The start of foraging?

After a night of rain this week I ended up going for a long stroll down by the local river and woodland and was amazed to see the number of people foraging! I’ve always had it down as a west country or real countryside pursuit so to see rows of people pouring over the side of the stream and down the hedge rows was a startling sight. I first discovered it while watching  the Great British Banquet last year when the Cornish chef produced an array of fruit he had gathered by the river. However with organic and local food fast becoming the norm for fruit and veg it’s no real surprise that more and more people are turning to this past time.

I think most people have passed an afternoon or two picking the odd blackberry from hedges on late summer walks. And yet it stretches to more than just blackberries. With England offering up a wild feast of bilberries, sloes (great for gin!!) beech nuts, damsons, wild plums,  elderflowers and even mushrooms its worth keeping your eyes peeled. Personally with young kids and not being very experienced I wouldn’t dare try any other berry than blackberries and I don’t fancy tripping the light fantastic after I’d tackled the wrong sort of mushroom however a few friends have assured me this doesn’t limit the harvest. With sorrel and borage being expensive and only in certain shops the ability to create culinary delights with boutique herbs and vegetables for free is remarkable.

So after asking a fair few people on twitter who forage they have all agreed on one book in particular – A lovely little pocket book by Collins called “food for free” so this weekend I’m off to hunt this down and give it a go! I’ll report back next week to let you know how I get on.

However if you can’t wait I would recommend checking out this website which has all the laws and etiquette and is a great place to start!

Guide to Foraging

and for those who want to do a course

The Hedgerow Harvest Team