Foraging Sustainably

Foraging is great! Getting outside, learning new things and best of all, free food! Who doesn't love free food? There's edible food growing pretty much everywhere. You just need to know how to look for them. Now I'm no master forager, I'm learning myself but I'll try and share the experience with you.

Free food is all well and good but remember to share the wealth. Regardless of what it is you're foraging there's a few things that you should remember so that everyone gets to enjoy the feast. Sharing is caring right?

First things first you need to learn to find and identify edible plants. 
The internet is full of guides, a few quick searches could tell you what to find at certain times of year, where to find it and how to avoid picking the wrong things. There's plenty of groups on Facebook, often local to your area, where you can ask for help identifying plants and discuss all things foraging. For those times where you don't have the internet in your pocket there are some great written guides. I like to keep a pocket sized copy of Richard Mabey's 'Food For Free' handy when going out.

Don't over harvest.
Never take more than you could possibly use. It would be a shame to waste food that someone else could have picked and used. Don't take more than 10-20% of a crop. Some plants grow more abundantly than others so you should be aware of this and gather accordingly.

Don't pick the whole plant. 
Try to leave the roots in the ground so they can grow next year. This is easier to do with some plants. Don't strip a single plant, take small amounts from several plants instead. If picking flowers or berries from a tree don't strip a single branch.

Don't harvest plants that could be contaminated. 
Avoid plants growing near to busy roads or contaminated water sources. Areas where pesticides are sprayed should be avoided too. It shouldn't be hard to find plenty of variety without having to resort to these areas.

Don't pick endangered species.
This one should go without saying. Educate yourself and what might be endangered in your area and if you find one of those plants then leave it well alone and give it chance to thrive.

Lastly, Have fun! 
Go for a walk, take your family and friends then cook some tasty food with what you've gathered. Don't be disheartened if you don't always find what you're looking for, you'll know where not to bother looking next time!