Foraged Plants Pictures - Which ones are Safe to eat?

[Andre]

On my way grocery shopping I picked about 5 different types of plants/weeds. I have 2 bags full of them and it only took 10 minutes to pick them all. I bet these would be worth over $15.00 in the stores, not to mention they are all organic and freshly picked.

If anyone could help me out with idenifying them or even possibly just telling me if they're safe to consume that would be great.

Thanks


Some of these pictures are different angles of the same plant. I've numbered them for easy referral.

Here they are:

1.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/compassionforanimals/Picture001.jpg

2.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/compassionforanimals/Picture003.jpg

3.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/compassionforanimals/Picture005.jpg

4.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/compassionforanimals/Picture006.jpg


This point will continue below. There is a 4 pictures per post limit.

[Andre]

5.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/compassionforanimals/Picture009.jpg

6.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/compassionforanimals/Picture010.jpg

7.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/compassionforanimals/Picture013.jpg

8.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/compassionforanimals/Picture015.jpg


Pictures Con't on next post...

[Andre]

9.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/compassionforanimals/Picture027.jpg


Thanks for taking a look. Hopefully we can find out what these are and educate others if they'd like to go foraging. :)

[juliebove]

First... How do you know they are organic?

And second... You can't always go by pictures alone. I came very close to eating some buttercups that were coming up in my strawberry patch and they are poisonous. I would be very careful if I were you.

I bought a book on edible wild plants and there are a lot of things that look very much alike. Sorry I can't be of more help.

[sptygl]

there are so many weeds, plants growing that there is no way to truly tell unless you are an experienced analyst at this. not to mention, there are so many varieties, etc... across the country.

it is certainly not safe to just consume whatever you find growing out there in the yard, unless you are absolutely sure what you have.

i had a wonderful orchard near my home..... grapes, berries, squash, aloe, figs.. along with many other wonderful things i discovered.

one item.... i thought was in the apple family ...... as it looked like some sort of fruit. i had actually cut a piece off to try it, and then spit it out!!
i researched this 'fruit' and found out it was POISONOUS!!!
so.. do NOT assume anything green is edible!!!

do your research!!
i understand you want to be 'green' and go about this process all naturally and use items you find growing from the earth..... but again, not everything is edible.
BE CAREFUL

[carolg]

You may look at this site and see lots of pictures; however may call Extension Service or horticulurist and see what edible weeds grow in your garden. Once names received, may look at this site:\

http://www.foragingpictures.com/

http://www.harmonyhikes.com/wild.htm
I thought Sergei had more pictures here. At least you get some recipes if you click the picutre or was it the more.

Carolg

[Dandelion Girl]

I just took a class about wild edibles, but the ones you have aren't ones I learned about. Here is an article by Sergei Boutenko that might help. It is in the raw family April newsletter. He lists the most poisonous plants that grow in North America, so if you have time to check those you could see if any of yours are the poisonous ones.

Be Safe While Enjoying Wild Edibles

By Sergei

While there are countless benefits associated with eating wild foods such as breathing fresh air, exercise, premium nutrition, and food diversity, there are also some risks. When you are harvesting wild plants for food, you are almost guaranteed that the edible plants will be sharing their living space with non-edible ones. These non-edibles may range in toxicity from mild to extreme. If you are like me, then you too would like to avoid any form of poisoning whether it be a mild headache or death. For this reason it is a good idea to first learn how to positively identify the edible plants and then exercise caution when gathering them for food. Doing so will help you to maintain your health and joy for life. In this article, let us look more closely at what defines a poisonous plant as well as some good techniques for properly identifying the edible ones.

Over the last year and a half I have been traveling around the globe giving presentations about edible plants. From my travels I have learned two things… first, no matter where I go, people eagerly want to know more about weeds and wild edibles! Secondly, there is a lot of confusion about harvesting wild edibles, with people wanting to know how to differentiate between the edible and the poisonous ones.

I have found that the term “poisonous” is very loosely defined and it is easily swayed by personal biases and medical backgrounds. For example, experts coming from backgrounds of toxicology, botany, and medicine claim that there are more poisonous plants than those experts who come from Native American teachings and the like. Unfortunately, these inconsistencies in opinion only add to the confusion about wild edibles as many edible plants are classified “poisonous” simply due to the author’s opinion.

Thus far, my research has lead me to the belief that out of thousands of healthful, edible plants in nature there are relatively few poisonous ones that should not be eaten. There are approximately 150 poisonous plants, give or take a few, that are not recommended for consumption. Out of these 150 plants there are only about 50 plants that are considered to be highly poisonous and may lead to death. The rest are classified as mildly poisonous. This means that out of 150 plants, 100 of them may cause nausea, headache, and /or stomachache, but will not kill the eater and only 50 have the potential for death.

I think that this is a very encouraging thought because it is relatively easy to learn to identify and stay away from 50 plants. This can be accomplished in less than a month if you were to learn two a day. Once you learn all 50, the chances of getting poisoned to death are severely decreased if not eradicated completely. Even if you ingest one of the 100 mildly poisonous plants, the side effects will not be extreme. Keep in mind, that many of the so called “mildly poisonous” plants are considered edible depending on which book you reference, therefore it can not be said that even these plants are without benefit to humans.

Below is a list of the MOST POISONOUS plants in North America. If you are curious about wild edibles, then I suggest that you familiarize yourself with the ones that are most prevalent in your area. Enter the names of the plants into an Internet based search engine to see what they look like.

Aconitum, Autumn crocus, Angel’s trumpet, Azalea, Bittersweet nightshade, Bleeding heart, Black locust, Black nightshade, Buttercup, Caladium, Caster Oil plant, Daffodil, Daphne, Darnel, Datura, Deadly nightshade, Deathcamas, Delphinium, Dogbane, Doll’s eyes, Dumbcane, European Holly, False Hellebore, Foxglove, Hemlock, Henbane, Horse chestnut, Ivy, Jequirity, Jerusalem cherry, Jimson weed, Laburnum, Larkspur, Lilies, Manchineel, Mayapple, Monkshood, Moonseed, Oleander, Poison-ivy, Poison-oak, Pokeweed, Privet, Southwest coral bean, Star of Bethlehem, Water hemlock, White snakeroot, Yellow flag, Yellow jessmine, Yew.

While I urge you to take caution when harvesting wild foods, I do not want to scare you away from eating wild foods altogether. I think that harvesting wild edibles is like crossing the street in a cross walk, it is safe, but you still want to look both ways! It is best to avoid any sort of poisoning, be it mild or severe. Let us now consider a few tried and true techniques that will help to further minimize our chances of getting poisoned.

First, knowledge is power! The best way to stay safe is through good old-fashioned education! The Internet is an invaluable tool for this. Using the Internet, you can track down wild crafters in your general area and take a wild food workshop from them! I recommend the hands-on method because it enables the information you learn to stay with you longer. I have noticed that if I take time to really look at an edible plant; to notice how many leaves it has, what shape the leaves are, if it has any marking or discolorations, etc., I will remember this plant forever! During a wild foods workshop this is exactly what you will be doing, looking at plants and describing them.

Another way to stay safe is by purchasing a good book on wild edibles. I have purchased many of the books published on wild edibles and have been disappointed by most of them due to the poor quality of their photos and confusing descriptions. When purchasing a book, make sure that the book you settle on has clear, color photographs of the plants. It is also wise to think about book size, because ideally, you want a book compact enough to take with you when you go to harvest. Here are a few titles that I recommend: Fresh: The Ultimate Live-Food Cookbook by Sergei & Valya Boutenko J, Discovering Wild Plants by Janice Schfield, Edible & Medicinal Plants of the Rockies by Linda Kershaw, and Edible Wild Plants by Thomas S. Elias & Peter A. Dykeman.

Lastly, another cheap method for identifying plants is to ask the Internet. For example, if I am hiking and I see a plant I am unfamiliar with, I will take a picture of it and describe it to google.com when I get home. Since I do not know the name of the plant in this situation, I will start by telling the search engine what it looks like, i.e. four purple petals, two green leaves, etc. Then I might mention the geographical area where I found the plant: mountains, desert, by a lake, Northern California, Southern Oregon, etc. Then I hit the search button and pray for a miracle. On average, the search engine will generate anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000 results. I look through the photos until I find one that resembles the picture that I took. Now I have a name, “Wild violet.” Just to be safe, I search “wild violet” in the same search engine to make sure that someone did not mislabel the plant. If at this point I see 2,000 more pictures resembling the one I took, then I can be pretty confident that I have positively identified the plant. However, my job is not complete for I still would like to know whether the plant is edible… Since I now know the name of the plant, I can either search for the answer online or consult a wild edible book, which is the better bet!

As an educator I feel responsible not only for my own wellbeing, but for the wellbeing of those I teach. I would like to reiterate that harvesting wild edibles is fun, healthful, and safe when done properly! Please take the time to educate yourself and your loved ones! Finally, if you are ever in doubt about whether a plant is edible or not, please, please don’t eat it!

[NoGMO!]

those are lovely greens.. but do be careful.

I just picked up a copy of the book The Forager's Harvest: A Guide to Identifying Edible Wild Plants by Samuel Thayer.

I'm just a beginner in this so I can't help other than suggest caution, but keep searching and learning. Good luck. :)

[spicyfull]

those are lovely greens.. but do be careful.

I just picked up a copy of the book The Forager's Harvest: A Guide to Identifying Edible Wild Plants by Samuel Thayer.

I'm just a beginner in this so I can't help other than suggest caution, but keep searching and learning. Good luck. :)

STOP....RUN AND GET THIS BOOK......YOU ARE TRYING TO KILL YOURSELF. YOU MUST BE VERY CAREFUL WITH THESE WEEDS.

[iamacranberry]

One of those looks a lot like poison hemlock...but then again, it's been a while since I have seen that out in the wild.

The best approach is to get a guide to wild edibles and look for plants from the guide to pick and eat. And don't pick and eat it if you're not SURE what it is.

[Bookish Lass]

I see Poison Ivy listed as being poisonous, but I know someone who eats it annually and claims it keeps him from being effected by contact with the plant. He makes a sandwich of it, being careful to cover every inch of the leaves with butter (he's not raw). I wouldn't try it myself. :eek:

[Andre]

Thank you all for the information. I'm going to stick with eating the dandelions I picked (not in the pictures) and low growing plants that resemble dandelions because they seem to be okay by what I've checked out.

Today I tried a dandelion head (yellow flower part) and it tasted yummy.

I'll be checking to those different plants dandelion girl, and I'll be so to be careful what I eat. I like that you people care enough to warn me.

As for what I've picked so far, I will be composting it. Just eating the dandelions. I had a bunch of freshly picked dandelions in my smoothy and I'm okay so far. :)

Once again thank you all for your replies.

[jacsam]

Every now and then I hear about herb walks for our area where you have an experienced quide tell you about the plants growing in the surrounding canyons in our area. It's wonderful and now I know several SAFE plants to pick and what poison ivy looks like.