A fairly straightforward and practical guide for beginners. The final chapter is a standout addition for anyone looking for how to preserve their foraged goods.
5 stars
As always, the best way to learn how to forage is with a local guide, and the worst way is with an app (seriously, apps are SO bad at identifying plants - please do not use them). But I'm very pleased to see so many books available for beginners that make foraging accessible for people who might not have a local guide immediately available. This book covers a lot of easy entry points for beginners, including dandelions, stinging nettle, and ramps. It also covers some of the biggest beginner mistakes, including the very poisonous water hemlock. While the focus is on North American plants, a lot of these plants are available all over the globe, so there's a decent appeal here no matter where you live. My favorite part is the final chapter, which includes recipe/process guides on what to do with your foraged goodies. Notes on how to preserve …
As always, the best way to learn how to forage is with a local guide, and the worst way is with an app (seriously, apps are SO bad at identifying plants - please do not use them). But I'm very pleased to see so many books available for beginners that make foraging accessible for people who might not have a local guide immediately available. This book covers a lot of easy entry points for beginners, including dandelions, stinging nettle, and ramps. It also covers some of the biggest beginner mistakes, including the very poisonous water hemlock. While the focus is on North American plants, a lot of these plants are available all over the globe, so there's a decent appeal here no matter where you live. My favorite part is the final chapter, which includes recipe/process guides on what to do with your foraged goodies. Notes on how to preserve items, infuse flavors, make wine, and other great food options are a huge bonus for books that typically don't explain how a lot of these things work. As is my usual hang-up with guide books, I could always use more photos - especially for plants with distinctly different stages - but this is a great starting point for anyone looking to get into foraging.
Thanks to NetGalley and Storey Publishing for an advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.