3 Easy Plants to Forage for Beginners

 Hello everyone!

I have been fighting a cold so I have been home more. This means I have more time to research one of my favorite interests:  Foraging Wild Edibles. 

When I first started foraging, an older neighbor lady advised me to learn one new plant a year. That is a goal even an expert procrastinator like me can achieve! So, for nearly two decades, I focused on one plant a year. 

Our grocery budget and the prices at our local supermarket are not exactly compatible these days making foraging more than just a hobby. It seems many other people, all across the world, are in the same boat, or even worse off.

Here are some helpful questions to get us started.

Why Forage

Maybe this isn't the first question I asked when I decided to start learning about useful plants, but it probably should have been. In fact, it wasn't until THIS year that I really examined the why.

All these years I imagined a future day when we would have to escape into the woods and survive solely on the food God provides for us. I imagined our little family living like the natives used to and me cooking over a campfire.

But, reality usually doesn't end up bringing us to the extreme places our minds imagine. The REAL reason most people forage is not to completely live on ONLY foraged food. Foraged wild food supplements our diet.

I remember one of my many wise aunts showing me a mallow leaf and explaining how this little plant saved lives during WW2 because it is packed with nutrients. Most people had some food, but Mallow gave them the vitamins they needed. Mallow is a rather small weed. To be realistic, they probably only ate maybe one leaf a day. Many survival advisors say to include vitamins in emergency supply kits! Mallow is one of nature's vitamins.

Many dark green little herbs we usually trample with our feet can be very beneficial to us, and not just in survival situations. 

So, this year I switched my why from gaining enough knowledge to survive solely on foraged food (I didn't consciously have this as my why, but looking back that is what I was thinking.) to supplementing our diet with vitamin-packed herbs that Our Creator has provided for us right outside my back door.

Supplementing is so much simpler. Besides, most foraged foods, in my yard anyway, are much more "flavorful" than my palate finds enjoyable. Frankly, they don't taste good! 😝

Now that I have finally figured out my why is: to supplement my diet, then we are ready for the next question: What? 

What to forage

Foraging can be scary. In fact, if you aren't the least bit scared, maybe I could be bold enough to say... you shouldn't be foraging! While I believe that EVERYTHING God created has a purpose, not every green plant was created for us to eat handfuls of raw! In fact, there are a few plants that can actually kill a person! (Which, if our why is to help us survive, would be contradictory to our goal, to say the least!) 

This is probably the most important question of all, and the focus of this article. 

Start with plants that you already have some knowledge about. Plants that are easy to identify and do not have any poisonous look-alikes. And, plants that are readily available in your area (they aren't protected or rare.)

Guess what? There are 3 types of plants that most likely fit this category no matter where you live. 

1.    GRASSES - I don't know about the Arctic or the desert regions of our world, but, I think grasses grow pretty much everywhere, and, guess what? They are edible!  I think pretty much everyone can feel pretty confident in identifying grass. There are hundreds of varieties of grasses from wheat, down to the green stuff that we mow in our yards. And, none of them are going to kill you! Unless, of course, you are allergic to them, which brings me to an important rule to remember: When trying a "new to you" plant, nibble it and wait.
2.  DANDELIONS - I looked this up for this article, and yes, dandelions can be found growing nearly everywhere. There are many varieties of this common weed, including some that are not yellow! And, they are all edible. The whole plant! (Except the stem is not really palatable.) I couldn't find any poisonous look-alikes. This reminds me of another foraging rule: Always double-check a plant's ID. For children and beginners, this looks like showing the plant to someone who knows to be sure. Don't be embarrassed to ask.
   CLOVER- Thanks to the Irish, I think everyone knows what clovers look like. I'm not sure if these grow in dryer climates, but I know there are a lot of varieties and all of them are edible. The flowers, the leaves, the stems! They don't have much of a root, but they are also fine to eat if you can figure out how to. Again, don't be shy about making sure your little friend is really a clover. It must have smooth (not jagged) leaves. Even some plants that look similar are edible, including Wood Sorrel! 😋(I guess I need to think of a third rule now... hmmm.... oh, I know, Responsible Harvesting!) When harvesting what the Creator has provided for us, remember not to be greedy. Other creatures, including honeybees, rely on plants for their survival. Also, if you want to forage next year, allow some of the flowers to go to seed. Consider leaving the roots also. Moderation in all things......which somehow, (maybe my train of thought isn't as chaotic as I presumed) brings me to the next question: How?
   
   
   

How to Forage

If you are absolutely sure that you have correctly identified the plant, and you have taste-tested it to make absolutely sure your body can handle it, it is time for the fun part: harvest and prepare to eat what you have found. 

Look at where the plant is growing and how much of it you have. It is usually wise to not completely harvest the whole crop. 

Foraging is not picking a whole wheelbarrow full of plants. It is usually a small basket. Just enough to dry for tea. Or, maybe a handful to throw in the juicer to add to a smoothie, or mix with eggs for a healthy breakfast. 

Humans are not grazing livestock. We do not have several stomachs. Therefore, our digestive system isn't able to handle us chowing down on GRASS raw, by the handful. There are two parts of the grass your tummy will enjoy. The first part is the light-colored, juicy part of the grass down near the root. Young grass is also more palatable.  How do we prepare it? Think about "wheatgrass." If you aren't familiar with it, look it up! 💁  The young grass is prepared by juicing it! Juicing it breaks it down so we can digest it easier. The second part of the grass that is useful to humans is, of course, the seeds. Wheat, barley, and even lawn grass seed can be soaked, sprouted, or dried and ground for flour.

Many foraged plants are not as bland as the diet we are used to. In other words: They might taste bitter! Use them as you would an herb or spice. Add it to a pot of soup. Dry the leaves and flowers for tea! 

Some ways to enjoy them are: 

 Nibble on them fresh. 

This looks like picking a clover flower, gently pulling out a petal, and sucking out the nectar. Or, pulling one blade of grass and chewing on the soft white part, swallowing the juice, and spitting out the pulp. Or, picking a dandelion flower and eating only the soft yellow petals on a warm summer day. (I mean, you may eat the green part too, but it is pretty bitter.)

Dry them for tea.

Clover flowers and leaves make yummy tea. Don't dry dandelion flowers though, they will turn to white fluff balls!

Cook them. 

Water is a very powerful substance. You can steam, or boil, your foraged plant to make it more palatable. Add it to soups, omelets, or even some casseroles. Use your own judgment! 

Juice If you throw a handful of foraged plants in a juicer, the juicer will remove the hard-to-digest pulp for you and leave you with a vitamin-rich liquid. Don't forget to add apples, or something similar to make your juice yummy as well as healthy and easy to digest! 

                             

Have Fun Foraging

So, go outside and look around. My guess is you have at least one of these plants growing somewhere near you. This reminds me of another foraging rule: Beware of environmental contaminants.  If the plants have been sprayed with poison, or if the soil is contaminated, even edible plants can make you sick. Please assess the safety of the area you plan to forage.

Foraging teaches a beautiful truth: God provides for His children! 

I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. Psalm 37: 25 KJV