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rwc1969
07-10-2009, 06:35 PM
I've been hunting, camping and fishing all my life. I started hunting wild mushrooms 3 years back and now want to learn the wild edible and poisonous plants.

Any suggestions on how to go about doing this without getting poisoned?

I ordered:

Euell Gibbons "Stalking the wild asparagus"

Samuel Thayer's "The Forager's Harvest: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants"

Peterson field guides "A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants: Eastern and central North America"

Are these good books? any typos? Are there any other resources you know of to help with ID? Online? etc, etc,?

Are there any local members or organizations to go out on a hunt with? I'm in southeast Michigan. Thanks!

mountainboy
07-10-2009, 07:33 PM
wounder if theres ant edable mushrooms around here {northeast al} i know theres the kind hippys take that grow in cow pattyes .so ive ben told .how many of yall ever eatin polksalit.real good .

Rick
07-10-2009, 07:38 PM
You may want to look at the "official" book thread. It's a sticky:

http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=5483

I have the Peterson Guide and rely on it quite a bit. I think it's an excellent book. Realize that you need to learn a plant through it's four seasons. So find something that you can easily identify, cattail for example, mark it and return to it often so you can see the transformations it goes through.

One of the things we've discussed is the need to draw plants. You don't have to be an artist and the final product really isn't important. But drawing the plant (or in my case trying to draw it) forces you to focus on nuances of the plant. You'll start to see the hairy leaves on the underside or the way the thorns reduce in size as you move up the plant or whatever is unique to that given plant. Taking a photograph lets you spend a few minutes with a plant but drawing it allows you to really become intimate with it and learn it in a way that you probably will not be able to otherwise.

And remember that learning plants is a life long adventure. It takes a very long time to learn many plants but the rewards are pretty amazing. I now have "weeds" (purslane and dandelion) growing in my garden along side my "vegetables" (tomatoes and beans).

Rick
07-10-2009, 07:41 PM
Mountainboy - Of course there are edible mushrooms in NE Alabama. Fungi are prevalent throughout the world. And be cautious about eating Polkweed. While it is a very good vegetable, it is also quite poisonous and must be properly cooked to reduce the toxins.

rwc1969
07-10-2009, 10:19 PM
I'll check out the link Rick, Thanks! I'm hoping to learn a few basic and good edible plants along with the more poisonous ones in my area and then move on to others.

There are quite a few poisonous mushrooms, some look very similar to edible ones. It sounds as though the same applies to plants. Hopefully I can apply the same ID principles I've learned with shrooms to plants.

I've been tempted to try poke, nettle, staghorn sumac and garlic mustard, but haven't as of yet.

erunkiswldrnssurvival
07-10-2009, 10:59 PM
i have several videos on gathering and identifying wild plants. click onto the link in my signature to see all of my food gathering suggestions.

rwc1969
07-11-2009, 09:24 AM
I've checked out your videos, Nice! I looked at the link you posted, but didn't see any tips on food gathering.

NightShade
07-18-2009, 10:14 PM
Peterson field guides are good... But I have a variety of different field guides that i use and cross referenced everything to be sure i had a positive i.d. when i was learning... I would reccomend Tom Brown Jr's book... won't help you identify plants so much as learn about them...and always a good idea to get a book on local edibles in your area!... Good luck!

crashdive123
07-18-2009, 10:18 PM
Hey there NightShade - how about foraging on over to the Introduction Section and tell us a bit about yourself. Thanks. http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=14

Nativedude
07-19-2009, 07:18 PM
Here are the links to info I posted on the forum about Medicinal Plants (some are also edible):

Medicinal Plants 1 (http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=6349&highlight=Edible+Plants)

Medicinal Plants 2 (http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=6352&highlight=Edible+Plants)

Medicinal Plants 3 (http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=6352&highlight=Edible+Plants)

Hope it helps!

LudwigVan
07-26-2009, 07:03 PM
I have the peterson guide as well and like it, I have been wanting to check out Stalking the Wild Asparagus.

My only reccomendatiton is to start with the really easy plants and work your way up to the ones that are a bit thougher to ID. Cattails, dandeloin, Kudzu are very common here among others.

oldsoldier
07-26-2009, 07:24 PM
[QUOTE=LudwigVan;137722]I have the peterson guide as well and like it, I have been wanting to check out Stalking the Wild Asparagus.

I have the petersons guides for both edible as well as medicinal wild plants. Both ar great. Theyhave excellent color pictures as well as good descriptions. The audabon society also puts out a good series of similar books I've got the mushroom one it was a gift Doubt I'll use that one as there are so many look alikes that are poisonous that Outside of morels I leave them alone. Anyone coming to jamboree want the mushroom book?? I also have a copy of stalking the wild asparagus it's a pretty good book but i think the "field guides are better and more compact and easier to carry.

oldsoldier
07-26-2009, 07:28 PM
wounder if theres ant edable mushrooms around here {northeast al} i know theres the kind hippys take that grow in cow pattyes .so ive ben told .how many of yall ever eatin polksalit.real good .

lots of mushrooms in alabama. BUT BE CAREFUL If you don't definately know what your doing leave them alone!!! Lots of plants will make you sick if you eat the wrong ones. Eat the wrong mushrooms and you can DIE. Outside of morels you can't be sure unless your experienced in gathering them

LudwigVan
07-26-2009, 11:21 PM
I think you even have to be carefull of morels, if i'm not mistaken there's a lookalike that looks exactly the same but has a different pattern on the head part.

I have been wanting to try a Sulfer shelf mushroom ("chicken of the woods"), does anybody know of any lookalikes to it? Petersons faild guide didn't say.

oldsoldier
07-28-2009, 07:51 PM
[QUOTE=LudwigVan;137811]I think you even have to be carefull of morels, if i'm not mistaken there's a lookalike that looks exactly the same but has a different pattern on the head part.

yes there is a difference BUT the difference is very easy to spot, once you've seen a morel you'll never mistake anything else for them

lanahi
07-30-2009, 05:12 PM
I've been hunting, camping and fishing all my life. I started hunting wild mushrooms 3 years back and now want to learn the wild edible and poisonous plants.

Any suggestions on how to go about doing this without getting poisoned?

I ordered:

Euell Gibbons "Stalking the wild asparagus"

Samuel Thayer's "The Forager's Harvest: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants"

Peterson field guides "A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants: Eastern and central North America"

Are these good books? any typos? Are there any other resources you know of to help with ID? Online? etc, etc,?

Are there any local members or organizations to go out on a hunt with? I'm in southeast Michigan. Thanks!

"Any suggestions on how to go about doing this without getting poisoned?" Simple: You make a positive ID of the plant you think is edible before you eat it! You can't ever know about all or even the majority of the plants you see, but you can start with the ones you know. Try making something from dandelions, roses, and acorns and go from there.

The books you have are great, but you need one or two that are more local as well. Suggest ordering books from the local library first before you buy them to see which ones are more helpful. Next, go to www.amazon.com and look at the customers reviews of wild plant books: that tells you more than an editor's description of the book. They have used books there too, but you don't have to actually order from them...it's a great way to learn what others have to say about the book.

Sarge47
07-30-2009, 05:30 PM
These may help:

http://www.morelmadness.com/

http://www.morelmania.com/info.html (I've talked to these folks on the phone before.)

http://www.thegreatmorel.com/index.shtml

There's info on other mushrooms as well. :cool2:

vthompson
07-30-2009, 07:53 PM
You can't go wrong with Peterson's Field Guide and study it carefully. To sample wild edibles, start in your own yard. Dandelion leaves, plantain leaves, purslane, daylilly, cattails, just to name a few.

wareagle69
07-31-2009, 12:22 PM
let me answer this completly in a new thread i will do in a bit, it will adddress what you are looking for but then i can also voice some of my findings and opinions w/o hijacking your thread, not sure what i will call the thread but you'll know it when ya see it
WE

WillDeerborn
08-01-2009, 09:51 PM
My Cockelburs (Burdocks) are up and blossomed (Some of 'em). I was wonderin' if anyone here knew how to prep them to eat...By the way Howdy ya'll.

Rick
08-01-2009, 10:31 PM
Simmer the flower stalks in a sugar syrup to make a candy. I don't know any other way to fix them. Both Great and Common burdock are pretty common around here. You can find them just about anywhere.

wareagle69
08-02-2009, 06:49 AM
well not to be picky but
1-rick have you done this?
2 cocklebur is not burdock- coclebur-aster family-xanthium strumarium
3-burdock great and common aster family articum spp
if you see the stalk it is the second year plant, you can use the stalks of this plant but you must peel off the outside of it, get rid of the green part until you reach the core then can eat raw or boil it
look around for the big leaves of the first year plant dig up the roots, many different reciepes that i am still playing with usually add to a vegetable medely like jerusualam artichock and wild parsnip, burdock add some greens like stinging nettel and ladys thumb and brown sugar.
also i know peterson and others claim the leaves are edible but i doubt that they actually ate them, this is something that i have found with the top three most popular books on the market that i will be covering soon, several mistakes are made in these books which calls into question the authors credibilty, sure they may know the plants but i highly doubt peterson ate all those plants
\i highly recomned wildman steve brill and samuel thayer

rwc1969
08-13-2009, 02:26 PM
Thanks all! I lost track of this thread until today.

Nativedude and WE. When my Mom was young she fell on an axe and almost cut her arm off. My Grandpa used milkweed along with other things to fix it. No stitches and it healed fine. He knew many natural cures and foods, but it was all lost a generation ago. He raised 10 kids all without ever being to a doctor, from birth. He delivered his own children.

Of the three books, I like Thayer's the best. He sounds like he knows what he's talking about, both scientifically and "in the field" wise. The three together have made it possible for me to ID several plants, I've yet to try any. Except for jewelweed, which is a truly great remedy for skeeter bites.

Has anyone here ate Daylilies or parts thereof? Do they taste good? Or, is it truly a survival food? Are there look a likes to the daylily? Solid orange flowers that point straight up?

I've ate plenty of wild greens, onions and berries. Plants I'm considering are daylilies, waterlilies, cattail and staghorn sumac. Any specific tips on these 4 will be greatly appreciated. The cattails have already went to seed, but the daylilies are still going strong.