You have probably seen lemon balm growing whether you knew it or not. In the mint family, lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) is a perennial herb that spreads rapidly and has become a fairly common “wild” plant. When I’m out foraging and I see what looks like a plant in the mint family it is more…
Forage
Foraging and wildcrafting for your own food and medicine is a great way to get outside and reap the benefits of being out in wild areas. It gives you access to some of the most nutrient rich and healing plants, all while getting some much needed exercise and fresh air. Foraging is good for your body as well as your mind and soul! I love teaching others about the benefits of wild food.
Learn about foraging through the seasons, with guides on fall foraging, winter foraging, and spring foraging. If you want to learn about wild mushrooms, then read about these 5 easy to identify edible mushrooms.
Foraging for Cattails
Hello, my friends! Today we’re going to talk about foraging for cattails. I would be surprised if you didn’t know what cattails looked like. I think that it was one of the first wild growing plants that I could identify when I was a kid, along with dandelions and clover. Besides being easy to identify,…
Growing and Foraging for Comfrey
If you’ve done any reading on the subject of permaculture, then you have for sure heard of comfrey. This plant has become the permaculturists darling for good reason, as it has a multitude of benefits including, but not limited to, natural fertilizer, dynamic accumulator, living mulch, companion plant, compost activator, and numerous medicinal uses. Unfortunately…
Foraging for Bay Leaves
Today I have the elusive Bay tree photos that I needed when I wanted to do this post last week. I’m pretty proud of my on the fly plantain post that happened instead, but this one I’m really excited for! Although bay leaves are sort of taken for granted in the kitchen, they really do…
Foraging for Yellowfoot Chanterelles
A few weeks ago we got a ton of rain. Yes, I know, it rains a lot in Oregon, but this was insane. Creeks flooded, ponds formed (yay ponds!) and trees fell. We needed it, but not all at once! Anyways, as it generally goes in Southern Oregon, we have had amazingly beautiful and sunny…
Foraging for Juniper Berries
Joel and I were in Tahoe recently and I said to him, “I’m sure we can find some Juniper trees while we’re here.” After spending many years in Yosemite, I figured Juniper trees were fairly common in the Sierras, but we didn’t see any in Tahoe! However, not more than a week later, when I…
Foraging for Miner’s Lettuce
I was out on a run a week or so ago, in unusually balmy weather for January, when I saw a sight that made me stop cold. I stared at the ground, making the other people in the park think I was crazy, I’m sure. It couldn’t be, my mind thought, but by golly it…
Foraging for Yarrow: Nature’s Medicine
Well, hello! Guess what? Even in January, I was outside foraging for yarrow! You’re probably wondering what in the heck I’m talking about. You may have not even heard of yarrow. But, let me tell you, yarrow really is nature’s medicine, and it pretty much grows everywhere. Even if you’re not able to find it…
