Plants to Know features common plants of culinary and medicinal interest. The collection includes large scale relief prints, gouache paintings, a screenprint, and a set of 12 illustrated cards (below).
There are old foragers.
There are bold foragers.
But there are no old, bold foragers.
Plants are amazing! Fungi too. Seeking and finding specific plants in the wild is a powerful and important practice. Harvesting, processing, and using those plants can be even more so. Before you go out to forage in your area, there are a several important rules to follow.
- Be aware and tell someone where you’re going and when. Pay attention to where you are, what the weather’s doing, who’s around, etc. Don’t get so fixated on the thing you’re searching for that you miss clues that could help you stay safe.
- Dress for the weather.
- Avoid plants growing in industrial or potentially contaminated sites. Don’t harvest directly from roadsides where exhaust particles or runoff accumulate.
- Never harvest more than 1/4 of something at a time. This helps ensure we do not deplete a plant colony or remove food sources needed by foraging creatures. (If harvesting fungi, use a mesh bag to let spores fall as you walk.)
- Always ask the people who live on that land if you can harvest there.