there is a lot of lemon balm and lemongrass scattered around my yard. you should totally start a herb garden in spring, it's really good and useful. and yeah dandelion root is pretty bitter, but i think making tea with it + honey and some lemon is good. its mainly really healthy! and yeah the flowers are tasty, i put them on salads sometimes. :3
@randomdaisy i grow basil, oregano, parsley, rosemary, thyme, and lavender! i also really like lemony stuff, so there is a lot of lemon balm and lemongrass scattered around my yard. you should totally start a herb garden in spring, it's really good and useful. and yeah dandelion root is pretty bitter, but i think making tea with it + honey and some lemon is good. its mainly really healthy! and yeah the flowers are tasty, i put them on salads sometimes. :3
!!! what a cool thread
I've never really foraged, but i've been interested in it-- especially mushrooms. mycology is so odd :O i just have so much going on that i havent had the chance to educate myself, though. i go to this ukrainian resort (weird, right) in the catskill mountains, and the most amazing wild blueberries grow there. ive never made anything out of them but they're delicious and i love picking them.
i also have a fond memory of dandelion tea. i went to a festival and camped out for three days. by the fourth morning my friends had left and i was wandering around looking for a ride home, as they had been my ride, and I stopped to talk to someone who had a license plate of my state. they didnt have any room, but we sat and talked for a bit and she gave me some dandelion tea... i forget what she called it, but she told me festival-goers make it on the last day when everyone is all burnt out and out of food :P (which of course I was!) it was wonderful and a little sweet and very bitter, kind of like coffee.
I've never really foraged, but i've been interested in it-- especially mushrooms. mycology is so odd :O i just have so much going on that i havent had the chance to educate myself, though. i go to this ukrainian resort (weird, right) in the catskill mountains, and the most amazing wild blueberries grow there. ive never made anything out of them but they're delicious and i love picking them.
i also have a fond memory of dandelion tea. i went to a festival and camped out for three days. by the fourth morning my friends had left and i was wandering around looking for a ride home, as they had been my ride, and I stopped to talk to someone who had a license plate of my state. they didnt have any room, but we sat and talked for a bit and she gave me some dandelion tea... i forget what she called it, but she told me festival-goers make it on the last day when everyone is all burnt out and out of food :P (which of course I was!) it was wonderful and a little sweet and very bitter, kind of like coffee.
!!! what a cool thread
I've never really foraged, but i've been interested in it-- especially mushrooms. mycology is so odd :O i just have so much going on that i havent had the chance to educate myself, though. i go to this ukrainian resort (weird, right) in the catskill mountains, and the most amazing wild blueberries grow there. ive never made anything out of them but they're delicious and i love picking them.
i also have a fond memory of dandelion tea. i went to a festival and camped out for three days. by the fourth morning my friends had left and i was wandering around looking for a ride home, as they had been my ride, and I stopped to talk to someone who had a license plate of my state. they didnt have any room, but we sat and talked for a bit and she gave me some dandelion tea... i forget what she called it, but she told me festival-goers make it on the last day when everyone is all burnt out and out of food :P (which of course I was!) it was wonderful and a little sweet and very bitter, kind of like coffee.
I've never really foraged, but i've been interested in it-- especially mushrooms. mycology is so odd :O i just have so much going on that i havent had the chance to educate myself, though. i go to this ukrainian resort (weird, right) in the catskill mountains, and the most amazing wild blueberries grow there. ive never made anything out of them but they're delicious and i love picking them.
i also have a fond memory of dandelion tea. i went to a festival and camped out for three days. by the fourth morning my friends had left and i was wandering around looking for a ride home, as they had been my ride, and I stopped to talk to someone who had a license plate of my state. they didnt have any room, but we sat and talked for a bit and she gave me some dandelion tea... i forget what she called it, but she told me festival-goers make it on the last day when everyone is all burnt out and out of food :P (which of course I was!) it was wonderful and a little sweet and very bitter, kind of like coffee.
@randomdaisy Yep! The only real way to describe the taste is tropical. They taste like something you'd find everywhere in Southeast Asia. But yes, the raccoons tend to get to them before I do. v_v
@randomdaisy Yep! The only real way to describe the taste is tropical. They taste like something you'd find everywhere in Southeast Asia. But yes, the raccoons tend to get to them before I do. v_v
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@randomdaisy
Mosquitoes are awful, too. D: They can make you just as blotch as poison ivy sometimes. My dad plants a huuuge veggie garden every year, and he always plants way too much so come fall I'm giving baskets of veggies to the neighbors as presents.
This past season my dad planted tomatoes, radishes (which we never got because rabbits, it turns out, like radishes more than carrots. They didn't eat any of the other plants, just the radishes.) A few different kinds of peppers, some squashes, cucumbers, and a bunch of herbs. To humor my mom he also planted some melons, which were actually really successful in the part of his garden that's raised up from the ground.
My mom also has a bunch of blueberry and raspberry bushes around, but my uncle claims those because he likes to use them to make wine. I don't complain about that much, though, because picking blueberries is a pain sometimes. Especially when it's really hot.
It's cool that you can eat a lot of the weeds that grow in the garden. Definitely less wasteful! :0 My family usually just throws them in a compost pile, but now I think I'm going to try and talk dad into doing some research.
Mosquitoes are awful, too. D: They can make you just as blotch as poison ivy sometimes. My dad plants a huuuge veggie garden every year, and he always plants way too much so come fall I'm giving baskets of veggies to the neighbors as presents.
This past season my dad planted tomatoes, radishes (which we never got because rabbits, it turns out, like radishes more than carrots. They didn't eat any of the other plants, just the radishes.) A few different kinds of peppers, some squashes, cucumbers, and a bunch of herbs. To humor my mom he also planted some melons, which were actually really successful in the part of his garden that's raised up from the ground.
My mom also has a bunch of blueberry and raspberry bushes around, but my uncle claims those because he likes to use them to make wine. I don't complain about that much, though, because picking blueberries is a pain sometimes. Especially when it's really hot.
It's cool that you can eat a lot of the weeds that grow in the garden. Definitely less wasteful! :0 My family usually just throws them in a compost pile, but now I think I'm going to try and talk dad into doing some research.
@randomdaisy
Mosquitoes are awful, too. D: They can make you just as blotch as poison ivy sometimes. My dad plants a huuuge veggie garden every year, and he always plants way too much so come fall I'm giving baskets of veggies to the neighbors as presents.
This past season my dad planted tomatoes, radishes (which we never got because rabbits, it turns out, like radishes more than carrots. They didn't eat any of the other plants, just the radishes.) A few different kinds of peppers, some squashes, cucumbers, and a bunch of herbs. To humor my mom he also planted some melons, which were actually really successful in the part of his garden that's raised up from the ground.
My mom also has a bunch of blueberry and raspberry bushes around, but my uncle claims those because he likes to use them to make wine. I don't complain about that much, though, because picking blueberries is a pain sometimes. Especially when it's really hot.
It's cool that you can eat a lot of the weeds that grow in the garden. Definitely less wasteful! :0 My family usually just throws them in a compost pile, but now I think I'm going to try and talk dad into doing some research.
Mosquitoes are awful, too. D: They can make you just as blotch as poison ivy sometimes. My dad plants a huuuge veggie garden every year, and he always plants way too much so come fall I'm giving baskets of veggies to the neighbors as presents.
This past season my dad planted tomatoes, radishes (which we never got because rabbits, it turns out, like radishes more than carrots. They didn't eat any of the other plants, just the radishes.) A few different kinds of peppers, some squashes, cucumbers, and a bunch of herbs. To humor my mom he also planted some melons, which were actually really successful in the part of his garden that's raised up from the ground.
My mom also has a bunch of blueberry and raspberry bushes around, but my uncle claims those because he likes to use them to make wine. I don't complain about that much, though, because picking blueberries is a pain sometimes. Especially when it's really hot.
It's cool that you can eat a lot of the weeds that grow in the garden. Definitely less wasteful! :0 My family usually just throws them in a compost pile, but now I think I'm going to try and talk dad into doing some research.
Come wayward Souls, Who wander through the darkness, There is a light for the lost and the meek.
@gaysheep ooh, that's awesome! i actually just went out to see if i could find some dandelion to make tea/coffee with. found lots of onion grass and only a bit of dandelion, but i think it may be enough for a cup or two. i'll let you know how it goes!
(also, here's my harvest. this is only a fraction of the onion grass that was growing!! i'm excited to try cooking with it)
http://i.imgur.com/NiUZ92t.jpg
@r0dent if you're interested, i'd definitely recommend taking it up! it can be a casual hobby, but it does involve a lot of research and knowledge about each specific plant you're gathering, and even MORE so for mushrooms. i've heard of a few very easily identifiable ones like Chicken of the Woods and Lobster mushrooms, but aside from those you'd need a lot of knowledge on mushroom identification. there are tons of foraging blogs out there written by professional foragers though, so i'd definitely recommend checking those out! (Eat the Weeds is my favorite, but i make sure to look at several). and oh gosh, blueberries sound wonderful right now. i've only gone picking them once a long time ago. that's really cool about the dandelion tea-- i'm definitely going to need to try it now!
@Amazonite ooh. i'd love to try one of those someday then (should i ever find one, and before raccoons as well)
@Fizzywings your dad's garden is almost my dad's to a T! we didn't have melons this year (they didn't grow well in the past unfortunately), but he did try to grow potatoes; one plant rotted, another only had very tiny potatoes, but the sweet potato plant gave us HUGE ones. that's funny though that rabbits like radishes so much! i would've thought they'd be too peppery.
and yeah, that's part of what i love about it! so much less goes to waste, and it makes me really happy for some reason, finding out how incredible these plants are that no one even thinks much about. the good part about starting with your backyard/garden is that there's a lot of very easily identifiable weeds with little to no look-alikes (chickweed may be a good one to start with). still, make sure you do a lot of research and double-checking before eating something! there are lots of websites to help out with that fortunately. it's pretty incredible how much information is out there :D
(also, here's my harvest. this is only a fraction of the onion grass that was growing!! i'm excited to try cooking with it)
http://i.imgur.com/NiUZ92t.jpg
@r0dent if you're interested, i'd definitely recommend taking it up! it can be a casual hobby, but it does involve a lot of research and knowledge about each specific plant you're gathering, and even MORE so for mushrooms. i've heard of a few very easily identifiable ones like Chicken of the Woods and Lobster mushrooms, but aside from those you'd need a lot of knowledge on mushroom identification. there are tons of foraging blogs out there written by professional foragers though, so i'd definitely recommend checking those out! (Eat the Weeds is my favorite, but i make sure to look at several). and oh gosh, blueberries sound wonderful right now. i've only gone picking them once a long time ago. that's really cool about the dandelion tea-- i'm definitely going to need to try it now!
@Amazonite ooh. i'd love to try one of those someday then (should i ever find one, and before raccoons as well)
@Fizzywings your dad's garden is almost my dad's to a T! we didn't have melons this year (they didn't grow well in the past unfortunately), but he did try to grow potatoes; one plant rotted, another only had very tiny potatoes, but the sweet potato plant gave us HUGE ones. that's funny though that rabbits like radishes so much! i would've thought they'd be too peppery.
and yeah, that's part of what i love about it! so much less goes to waste, and it makes me really happy for some reason, finding out how incredible these plants are that no one even thinks much about. the good part about starting with your backyard/garden is that there's a lot of very easily identifiable weeds with little to no look-alikes (chickweed may be a good one to start with). still, make sure you do a lot of research and double-checking before eating something! there are lots of websites to help out with that fortunately. it's pretty incredible how much information is out there :D
@gaysheep ooh, that's awesome! i actually just went out to see if i could find some dandelion to make tea/coffee with. found lots of onion grass and only a bit of dandelion, but i think it may be enough for a cup or two. i'll let you know how it goes!
(also, here's my harvest. this is only a fraction of the onion grass that was growing!! i'm excited to try cooking with it)
http://i.imgur.com/NiUZ92t.jpg
@r0dent if you're interested, i'd definitely recommend taking it up! it can be a casual hobby, but it does involve a lot of research and knowledge about each specific plant you're gathering, and even MORE so for mushrooms. i've heard of a few very easily identifiable ones like Chicken of the Woods and Lobster mushrooms, but aside from those you'd need a lot of knowledge on mushroom identification. there are tons of foraging blogs out there written by professional foragers though, so i'd definitely recommend checking those out! (Eat the Weeds is my favorite, but i make sure to look at several). and oh gosh, blueberries sound wonderful right now. i've only gone picking them once a long time ago. that's really cool about the dandelion tea-- i'm definitely going to need to try it now!
@Amazonite ooh. i'd love to try one of those someday then (should i ever find one, and before raccoons as well)
@Fizzywings your dad's garden is almost my dad's to a T! we didn't have melons this year (they didn't grow well in the past unfortunately), but he did try to grow potatoes; one plant rotted, another only had very tiny potatoes, but the sweet potato plant gave us HUGE ones. that's funny though that rabbits like radishes so much! i would've thought they'd be too peppery.
and yeah, that's part of what i love about it! so much less goes to waste, and it makes me really happy for some reason, finding out how incredible these plants are that no one even thinks much about. the good part about starting with your backyard/garden is that there's a lot of very easily identifiable weeds with little to no look-alikes (chickweed may be a good one to start with). still, make sure you do a lot of research and double-checking before eating something! there are lots of websites to help out with that fortunately. it's pretty incredible how much information is out there :D
(also, here's my harvest. this is only a fraction of the onion grass that was growing!! i'm excited to try cooking with it)
http://i.imgur.com/NiUZ92t.jpg
@r0dent if you're interested, i'd definitely recommend taking it up! it can be a casual hobby, but it does involve a lot of research and knowledge about each specific plant you're gathering, and even MORE so for mushrooms. i've heard of a few very easily identifiable ones like Chicken of the Woods and Lobster mushrooms, but aside from those you'd need a lot of knowledge on mushroom identification. there are tons of foraging blogs out there written by professional foragers though, so i'd definitely recommend checking those out! (Eat the Weeds is my favorite, but i make sure to look at several). and oh gosh, blueberries sound wonderful right now. i've only gone picking them once a long time ago. that's really cool about the dandelion tea-- i'm definitely going to need to try it now!
@Amazonite ooh. i'd love to try one of those someday then (should i ever find one, and before raccoons as well)
@Fizzywings your dad's garden is almost my dad's to a T! we didn't have melons this year (they didn't grow well in the past unfortunately), but he did try to grow potatoes; one plant rotted, another only had very tiny potatoes, but the sweet potato plant gave us HUGE ones. that's funny though that rabbits like radishes so much! i would've thought they'd be too peppery.
and yeah, that's part of what i love about it! so much less goes to waste, and it makes me really happy for some reason, finding out how incredible these plants are that no one even thinks much about. the good part about starting with your backyard/garden is that there's a lot of very easily identifiable weeds with little to no look-alikes (chickweed may be a good one to start with). still, make sure you do a lot of research and double-checking before eating something! there are lots of websites to help out with that fortunately. it's pretty incredible how much information is out there :D
update: dandelion coffee is incredible. it's not near as bitter as i thought it'd be, and it's kind of chocolatey too? but oh man is this good. thank you so much for the recommendation, guys!!
update: dandelion coffee is incredible. it's not near as bitter as i thought it'd be, and it's kind of chocolatey too? but oh man is this good. thank you so much for the recommendation, guys!!