The Curious Wildcrafter

Have you ever been out hiking a trail, or 4-wheeling down an old abandoned track, or fishing a stream and think…what is around the next bend?

That’s me.

I am also very curious about plants. There is nothing more peaceful to me that spending time in nature. I can be walking on a path in the park, or in the undeveloped, trail-less wild and in no time at all a pretty flower will catch my eye I am off the path. Perhaps a bright mushroom, or a flowering shrub. Out comes my trusty Peterson Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants to see what it is. Is it colonial? Is it familiar? Question, questions. I always arrive back home or to our campsite with pockets filled with specimens.

While dinner is being concocted by the camp chef (Jamie) I often can be found in my lawn chair, with a glass of wine and my library (I travel with my resources) identifying our finds.

Early spring in one of my favorite times to go 4-wheeling in the woods. It is much easier to see the earliest plants without a whole lot of ground cover. It is often just my husband and me. We were gifted with helmet communicators a couple of years ago and it has made life easier. Now when I am no longer behind him, he already knows that I have yet again found something interesting to check out.

Can we eat it?

I have realized recently, that thanks to that curiosity, I have taught myself how to be a forager. We have an abundance of fresh food available to us. Whether you live in the country or an urban area, I can teach you how to recognize edibles, gather, and prepare them.

Did you know that some of the sweetest and earliest greens that grow in your flower beds are being pulled out as weeds? Are you interested in fresh organic produce at a very low cost? I am on a voyage of discovery and I will take you along as we forage and prepare what we gather.