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Thread: Universal Edibility Test for Plants

  1. #21
    Senior Member wareagle69's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Assassin Pilot View Post
    alright. For the first experiment, here are a bunch of red mushrooms with white dots. They look pretty good. Just ignore the dead animal blood, some dog ate part of it and started throwing up his own blood after 7 minutes (he passed out immediately)
    red mushrooms with white dots? sounds like the fly agaric from the amanita family will not kill you but will give you a good case of the runs..


  2. #22
    Senior Member nell67's Avatar
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    Guests can not see images in the messages. Please register in the forum. FLY AGARIC (Amanita muscaria) is larger & more colourful than the other "'shrooms". It is very common in Nova Scotian forests, especially beneath evergreens. Like OTHER AMANITA SPECIES, some of which are DEADLY, Fly Agaric begins with a button stage, when it is covered by a universal membrane, or veil.
    At this early stage, Fly Agaric is virtually indistinguishable from other, deadly Amanita fungi. There is a SERIOUS RISK of confusing the species, with FATAL results.
    As the fungus matures, the veil shatters, leaving a ring on the stem and revealing a colourful cap ranging from yellow, to rose, to deep red. White, wart-like patches develop on the cap, and there is a growth called a volva or death cup at the base of the stem.
    Squirrels & other rodents often feed on Fly Agaric, but this does not mean the fungus is edible by humans. While ingestion of a single mushroom may cause no lasting effects, consumption of ten or more is considered FATAL.~~~

    Not putting this one on the table any time soon,I'm betting the "cunsumption of 10 or more" is based on the height/weight of the average adult male,and it would take far less for a child/older adult,smaller adult,or those with diseases that reduce the bodies ability to eliminate toxins in lesser amounts from the system.

  3. #23
    Senior Member wareagle69's Avatar
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    every one can react differently to the shrooms, i could eat ten oyster mushrroms and crave more and you could eat one and be on the jonh d for a while

  4. #24
    Senior Member nell67's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by wareagle69 View Post
    every one can react differently to the shrooms, i could eat ten oyster mushrroms and crave more and you could eat one and be on the jonh d for a while
    Very true wareagle.

  5. #25
    Senior Member Tony uk's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Last Mohican View Post
    If tofu won't kill you then nothing will.
    I Am INVINCIBLE
    A wise person does at once, what a fool does at last. Both do the same thing; only at different times.

  6. #26
    Mountain Hobo narcolepticpug's Avatar
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    amanita muscaria are great... eat a few grams and you will enjoy your outdoor experience, minus the nausea and runny nose you will feel like alice in wonderland... hahaha

  7. #27
    City Survivalist Proud American's Avatar
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    The edibility test is not fool proof, there are always exeptions.It still is the best way to find out if a plant is edible though or it wouldnt be in Army field manuels like my Ranger handbook!
    But the edibility test takes awhile and thats what i dont like. It takes a whole 24+ hours to do it correctly. Then your snares take awhile to catch things. All in all you willl probably be verry hungry for the first part of your survivlal eperience. But at least youl live!

    On the mushroom issue I say, that mushroom says "eat at own risk" all over!
    Last edited by Proud American; 02-09-2008 at 07:09 PM.
    Proud American

    Here lies my great advice from my years of experience......

  8. #28
    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    Proud - You can generally find common things to eat like insects. However, if you were in a area you have never been in and surrounded by vegetation you've never been around then remember your rule of threes.

    You can survive:

    3 minutes without air
    3 hours without shelter
    3 days without water
    3 weeks without food

    It is far better to take a day or so to test food you have never eaten than to eat something that will cause illness or worse. You won't starve to death over a couple of days.
    Tracks Across the High Plains...Death on the Bombay Line...A Touch of Death and Mayhem...Dead Rock...The Griswald Mine Boys...All On Amazon Books.

  9. #29
    Senior Member wareagle69's Avatar
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    that is why you do not just buy the book and stick it in your ruck sack.Educate yourself about wild edibles and mushrooms this takes years but then once educated you won't have to go hungry at all

  10. #30
    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    I think knowing the test would be handy if you got lost in Belize or South Africa or the Marshall Islands or any of a zillion other places you've never been to. I would hate to find myself lost on a day hike in New Zealand and say, "Oh, look cattails. aaaarrgggggghhh."
    Tracks Across the High Plains...Death on the Bombay Line...A Touch of Death and Mayhem...Dead Rock...The Griswald Mine Boys...All On Amazon Books.

  11. #31
    City Survivalist Proud American's Avatar
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    Rick that is what i said, youll be hungry but you live. Also 3 hours without shelter how harsh of a climate is that? Also i know this has been asked and answered before, but arent insects tecnicaly animals of opputunity. Or was that some other thing?
    Proud American

    Here lies my great advice from my years of experience......

  12. #32
    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    The rule of 3s is a general guideline to help you remember priorities. Shelter may not be a problem when it's 75 degrees and plenty of shade but humans don't do well outside a narrow temperature band. You can die of hypothermia in 60F weather if the conditions are right (wet clothes, strong breeze, can't get dry).

    I'm not certain on the insects. They would be targets of opportunity for me if I were hungry.
    Tracks Across the High Plains...Death on the Bombay Line...A Touch of Death and Mayhem...Dead Rock...The Griswald Mine Boys...All On Amazon Books.

  13. #33
    non-senior senior member Assassin Pilot's Avatar
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    Almost all insects are non-poisonous. However, they may have sharp parts that you would want to remove first. Also, generally in nature if something is red, it means "poison". That is pretty much all you need to know on insects (6 legged creatures)

    But when it gets to more than 6 legs, then you will start having issues w/ edibility.....
    "He who throws dirt is losing ground"

  14. #34
    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    Poisonous Plants, Animals and Anthropods:

    http://www.pp.okstate.edu/ehs/links/poison.htm
    Tracks Across the High Plains...Death on the Bombay Line...A Touch of Death and Mayhem...Dead Rock...The Griswald Mine Boys...All On Amazon Books.

  15. #35
    Senior Member Tony uk's Avatar
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    Nice Link Rick
    A wise person does at once, what a fool does at last. Both do the same thing; only at different times.

  16. #36
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    Better have a half-dozen buddies with you to try all the parts of an oleander!

  17. #37
    Senior Member erunkiswldrnssurvival's Avatar
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    Trying an unknown plant for edibility we all agree is a reason to be extremly cautious.
    If I need food i often search for plants or trees that i am familiar with. for example,
    the seeds of the maple tree are edible(if boiled to remove the tannins)the buds of the limb tips are also edible(if boiled to remove the tannins). The Burdock plant is a good pot herb, but the seeds from that plant are even better.the bark of the burdock root is inedible (but you can roast it ,then grind it into a powder then eat it) The calendine plant (toxic leaves and stems) has perfectly edible oil packed seeds. The pine tree, has edible buds, vitamin c in the needles and sugar in the root bark. BY
    crushing the root bark in cold water, the fiberous bark releases the surag into the water. there is so many known foods out there i dont see much need to try something that i am unfamiliar with. if i try something new i research it first in a home setting and i really avoid taking chances. I love wild mushrooms but i re-identify
    in a book every one that i pick, before i decide to test and or eat. Signed;Eugene Runkis

  18. #38
    Senior Member erunkiswldrnssurvival's Avatar
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    And where Insects are concerned, I again use what i know. The basic few are;
    termites, ant larvae, wasp larvae, wood grubs, earth worms,most grasshoppers,(red striped giant locusts are not good), Scorpions, and mealy worms are realy all you need to think about eating, thats enough bugs to keep you busy.beetles i usualy stay away from, but some of them are ok to eat(if they dont stink or display bright colors).

  19. #39
    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    You might if you found yourself in unfamiliar territory surrounded by unknown plants. The test was designed for soldiers in that situation but can easily apply to civilians since travel is so easy today.

    Welcome to the forum. Why not hit the Introduction section and tell us a bit about yourself.

    You'll find tons of information on eating plants, fungi and insects in the forum.
    Tracks Across the High Plains...Death on the Bombay Line...A Touch of Death and Mayhem...Dead Rock...The Griswald Mine Boys...All On Amazon Books.

  20. #40
    Senior Member Ole WV Coot's Avatar
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    No more draft, way too old so I will only eat the greens Grandma picked every spring. Older they are easier to identify, some jump out at you. I don't plan on being anywhere I am not familiar with the local plants, no jungle, no desert. East of the Mississippi I can make it. I gotta go with erunkiswldrnssurvival on this one.
    Last edited by Ole WV Coot; 08-16-2008 at 10:55 PM. Reason: messed up
    Don't pick a fight with an old man. If he's too old
    to fight... he'll just kill you.

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