Like you, I’ve watched many a survival show where the instructor-hero walks up to an odd looking plant then slashes it apart with his machete to get the local equivalent of plant filet mignon. Sadly, we do not have a lot of plants in Manitoba that are like that. No coconut trees, no breadfruit, no heart of palm, zippo. We just don’t have any kind of ‘wonder’ plant growing here.
We’re not without excellent plant resources, however. While we may not have the equivalent of bananas in the backyard, we do have a wide variety of local plants that are useful to someone that is willing to get out there and forage in order to supplement and extend their food stores. In order to do that, you need to know what you are looking for out in the woods and fields. A mistake may result in effects ranging from mild stomach upset to serious illness or death.
Which leads us to the subject of today’s post: The forager’s library. I believe that anyone serious about surviving a major crisis needs to be able to recognize wild plants that are safe to eat, and to do that, reference books are an absolute must have item. They are easily obtained and for the most part easily used, if a little common sense is applied. That said, I cannot stress enough that you should NOT eat anything you are not ABSOLUTELY SURE IS SAFE TO EAT. Anything else is digestive Russian roulette.
So let’s start with the easiest and yet most dangerous things out there: mushrooms. Technically, they are fungi, not plants, and for the most part have little nutritional value. So while I do not put a high priority on harvesting them, I do recognize that they will add flavor and variety to what may be a very dreary survival diet, and also that nutritional value or not, starving people will try to eat anything. I feel it is better to know now what I can eat safely, rather than experiment later.
I don’t try to become an expert on mushrooms. It is far better is to focus on several common types that you can always recognize and eat safely. For me, that means I can always recognize morels, shaggy manes and chanterelles. I also know what the few species that resemble them look like (e.g. false morels) and how to differentiate between them. I can recognize several other edible types of fungi, but because of the presence of toxic lookalikes, would hesitate to eat them without consulting my guidebook to ensure I am correct in my identification. Maybe not even then, if I have the least doubt. Always err on the side of safety where mushrooms are concerned. Some of them are so toxic that even with advanced medical care, death is the likely result of ingestion. While there are a number of handy mushroom references, I like:
National Audubon Society Pocket Guide – Familiar Mushrooms.
The next category of green stuff you should get to know is edible weeds. Pretty much everyone knows the dandelion for it’s use as a salad green, but few people know about burdock root or purslane ( the first will give you about 70 calories per 100 g; the second has a large amount of dietary iron available: 3.5 mg per 100 g). Many weeds will supply trace elements, vitamins and minerals required for health, although most are low in calories. There are a lot of them out there, but again, try to learn just a few to start with, and once sure of your identification, give them a try. Learn chicory, if you’re a coffee drinker. You’ll thank me later.
There are a few guides out there of this sort, but I like:
Edible Garden Weeds of Canada by Adam Szczawinski and Nancy Turner. This is the first volume in a four volume series produced by the National Museum of Natural Sciences.
The only downside is that some plants shown in the book don’t have colour plates, making identification harder. I have downloaded my own pictures from the net to supplement the photos and drawings. On the plus side, for most of the plants in the book, recipes and instructions of how to use them are provided.
Another category of edibles are the wild fruits and nuts to be found on the prairies. In Manitoba, one can harvest acorns (with care), hazelnuts, and an astounding variety of berries. While most of us raised here can identify quite a few types, there are a surprising number of edible berries in Manitoba that are little known or used, although some, like those of the mountain ash (or rowan) need to be dealt with very cautiously. My reference is:
Edible Wild Fruits of Canada. This is volume three of the series mentioned above, and by the same authors. It shares the original volumes strength and weaknesses (lots of info and recipes, not enough pictures).
Also in the series is: Wild Green Vegetables of Canada, although I think this reference is more useful for the coastal types rather than us prairie folk, since many of the plants mentioned prefer that climate and ecosystem. Still, there is useful info in the book on plants you will encounter here. There is also a book on coffee and tea substitutes in the series, but I haven’t a copy of this one, so can’t really recommend it or not.
Finally, you might want to round out your beginner’s foraging library with :
Stalking the Healthful Herb by Euell Gibbons.
This book is one of the classics of foraging. It’s kind of all over the place in content, but a decent and informative read nonetheless.
There you are. A few books to get you started. I’ve found the ones mentioned to be great starter books, but please, please be careful. Take it slow, concentrate on learning a few plants really well, and make sure of your identifications before you eat anything.
P.S. Do you know what the plant in the picture is?
Originally posted December 15, 2010 @ MPN
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