Three Dozen Edible Plants in the Boreal Shield Region

if anyone's been following my blog on blogspot.com, you already know I've started a "Edible Plants Field Manual" unique to my region (upper Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and the Great Lakes basin). If you didn't know this, you know it now :) In a nutshell, I'm taking a 5-step approach to cataloging the major edible plants with each step designed to minimize accidental identification and exposure. The first step was to identify and compile a list of the top edible plants (a rating of 4 out of 5 or better according to this site: http://www.pfaf.org/index.html) based in my general area (according to this site: http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usdahome).

Well I'm done with step one. I've compiled a list of 36 "highly edible" or "highly useful" plants (although there are many more, I tend to group all edible species into a single entry, such as Malus for all apples). You can view my list here.

I like that list mitch, took a lot of work it would seem.
Couldn't you just buy a book that already has all of these and more in it? :D jk
I know I've done that on the farm I do land management for.

Thanks Mitch, must have been a "labor of love" to go to all that work.

ThoughI never finished the list.

I could have, but I've not found a book that has contained all three of my criteria:
1) ALL edible plants, inner bark, flower buds, pollen, etc.
2) Regional plants within a 800 mile radius or smaller
3) Preparation, storing, harvesting, and other cultivation information

Most books on edible plants, at least those I've found, stop after leaves, roots and berries. Few go into depth such as inner bark, pollen and immature sprouts and flower buds. Some of the more popular books contain plants that spread coast to coast. Miners lettuce is great, but it doesn't grow in my area, although it's plentiful in the west. Similarly, once identified, most books don't go into cooking and storage instructions. They also don't talk about poisonous look-a-likes or possible poisonous parts of the plant or toxins at any given time of year (older stinging nettle leaves are carcinogenic but the young ones are gravy).

So hopefully I can fill in the holes where the books leave off. :) The next couple steps, once summer rolls around again, will be cataloging these plants first-hand with the following techniques: physical identification (easy), taste, GI interactions, storage, smell, texture, various preparations, etc

i agree with you MC i have purchased about 2 dozen books so far this year some books cover some things better then others, but i have also found that there are some local experts that make my life easier and cheaper i have started down loading off the net and creating my own book which probably coinsides with your info, how close are you to sault saint marie? i am about two hours east of there.


always be prepared..

About 260 miles west as the crow flies, about 5.5 hrs drive.

Will you gentlemen, in your literary aspirations, please be so kind as to make a comprehensive list of all natural diuretics and laxatives available for our good friend Otay? He's avoiding the inevitable (please reference heading "poopin' in the woods") and I'm sure that your information will become invaluable to him if he waits too long.

well i've been told that rock tripe is supposed to fix the runs but the couple of times i tried it, it gave me the runs.

Very good work, Mitch. And not just the regular rehash that gives me the runs.

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