Food calendar.....Whats your plan

[8thsinner]

I was just thinking the other day that the best way to learn the edible foods which surround us is to go out and not just find it but use it.
On my first survival course, we covered over twenty foods.
On my last bushcraft course we covered only a couple, but we used that couple.

I find I learned more from the bushcraft course because I got experience with the food in preperation, use and cooking.


So working along those lines why don't we put in a calendar of foods to go out find and use this year.
If everyone is working with the same stuff at relatively the same time I am sure we can learn a lot more.

Of course we would all have to be carefull not to take too much and check the endangered lists too.


I know from the collins gem food for free that chick weed is available this time of year. Any one know any other seasonal based edible foods?

 

[match]

I think this is a good idea - however it probably needs some kind of organising to make sure we don't get 12 months of suggestions all crammed into one thread!

So how about making this a 'wild foods of January' thread, and starting a new one each month? That way each thread can be looked at each month to get new ideas and tips on what shoul dbe around for the eating...

 

[trauma]

well i have some hefty hosting and the like, if people would like to do this i can host it as a web page / calender and post a link to it - i'm a teacher and i can make a lesson out of this so i'm volanteering to put it together and store / display it, but i'll need your help to populate it

 

[Ahjno]

Now I'm thinking about it: I do remember the plants we covered on my bushcraft course which I actually had a taste of. Like crabappels (yikes), cattail roots, etc.

This suggestion is mentioned already a few times: but I do find it a good idea, especially with a new thread for every month.
If we add the scientific name (latin) of the plant (do you want to restrict it to solely edible plants? Or medicinal plants aswell?), it's possible to find and add pics (find them on the net, or make them ouselves) of the plant - and makes it easier to look up for us foreigners

Within a year you'll have a nice resource

 

[sam_acw]

This is a wonderful idea and something i was on the verge of requesting,
I found this but it's for California not Cambridgeshire;
gather and harvest
i'll check the library and report back

 

[8thsinner]

I am glad you have offered some hosting trauma. I think kids should definatly get taught this kind of thing. If we can compile stuff, with pics, info and cooking tips your right we would have a great resourse this time next year.

As for edible uses and other uses. I reckon we can easily do both but would have to keep it seperate.
Perhaps
Edible foods of january
Medicinal herbs in january
Primitive skills to develop in january

The hosted site can then have one calendar with a choice of finding one of the three major uses.

This would definatly be one of my links in my explorers tool bar.

 

[Wattler]

I pick wild food plants for a living! ...so could probably help by giving a list of what I am currently picking:

Alexanders Smyrnium olusatrum
Chickweed Stellaria media *
Cow Parsley Anthriscus sylvestris*
Dandelion Taraxacum officinale*
Rose Hips
Hairy Bittercress Cardamine hirsuta*
Sea Beet Beta vulgaris
Sea Purslane Halimione portulacoides*
Sorrel Rumex acetosa*
Sow Thistle Soncus cleraseus*
Wood Sorrel Oxalis acetosella*

Thats pretty usual for January. Could supply some recipes or suggestions but to start with, those marked with an asterix are good for a wild salad.

 

[8thsinner]

Okay, I am going to go out this weekend and try to find some of that.
Not sure about Cow parsley, I am always nervous when it comes to the umbifers.

 

[JonnyP]

I pick wild food plants for a living! ...so could probably help by giving a list of what I am currently picking:

Alexanders Smyrnium olusatrum
Chickweed Stellaria media *
Cow Parsley Anthriscus sylvestris*
Dandelion Taraxacum officinale*
Rose Hips
Hairy Bittercress Cardamine hirsuta*
Sea Beet Beta vulgaris
Sea Purslane Halimione portulacoides*
Sorrel Rumex acetosa*
Sow Thistle Soncus cleraseus*
Wood Sorrel Oxalis acetosella*

Thats pretty usual for January. Could supply some recipes or suggestions but to start with, those marked with an asterix are good for a wild salad.

May I ask what you do for a living, picking wild plants..............This is my interest, but to make a living.............I wish...................Jon

 

[Ed]

So working along those lines why don't we put in a calendar of foods to go out find and use this year.
If everyone is working with the same stuff at relatively the same time I am sure we can learn a lot more.

I think this is a fantastic idea. If anyone fancies putting one together (or getting a few members together to compile one) I'd be more than happy to put it up on the main site ..... We have nearly 3 years worth of posts you can trall through to see what people have been eating during the year..... add to this some simple prep/cooking instructions or a recipe or two and I think we'll have a really helpful resource.

What do you think?

Ed

 

[Abbe Osram]

May I ask what you do for a living, picking wild plants..............This is my interest, but to make a living.............I wish...................Jon

Click on his name, there you find the option to check out his homepage, there he is explaining his bussiness! Looks cool by the way.

cheers
Abbe

 

[Wattler]

Jon, I supply a few restaurants. In fact I am looking for pickers so your wish could come true- send me a PM if you are interested. Likewise to anyone else who fancies it. I have a great time giving my occupation as "Forager". theres always a pause before people say "Excuse my ignorance but what exactly is a...."

Regarding umbilifers, you have to take your time and follow plants in one place through the seasons. Check the leaf, the flower and the seed, then you are sure. By this point you will have to wait till spring to eat the leaf again as by the time cow parsley has seed , there is little or no leaf and what there is is bitter. But Hogweed is easy enough. If its Giant Hog weed you should know due to the size- that you need to watch on your skin but cooked its fine. But the ordinary hogweed is unlike any of the poisonous umblifers.

 

[locum76]

at this time of the year in my part of scotland garlic mustard, sorrel, cleavers (or sticky willy), and land cress can all be gathered in reasonable quantity.

 

[Jumbalaya]

Hi folks,

Saw your thread for a kind of calendar for plants and have played around with some info. I have and put them into a 'seasonal' tabular display of when some of our edible wild plants flower - therefore have reached their 'sell-by' date. The page is at:

http://www.countrylovers.co.uk/wfs/plantflw.htm

If it's of any use I'll leave it up there, otherwise I'll eventually delete.

 

[Toddy]

The climate and the environment varies tremendously across the UK. What grows in one area frequently doesn't in another, or grows earlier or later. How about if a post is made saying for instance that Chickweed is available for gathering and eating now, simply add the old county name too.

e.g.
January
Chickweed, Stellaria media. Fresh vegetable, salad. Found in Kent, Lanarkshire

Okay, I agree chickweed is pretty ubiquitous, but if a plant becomes so obviously widespread the entry could be tidied up to Southern England and Central Scotland rather than 20 different counties on the post. We don't really know how widespread or available it is until there are posts from all around the country.

Within the last week I have had,
Chickweed, Lady's smock, dandelion, thistle, mugwort, nettles, fat hen, mallow, primrose flowers, heather flowers (tea), docken. Flowers apart these were all new growth or young seedlings. Rosemary, thyme, parsley, lavender, all perennials, and oyster mushrooms. Lanarkshire, late January.

Cheers,
Toddy

 

[Ahjno]

I'm currently working on this:

Not exactly nicely ranged by month, but on alphabetical order on the plants Latin (scientific) name. The picture you see is part of a screen shot, as I can't store a .doc file on the net.
I've got enough info to fill aprox. 8 A4 pages this way, in all that's 96 plants.

I'm using the Latin name, since the book I've got is in Dutch (so I'm translating everything) and I'm not familair with most Engllish names - sorry about that
Using the Latin name also makes it easier to know about plant you're talking with international members, or even UK members who know the plant by another name ... It also gives a better reference when searching for more indepth information in botanical books.

 

[torjusg]

Looks very good Johan!

Torjus Gaaren

 

[Ahjno]

Cheers Torjus!

Something else I'm working on: (Dandelion pic randomly picked from the net).

What about this?

Just seen the word "Bloem" it means "Flower" in dutch ... obviously forgot to translate, or I was typing on auto-pilot Can't edit it, as it is a screenshot pic - well, I can edit it, but it's weekend ... Ohwell, free crash course dutch for the interested

 

[torjusg]

Looks good too!

By the way, the dandelion roots are edible if they are left cut in small pieces for an hour in water and then is cooked for 15minutes in new water. Contains about 23% carbs and 20-30 roots will cover your daily need for them.

I haven't tried it myself (something to do this spring).

Torjus Gaaren

 

[Lifthasir]

Please remember that it is illegal in the UK to dig up roots of wild plants unless
you have the land owners permission.

Also to remember not to strip annuals until they've dispensed their seeds, thus
ensuring the next generation.