A year in the life of a forager....

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Stratts

Forager
Nov 2, 2010
127
0
Yaxley, Peterborough
Great thread mate is all this lot local to where you live? What sort of habitat is it all from? I live in the fens with various woodland pockets and am not sure what I'm likely to find if I get chance to start looking!
 

The Big Lebowski

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Aug 11, 2010
2,320
6
Sunny Wales!
Stratts... Everything from woodland to meadow, salt marsh to concrete wasteland. Its all within a 5 mile radius of the coast. Hope that was kind-of helpful.

One for you Mike, taken today (with the phone) and I'll ask about the GI. I don't think its highly sought after though.

Morel-Morchella vulgaris. The common morel (or rather~ not so common)
lSQES.jpg
 
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lannyman8

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jan 18, 2009
4,005
3
Dark side of the Moon
this thread is awesome, but i would never have the guts to just go and try stuff.......:(

i need an expert like your self to show me the ropes on actual plants...
 

lannyman8

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jan 18, 2009
4,005
3
Dark side of the Moon
cool, it had last years stalks in the center with the flowering/seed heads still on, about 12" tall ish, maybe a little more, a group of about 6-12 plants in total...

i feel a balm coming up.....:)

thanks gents..
 

The Big Lebowski

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Aug 11, 2010
2,320
6
Sunny Wales!
Few more...

Pignut-Conopodium majus. Spring growth. Found amongst bluebells and ramsons in this picture.
ZjdKL.jpg


Wood Sorrel-Oxalis acetosella or 'Alleluia' Great for hydrating your mouth or mixed into salads ect.
DqDF6.jpg


Bay-Laurus nobilis. Always worth collecting leaves if you do a lot of D.O or asian cooking.
Dried for a few weeks, soo much better than the supermarket stuff! A world infact.
xVZPN.jpg


i need an expert like your self to show me the ropes on actual plants...

I'm no expert buddy... Starting a long journey and your shotgun! :)
 
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Once again, lovely pics Al.

Wood Sorrel. Great for hydrating your mouth or mixed into salads ect.

And stuffing trout.

this thread is awesome, but i would never have the guts to just go and try stuff.......

i need an expert like your self to show me the ropes on actual plants...

I'm pretty sure Big Al won't mind me adding in a link to the Wild Food and Natural Resources course I'm publishing on my blog. It's only a few posts in and the first set of plants is here.
 

The Big Lebowski

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Aug 11, 2010
2,320
6
Sunny Wales!
Your very welcome lanny. If it helps one person its worth it :)

Routers about to commit hari-kari, but with thanks to mike/harvestman I have a few new plants to add...

Yellow archangel-Lamium galeobdolon. Member of the dead nettle family and a very pleasant almost sweet taste.
Taken on the side of a riverbank.
sHO9X.jpg


Lady's smock or cuckoo flower-Cardamine pratensis. Sweet tasting flowers with a hint of pepper. Nice.
Taken in Meadows.
b3z85.jpg


Jack by the hedge-Alliara petiola.
Never really got on with the slight bitter aftertaste of this but my palate may be different to yours!
Grows on just about every suburban/country roadside.
Huitd.jpg
 
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Ichneumon

Nomad
Jul 4, 2011
358
0
72
Lancashire (previously Dartmoor)
Stunning pictures! Difficult to go far wrong with pictures like these. Local names might be an issue though.

FWIW:

Lady's smock is sometimes known as Cuckoo flower and more often Milkmaids.

Hedge garlic is also listed in many field guides under the names garlic-mustard and/or Jack-by-the-hedge - a name that perfectly describes its growing habits. Best picked before the flowers appear.

Any merit in including the Latin names too Al? Might avoid problems with regional and national differences.

ATB Paul
 

The Big Lebowski

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Aug 11, 2010
2,320
6
Sunny Wales!
Dont see any problems with the latin... It can just be a bit overwhelming to start with so I though best leave it out :p

Adding now bud, atb, al.
 

Harvestman

Bushcrafter through and through
May 11, 2007
8,656
26
55
Pontypool, Wales, Uk
That's the exact reason the specific scientific names (commonly called 'Latin names' though they aren't always based on latin) are used. Local names are a right pain, though they do add a bit of colour sometimes.

I've never heard of Lady's Smock/Cuckoo Flower being called Milkmaids, but that is the point, isn't it? Apparently, there is a plant (I don't know which) whose local name in one part of the UK was "Jack run down the path, jump over the garden gate and kiss me". Not sure if that is true, but it certainly makes the point.

For those who say "I can't be doing with latin names" I usually say "Name me a dinosaur". When they reply "Tyrannosaurus rex" I just smile...
 

Harvestman

Bushcrafter through and through
May 11, 2007
8,656
26
55
Pontypool, Wales, Uk
As soon as you get into the latin names, some wise-guy (usually me :rolleyes:) will inevitably tell you that your reference book is out of date, and the name has now changed to something even more incomprehensible than the one you thought it was. You can't win.

(Did that make sense?)
 

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