Gorse, also known as furze pas, whin, and prickly broom, has edible flowers that are traditionally used to make a light and refreshing cordial and wine. It’s native to much of Europe and northwest Africa, and has been naturalized across North America. A member of the pea family, this grow-anywhere, scruffy plant blooms all year […]
It’s pretty easy to identify and harvest hawthorn – I’d go so far as to say it’s one of the easiest plants to forage because it’s so distinctive and grows in abundance across much of the world. Like all wild plants, hawthorn needs to be harvested with care and respect, and there are a number […]
It’s surprisingly easy to make hawthorn tincture, with or without alcohol. Hawthorn is an amazingly powerful healing herb, chock-full of natural compounds. Hawthorn berries, flowers, leaves, and bark are all used to treat a variety of ailments, particularly those associated with the heart, digestion, mental health, skin complains, and more. The oldest known healing herb, […]
Hawthorn berries, also known as haws, mayblossom, thornapple, and mayflower, are readily available and have an array of potential health benefits. The berries, flowers, leaves, and bark are all used in traditional preparations. All varieties of the hawthorn tree are related to apples and roses. Many varieties, including the Common Hawthorn, are native to Europe […]
Autumn is probably my favorite time of the year for foraging – the trees and bushes are heavy with fruit and nuts, and, if you know what you’re looking for, this free food is all around you. To make the most of the health benefits of this wild bounty and to preserve that taste of […]
Well, foraging has a huge range of benefits, if it’s done correctly, and it’s something humans have been doing since we first clambered out of the ooze and into the sunlight. Let’s look at some of these benefits:
If you’re going to forage, whether for salad greens, seeds, nuts, or anything else, you’ve got to get out of the house and move around. In the digital age, we humans don’t do anywhere near as much physical activity as previous generations, because everything’s done for us. Our predecessors had to work to get anything done, from making their own bread to going to the green grocers, the butchers, the chemist, the haberdashery, and a variety of other vendors to get their weekly supplies. We hop online and get it all delivered, or else we just drive up the road to the nearest supermarket, where everything’s all crammed together in one place. So many of us lead very sedentary lives, with some getting no real physical activity, and the extent of their contact with nature and the great outdoors is the trip from the front door to the car. We all know we should get out more and do more, but it can be a challenge. Foraging allows you to focus on something other than actual exercise. You’re busy looking for food, after all, so you bend, stretch, walk, and generally move around. Which means you’re exercising without consciously doing so, improving your general health, flexibility, and range of movement. You’ll find yourself enjoying the great outdoors, getting back to nature, and away from the television, tablet, laptop, desktop, game console, and the rest of our electromagnetic radiation-generating devices. This helps to recharge your batteries, lift your mood, and improve your mental and physical well-being.
Read more about Foraging For Beginners: Why Bother Foraging? …
Foraging sounds like a great idea, right? Get back to nature, save loads of money, get some exercise, get loads of free food, and so on. And it is – but there’s a bunch of things you need to know. So, before you go haring off to harvest anything and everything, there’s a variety of basics you need to be aware of. Please, please take the time to understand the basic essentials of foraging.
Read more about Foraging For Beginners: 6 Basic Things You Need to Know …
Asparagus officinalis, or common asparagus, is the regular variety that is cultivated by people across the globe, but it’s also the most common type that you’ll find in the wild. It escapes from kitchen gardens and allotments and goes “feral”, reverting back to its natural state quickly, where it produces large numbers of long, slender […]