Plant identification process

So, you’re out on a bicycle or going for a walk, and you see a plant you can’t identify. It’s fairly distinctive – you’d recognise the same thing elsewhere – but you have no idea what it is. What do you do?

I try to make a mental or physical note of the distinctive features. I might cut off some leaves or flowers if there’s a lot of it, to aid in later identification. If there are flowers, what colour are they? How many petals have they got? Are they regular or not? How tall is the plant? What colour are the leaves? What shape is the stem? All of these are important.

When I get home, I look the plant up in a field guide that is organised based on plant characteristics. There are several of these available, particularly for wildflowers. The one I use the most is actually an older version of Britain’s Wildlife, Plants and Flowers (by Reader’s Digest). Most often I find that even if I can’t identify the specific plant, I can find one or two that are similar enough to give me a good starting place.

Having done that to find a Latin name, I check my other books and go online, often to Wikipedia, and using google image searches, to see if what I find matches up with my first identification. Most of the time it does but occasionally I find differences. If Wikipedia doesn’t tell me anything about whether the plant can be used, I check at the Plants For A Future database. I also make a point of learning common names for the plant.

I then go back to the original site with books and whatever other resources I can carry to double-check the identification. If the plant is closely related or easily mistaken for anything poisonous (good foraging books will tell you this!) I always take someone else with me in case I’ve missed some details.

This all sounds rather ponderous, but it does mean that once I have learned a plant I’m likely to recognise it most places I might come across it, and remember how it can be used.

FORAGING TIPS FOR BEGINNERS: II. STAY SAFE!

This is the second post in a series of foraging tips for beginners.

Many of the people I’ve spoken to about foraging have concerns about safety. They want to know about avoiding poisonous or contaminated food, for the most part, but staying safe while foraging is actually mostly a matter of common sense.

To start with, never, ever consume anything you cannot identify. If you aren’t sure what a plant or fungus is, you don’t eat it – plain and simple. Many wild foods are simple to identify, but some are easily confused with poisonous relatives, and if you don’t know what you’re doing it’s just not worth the risk. Identifying plants and fungi reliably takes practice, but it isn’t impossible. Starting with the easy and obvious foods will help; so will learning common poisonous flora in your area. Good field guides are useful; if you can’t afford to buy one, consider asking at your local library. Teaming up with a foraging buddy is also a good idea. If your buddy has more experience than you do, they’ll be able to help point out important differences between specimens, and if they are less experienced then as long as they are sufficiently cautious it will help to have a second opinion on anything you’re not quite sure about.

When you’ve successfully identified the specimen it’s always a good idea to verify edibility with more than one source, as well. “This looks like those things we ate three summers ago,” is not a wonderful verification. Some field guides, particularly fungi guides, have edibility information, but for plants you will probably want a foraging book of one sort or another. In England some of the more popular manuals include Food For Free by Richard Mabey, and Wild Food by Roger Phillips.

Try not to gather food from obviously contaminated ground. If your chosen park has golfcourse-green grass with no weeds at all, it’s probably been exposed to more than just a lawnmower and passing feet. Patches of burnt ground and leaves covered with a waxy, powdery substance can also be telltale signs of pesticide exposure. Roads are another source of chemical contamination, as heavy metals persist in the ground beside busy roads for many years; the closer to the road, and the busier it is, the more likely you’ll be eating something that isn’t really very good for you. That said, it’s worth remembering that orchard fruit in a city park is less likely to have been treated with insecticide and fungicide than your average apple from a commercial orchard, and even organic produce is often cultivated with heavy machinery which could in theory contaminate the soil. You may be able to find out from your local authorities which areas are treated for pests, when, and with what – you might even be able to convince them to spray less often or possibly not at all. This is one area where you have to do your research and then use your best judgement.

Wash all your gathered produce thoroughly. Many urban foraging sites are favourite dog-walking locations – those that are not may be habitats for foxes or other scavengers. If you like to ‘eat as you go’, don’t gather from below waist-height.

Following preparation instructions is also important. Some fungi, wood blewits for example, can cause allergic reactions in susceptible individuals if eaten raw but tend to be safe when cooked thoroughly. Goose grass is pretty much inedible raw but cook it and the little hooks melt away to give you a delicious green vegetable. Acorns need special preparation to remove the high concentration of tannins they contain. If your sources say something can be eaten raw then it’s likely all it needs is a good wash, but if they say it must be cooked, it’s really best to err on the side of caution.

It’s best to try one new food at a time, especially if you are particularly prone to food allergies or intolerances. Not everything agrees with everyone, just like with normal food. Don’t go wild and eat ten different wild vegetables in a day if you normally subsist on chips and pasta – your digestion will not likely thank you for your enthusiasm.

Don’t vex or disturb local wildlife. If you are planning a walk in bear country, make sure you know how to avoid confrontations with bears. If you’re in an area where rabies is a problem, ensure you know how to recognise signs of it in stray dogs or cats you may encounter. Do you live in a part of the world where the venom of snakes and spiders can kill? Are you allergic to bee or wasp stings? Take appropriate precautions including a good first aid kit. In fact, a small first aid kit is a good idea for most situations.

Last but not least, exercise some common sense with regards to the weather and climate you’ll be exposing yourself to. If you’re going from your cool, air-conditioned office into a searing hot summer city day, take some water, wear sunblock, put a hat on. If you’re planning a winter afternoon walk, take plenty of warm clothing, a snack, and make sure you’re adequately waterproof. It’s terribly wasteful to go out looking for free food and then come home so exhausted by exposure that you find yourself dialing for a pizza and letting your fresh wild salad leaves wilt and rot in the refrigerator. It’s downright embarrassing to end up needing medical attention due to weather patterns you should have been prepared for.