Intro to Foraging

Time: 10:00am (approx 3 – 3.5 hours)
Fee: CA$40.00
Location: To be announced

There’s a whole world of wild edible plants waiting for you to discover, and they’re growing all around you! Eating “wild” is healthy, nutritious, free, and, let’s face it – it’s fun to munch on something that was likely part of your ancestors’ dinner menu!

Learn to forage confidently, safely and responsibly, out in the forest or in your own backyard. Recognizing and appreciating the wild food and herbs that grow all around us – even in urban environments – is incredibly rewarding. Each outing is different and a great introduction to wild plants, with a focus on what’s in season and local. With Jennie, you’ll see, touch, smell and taste the plants to really get to know them. Sign up for a walk for yourself, or book a private walk for your group.

Early Spring Edibles – May 9, 2018
Japanese Knotweed is an invasive edible that happens to taste a lot like rhubarb – sweet and tangy. You may have tasted it as a child – we used to call it water-bamboo and suck on the sap. It’s perky shoots are popping up from the ground, ready to be made into preserves, smoothies, fruit leather, chutney and pie! Another shoot we’ll sample is from the daylily, another prolific grower. We will also likely find garlic mustard, trout lilies, fresh young nettle, fiddleheads, spruce tips, herb robert and more…

Late Spring Edibles – June 6, 2018
Once you know Burdock you’ll see it growing everywhere! It’s a wonderful plant for both food and medicine – the flower-shoots are delicious and can be eaten raw, stir-fried or battered! We’ll also gather tender black walnuts – the nutshell hasn’t hardened yet and the whole nut, husk and all, can be made into a pickle following an old English recipe for a “Ploughman’s Lunch”. Wild watercress, garlic mustard, daylilies, nettle, dryads saddle, and pine pollen and more are on our list today.

Backyard Power Plants

Purslane, a wild-growing plant and a common weed in vegetable gardens and lawns, is the richest source of omega-3 fatty acids of any leafy vegetable yet studied. We’ll exame (and taste!) purslane along with dandelion, herb robert, burdock, evening primrose, daylilies, and other native plants that once made up the diet of First Nations people across North America and can still be found in your backyard or gardens.

Edibles of Autumn – Sept 12, 2018
Autumn – the time of harvest! Berries, bark, fruit – Hickory

Edibles of Autumn – Oct 3, 2018
Roots, nuts and Seeds

Late Harvest Edibles – Nov 7, 2018
Roots, nuts and Seeds