by Miranda Sehl
Free food is growing all around you! Which wild edible plants do you know of? The mastery of foraging is a very worthwhile endeavor. If gardening isn’t your thing, you can still go outside and find food! You’ll want to be 100% sure about any food you find however, as there are sometimes poisonous look-alikes. If you are pregnant, or on any sort of medication, you may want to do additional research before consuming wild edible plants. Make sure you don’t source any of your wild foods where they would be sprayed with anything toxic, or too close to roadways. Here are some wild edible plants to get you started:
Dandelion
All parts of this plant are edible and super healthy. Its name comes from the toothy shape of the greens that are jagged like lion’s teeth. The greens and yellow flower tops can be eaten raw. Usually people
roast the root. I’ve had roasted dandelion root tea; it’s very earthy and has a plethora of health benefits. Some people make wine from the flowers. The flowers are the most healthy part according to Adam Haritan who has an excellent video on the subject. His youtube channel is called Learn Your Land. His videos are great; he creates instructional videos about all sorts of wild food harvesting.
Plantain
This is another plant you’ll find everywhere around here. This plant has no relation to the banana. Plantain is not only edible, but can also be used as a poultice. I used it last week to relieve some pain from a bee sting. It neutralized the pain almost immediately! You chew the plant, then apply the chewed goo to your wound or sting. It can draw out toxins or venom. This plant comes in two different variants; broad-leafed plantain and lance-leafed plantain (other names for the lance-leafed include: ribwort, narrowleaf, ribleaf, lamb’s tongue, buckhorn). You can eat both types raw, or cooked. The seeds of the broad leafed variety can be harvested, dried, and ground into a flour! I learned about this flour (and pancakes!) you can make in this lovely book: Edible Wild Plants: A North American Field Guide to Over 200 Natural Foods by Thomas S. Elias & Peter A. Dykeman. The book has photos of every plant, harvesting and preparation explanations. It also warns about any potential poisonous look-alikes, which the plantain doesn’t have.
Clover
Both red and white clover are edible, the leaves and the flowers. The flowers are especially healthy and delicious. High in antioxidants, a cancer preventative, immune system enhancer, this plant is super healthy to say the least.
Mint
You can easily introduce mint to your yard, although it can take over! Some people try to contain it in pots. There are many different varieties of mint: peppermint, spearmint, mojito mint, chocolate mint, apple mint, etc. They all have edible leaves with a pleasant familiar flavor and scent. You can pluck leaves at any stage, to eat raw, or dry them for tea. You can also make tea with fresh leaves. Making tea: 1 tsp of peppermint leaves to 1 cup of boiling water. Pour the boiling water over the peppermint leaves, steep for 10 – 15 minutes. This recipe was found in a book called: The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies by Nicole Apelian, PHD and Claude Davis. This tea can help alleviate arthritis pain, headaches, and digestive issues.