| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Annika |
Posted - Dec 13 2012 : 08:27:12 AM
Do any of you forage or hunt mushrooms? Hunt? Fish?
Before my first marriage, I was an active forager in the north western Washington area. As a girl I read every last field guide and book on natural foods and plant foraging available and had a good grasp on habitat, level of availability of the species and what was scarce and not to be harvested, what was safe to eat and what was not etc. My husband was not fond of my foraging and so I quit. I was young and dumb in those days  Now that I'm living in North Idaho, I've decided to give it a try here beyond picking road side apples in the autumn.
I'd get into hunting but I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with a cannon ball, so I think I'll try fly fishing instead  If done safely with a level of respect for the health of the habitat and level of the plants/critters availability to harvest, foraging is fun and adds to your food stocks, can save money and gives you a depth of knowledge of your local area. I've never learned mushroom hunting enough to do it safely and not bump myself off the food chain  but it's something I'm thinking about getting into.We have a lot of puffballs around here and we've picked them when we feel like hunting them up.
So, I'm starting this thread to discuss foraging and our "finds/catches" if we do forage.
Hugs n' cookies =}
Annika
Farmgirl & sister #13
http://thegimpyfarmgirl.blogspot.com/
http://pinterest.com/annikaloveshats/
|
| 25 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Mountain Girl |
Posted - May 20 2013 : 07:08:26 AM
Kennie Lynn, We live 40 miles from Canada and 40 miles from the Panhandle of Idaho and we've been finding them for about three weeks. Not in huge numbers but enough to keep us happy. It has been a strange year. They're not were we usually find them and popping up where you wouldn't think to look. Jim led a foray yesterday and they weren't as numerous as other years. He scouted for them on Friday two days later some he found had gone bad. He actually saw some while driving one of the forest roads back and spotted a couple from the truck! It was our last stop yesterday and got them but others spotted tons and I mean tons of coral mushrooms a few feet away! They're out there but they sure are good at hiding!
Collect Moments Not Things |
| texdane |
Posted - May 20 2013 : 06:09:15 AM
I just started foraging recently...wrote about it and posted a recipe for dandelion jelly on the Suburban Farmgirl blog, if you'd like to take a peek.
Farmgirl hugs,
Nicole
Farmgirl Sister #1155
KNITTER, JAM-MAKER AND MOM EXTRAORDINAIRE
Chapter Leader, Connecticut Simpler Life Sisters
Farmgirl of the Month, January 2013
Suburban Farmgirl Blogger
http://sfgblog.maryjanesfarm.org/ |
| westfork woman |
Posted - May 19 2013 : 5:21:06 PM
Is anybody getting morels? I thought it had been too dry, but our neighbors had us over for dinner, so I could show them how to cook those wonderful mushrooms. Someone had shared with them. They were sure good.
Greetings from the morning side of the hill. |
| westfork woman |
Posted - May 14 2013 : 5:26:01 PM
DH asked if I wanted some more watercress. I said sure, just not too much. He came back with a bushel basket full. There are only 2 of us and it is hard to eat that much watercress before it goes bad. I cleaned it all, and put some in plastic bags, and some in two of the ventilated Progressive veggie containers. They really work. I have two from thrift stores. I have used the bagged stuff first, it is getting a little limp, but the container stuff is much better.
Greetings from the morning side of the hill. |
| TexasJo |
Posted - Apr 21 2013 : 5:06:53 PM
What fun!! I have only accidentally foraged for food that you pick. We were on a family hike in the Rockies and came across a wild raspberry patch (a large one!) and we all dug in. Delicious! I have been hunting some in the past years for quail, doves, white tail deer in Texas and elk here in Colorado. I can't say that I have actually killed anything, because I never got the chance to shoot, but I have helped clean birds (YUCK) and helped clean deer and elk (not as yucky as the birds). But it was nice to have a freezer full of meat for the winter. My mother in law used to make the best creole style of quail stew! I collect rose hips in the fall, but only from my back yard. I have never looked for them in the wild, but that would be a wonderful thing to do. Mushroom hunting,,, now that would be something interesting to do -- but yes, much studying would have to happen first. Have fun foraging ladies!!! I would love to hear more about what ya'll find out there. :)
Hugs,
Jo
We can do it! |
| Mountain Girl |
Posted - Apr 21 2013 : 11:08:13 AM
Morel season is here. Jim found 8 morels. Nice and early for them--we live about 50 miles from the Canadian border and the same for the Idaho border. |
| Antb |
Posted - Mar 18 2013 : 5:00:00 PM
One thing I still am able to forage is garlic mustard from a local forest preserve. The rangers there tell me they don't spray, but the weed is so invasive that they are happy for me to tromp through and gather first, in the spring, the leaves and then in late summer, the seeds. They do ask me to uproot the plants and leave them on the path as I go.
Last year I gather enough see and made enough prepared mustard to give it along with jams as Christmas presents. My daughter made pretzels, and the mustard was well received.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/SecondChanceCeramics
http://www.etsy.com/shop/AntB
|
| jollyquilter |
Posted - Mar 15 2013 : 8:19:41 PM
I am not a mushroom hunter, just like living to much I guess!! But I always get blackberries and rasberries and elderberries. This year I got some pears f rom a friends land and also found peaches, apples and figs. My husband and I both hunt and fish. I have 32 quarts of venison chunks and 11 pints of salmon on the shelves. As well as fresh fish about every week now that spring is closing in. Rabbits and squirel are eaten fresh when killed. We could live off the land if we needed to.
www.StuffByKim.etsy.com
http://fiberandflea.blogspot.com |
| brightmeadow |
Posted - Mar 13 2013 : 10:33:14 AM
I'm still picking turnip greens every spring in the field that my DH's uncle planted for farmer's market - and he's been dead for over 15 years. I always make sure not to pick them ALL, so that there will be some next year. We also have wild asparagus, blackcaps, elderberries, and occasionally the odd morel or two (if I get there before the trespassers do). I've picked wild onions and used them like chives. I'd love to have black walnuts, there are some on my dad's property, but it is 3 1/2 hours away. Next year I'll put on my calendar to schedule a trip in late October, early November? My grandmother spent a lot of time harvesting black walnuts, and the post above brought back so many wonderful memories of her. Thank you for posting. I have a gooseberry bush that volunteered, but I haven't seen but a handful of gooseberries on it. We don't manage the orchard because we live too far away, but we do "forage" the apples that appear.
I keep telling my husband we can quit our jobs and live off the land. There's lots of deer on the property, but neither of us are hunters. Same goes for rabbits and wild turkey. He says we'll lose a lot of weight!
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my blogs at http://brightmeadowfarms.blogspot.com (farming) http://brightmeadowknits.blogspot.com (knitting) or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
| windypines |
Posted - Mar 12 2013 : 04:16:09 AM
Yes there is a way to tame down the strong taste of black walnuts. My dad just learned it, and it made a difference. You heat them up in the oven. I will have to ask how long and what temp, but he said it really helped. We have picked wild raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, blackcaps, elderberries, black walnuts,plums,gooseberries. We have an orchard of 9 apple trees, a wild crab apple, cherry tree, and 2 young plum trees. We make maple syrup too. We have lots of wild onions but never been sure how to use them. They smell really strong. It sure keeps a person busy!
Michele |
| Cozynana |
Posted - Mar 11 2013 : 8:22:02 PM
We do choke cherries, morel mushrooms (been hunting them since I was a kid), mulberries, and wild plums but they are harder to find now. Oh I forgot, we also do wild grapes off the creek. One time we also found a natural bee hive on our creek and had someone help us get the honey that knew about bees. I wish we could find a hive every year. That was good stuff! I would love my dad to take me out and pick Lamb's quarters. He grew up on them and they grow every where here. I would also like to try dandelion greens this spring. I think I have eaten them in some of the mix green I have purchased. We don't spray or use much at all for chemical so as long as we picked on our own farmyard we would be fine.
I would like to try doing something with acorns. There is a roadside park in our town that has acorns. I would like to try to make some flour or something with them. Anyone tried acorns? What is the best thing to do with black walnuts. We have trees in our creek, but I have not gathered them because I don't like the taste of them, too strong for me. Anyway to tame down the taste? |
| cj6 |
Posted - Mar 09 2013 : 12:39:08 PM
Joann,thanks!  |
| Mountain Girl |
Posted - Mar 09 2013 : 09:03:07 AM
CJ6 here is a link to most of the mushroom/mycology clubs around the country http://www.namyco.org/clubs/ Morels are already being found in the southern states. |
| cj6 |
Posted - Mar 09 2013 : 07:32:36 AM
Thank you so much Anita,that link is great!
Mountain girl,I didn't know that about the clubs so I will have to look into that. Thanks for the info! |
| Mountain Girl |
Posted - Mar 09 2013 : 06:58:37 AM
Many parts of the country have mushroom/mycology clubs which host meetings and forays and are very willing to help you with identification. And always remember "When in doubt through it out" |
| neeter302 |
Posted - Mar 09 2013 : 06:41:08 AM
I know what you mean cj6, if you are inexperienced it can be questionable what to do. It's great if you have books to go by but can still be unsure. Fortunately my daughter took a foraging class in college so that really helped. Knowing someone who can reliably show you what to look for would be great. I was determined to find ramps a few years ago, it took a little searching but once you find some it's so worth it, we LOVE them. They come up about the same time as morels in the spring.http://theforagerpress.com/fieldguide/aprilfd.htm
Farmgirl #522
|
| cj6 |
Posted - Mar 07 2013 : 11:59:36 PM
I really want to start doing this but,how do I know for certain that what I think something is is what it really is? For instance I love morels and hadn't had them in forver,literally...till my son in love gave me some a couple years ago. We are moving(hopefully) to some acreage and I really want to be able to use what may be there as far as wild rasberries,blackberries,morels,various green etc..but,how do I know they are truely safe to eat.Sometimes pictures just leave me unsure,I think it looks like the pic but,is it the same? |
| Emily Anna |
Posted - Jan 08 2013 : 05:38:21 AM
Judith,
I had seen a recipe using fiddle head ferns on Martha Stewart's website and it made me very curious. What do you do with yours and how do they taste? Are they something you can can or freeze?
Emily |
| westfork woman |
Posted - Jan 07 2013 : 9:53:23 PM
We picked some watercress out of the watering trough yesterday, I put it in a broccoli soup. Good
Greetings from the morning side of the hill. |
| forgetmenot |
Posted - Jan 07 2013 : 8:06:54 PM
hmm. Now, you have me thinking. (dangerous territory). I quit picking the watercress when I worried about the asparagus, etc. So, maybe I should get the water of that little creek tested. I haven't looked for the cress in years. But, I could at least check to see if it is growing.
Farmgirl sister #3926
"Courage is not the absence of fear, but the belief that something is more important than fear." Ambrose Red Moon |
| westfork woman |
Posted - Jan 07 2013 : 10:34:40 AM
I have always heard that watercress will only grow in unpoluted water.
Greetings from the morning side of the hill. |
| SheilaC |
Posted - Dec 30 2012 : 7:35:30 PM
this time of year starts our big fish-eating time. . .as soon as ice-fishing begins :) We actually were blessed this year as well to have an organic egg farmer nearby give us 24 of her old laying hens to butcher. Lots of work to process them, but good free food. ALSO -- my husband hunts and so we have the venison from 2 deer in our freezer and on the canning shelves. AND -- a neighbor who hunts dropped off 7 rabbits he didn't feel like cleaning (!) -- work for us, but we do consider them a blessing from the Lord. :)
http://troutwife.blogspot.com/
|
| forgetmenot |
Posted - Dec 30 2012 : 7:17:31 PM
We still get lots of clean goodies off our own land though. Black Walnuts, puff balls, morels, black raspberries, wild grapes, honeysuckle, dandelion, lambs quarters,queen anne's lace, fiddle head ferns and lots more. I don't do the watercress now due to fear of runoff from streams. Just maybe a big scaredy cat.
Farmgirl sister #3926
"Courage is not the absence of fear, but the belief that something is more important than fear." Ambrose Red Moon |
| countrymommy85 |
Posted - Dec 30 2012 : 6:21:21 PM
Yeah, I stay away from ditches too. Great advice!
Mothers are those wonderful people who can get up in the morning before the smell of coffee. ~Author Unknown
http://countryrenaissance.blogspot.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/SunflowersAndHoney |
| Mountain Girl |
Posted - Dec 30 2012 : 08:05:16 AM
That quote always gets a laugh before a foray. There's a cute one for for telling false mores from real morels. Can't think of it this minute but when I figure it out I'll tell you.
Collect Moments Not Things |
