Gifts from the Land and Water
by
Mary Syrett

 

Ever since my teens, I have been fascinated with wild food foraging. Helping members of my family learn about wild edibles that grow in the Tidewater area has developed into an intriguing hobby that has allowed us to experience, to some degree, how our ancestors lived off the land.
Foraging for plants and hunting wild game are ancient patterns of human subsistence. For thousands of years, people survived in this manner. In 1972, Richard Mabey published the book Food for Free; soon thereafter, the world began looking at ‘weeds’ in a new light.
Urban foraging emerged as a culture and the phrase “if you can’t beat them, eat them,” reflected people’s desire to cut costs and help conserve. Today, as some global resources run dangerously low and climate change and human impact compromise ecosystems, Mabey’s sentiments have taken on new meaning.
To survive, wild plants must cope with herbivores (plant-eating animals), competing plants, weather and climatic changes. As a result, they’ve evolved to become species that contain high concentrations of carbohydrates, fats and proteins, as well as vitamins, minerals and fiber.
Many of the tastes we appreciate, including sourness, pungency, sweetness, saltiness and bitterness are adaptations plants have developed in an effort to discourage herbivores. Many renewable herbs, greens, fruits, berries, nuts and seeds thrive in backyards, fields and trails in the Tidewater region. Although we can easily incorporate these tasty resources into meals the way our ancestors did, many people either ignore them or try to destroy them as weeds.
“Up until World War II, people ate ‘weeds’ regularly,” notes Peter Gail, author of The Dandelion Celebration: A Guide to Unexpected Cuisine. “Dandelions, lambs-quarter – all sorts of wild plants – were part of a daily diet. The bias against wild edibles came after World War II, in considerable part because of pesticide company advertising.” Gail continues: “The pesticide industry convinced consumers that they should value uniformly green lawns, and the way to get a lawn green was by ridding it of ‘weeds.’”
Today, concerns over the health risks of pesticides, preservatives, additives and food-borne illnesses in commercially prepared foods make wild edibles particularly appealing. As an added bonus for consumers concerned with protecting the environment, many wild edibles are naturally renewable food resources that thrive under harsh growing conditions.
Native foods encompass a variety of cultures. There has only recently developed a broader awareness of what native food is. This is a cuisine from people whose food supply has oftentimes been whatever they could find, wherever they found it.
In addition to wild black cherries, sweet crabapple and grapes, native Tidewater foods include seeds, which are a storehouse of energy. Living off the land as wild animals have long done, man ate seeds that were nutritionally appealing.
Nuts are seeds, including tree seeds. While they are seasonal, seeds have the advantage of being storable for long periods. The great advantage of nut-bearing trees is that, unlike animals, they can’t run away. The energy expended by humans in gathering nuts is much less than the time and energy spent obtaining similar caloric value from hunting or fishing. Ground into flour, chestnuts, for example, pack a nutritional wallop and contribute to savory dishes such as nutty-tasting crepes.
Fruits contain a variety of cancer-suppressing chemicals, are a valuable energy source, and contain fibers whose health-promoting qualities have only recently begun to be understood.
Lambs-quarter, hyacinth beans, low-bush blueberries, wild cherries and dandelions are among my favorite wild foods. Tepary beans resemble flattened black-eyed peas. The black ones cook up creamy. Brown ones are best simmered like pinto beans. Home cooks pay as much as $10 a pound for teparies when ordered online. Creative Tidewater chefs love the little beans, too, turning them into cassoulet (a bean stew of French origin), salads and tasty beds for braised pork dishes.
Dandelions taste great when added to salads or brewed as a tea. They contain calcium, potassium, iron, phosphorus and magnesium, as well as Vitamins A, B, C and D, along with health-enhancing bioflavonoids, which are biologically active substances that nourish blood vessels. Dandelion flowers are sweetest when picked young and have a honey-like flavor. Young dandelion leaves taste great when steamed or tossed in salads.
The Eastern Prickly Pear Cactus, Opuntia humifusa, has long been a part of Native American culture. It grows on granite outcroppings in shallow soil. In June, the cactus produces large yellow flowers that slowly develop into red berries that, in late autumn, fall from the plant. The berries provide nutritious food for insects, raccoons and opossums, as well as humans. The fruit can be eaten fresh or made into jam.
The pads of Opuntia, known as cladophylls, are also edible and are sold in some grocery stores. Cladophylls can be boiled for several minutes, cut into smaller pieces, and eaten as part of a vegetable side dish.
Cattails grow in marshy ground almost anywhere. They’re tall, reed-like plants with sword-shaped leaves. Cattail roots can be ground into flour that’s ideal for making muffins, biscuits and pancakes. Young shoots are used in salads and sauteed with meats.
Species of the genus allium include onion, garlic, chives, ramps, leeks and shallots. All members of the genus, which grow throughout the Tidewater, are edible.
Marigolds have a citrus flavor similar to that of saffron. Marigold petals can be sprinkled on open-faced sandwiches, pasta and rice. The flavor of Queen Anne’s Lace is deliciously carrot-like, making this plant ideal for salads.
In the 19th century and earlier, native peoples collected wild blueberries from along Maryland riverbanks. A very nutritious food, packed with antioxidants, blueberries can be eaten fresh, made into soup, or baked into cakes, muffins and bread.
Chesapeake Bay today has become overcrowded with cownose rays that swarm here every summer, taxing the fragile ecosystem. The cownose is a species of eagle ray that is found throughout a large part of the Western Atlantic and Caribbean. It is the most common type of ray found in the Chesapeake Bay, where sport anglers find it a nuisance. A mature specimen can weigh 50 pounds or more. This marine menace tastes much like tuna. Eating it is an ideal, delicious solution for seafood lovers who try to live by sustainable principles.
A good way to begin looking for wild foods is to go with an experienced forager who can demonstrate which plants are edible and what specific parts of plants are safe to eat. Experienced foragers can also point out the best time of year to harvest plants.
Should you go it alone, start with just one plant, preferably an easily recognizable one. Of course, you should be able to identify any plant you plan to eat with absolute certainty. Avoid species that have poisonous look-alikes. Follow a few safe plants through the seasons and study them carefully, gradually adding new ones to your bring-home-and-eat list.
Here are other foraging tips provided by Robert K. Henderson, author of The Neighborhood Forager: A Guide for the Wild Food Gourmet.
*Spit the pits. Many fruit pits, including apricots, enclose a poisonous substance (think cyanide), so it’s wise to avoid them altogether.
*Remember: Any plant is poisonous to persons who are allergic to it.
*Always observe the first-try protocol. When you have positively identified a plant and its edible parts, taste it and then wait and see how your body reacts before consuming more. Also, be aware that some plants, which are fine to consume in moderate amounts, can cause digestive problems when ingested in large quantities.
*Eat wild foods only when they are in season. Know which time of year a plant is edible, and eat it only then.
Consuming foods that grow in the wild is an exciting way to add delicious variety to your meals, boost your health, get some exercise and learn about the environment. I will never again view the land the way I did before I began foraging. As a collector of wild edible foods, I have become more deeply appreciative of nature and have developed a better understanding of where and how my food grows. The closer to home you find your food, the better it will be for your pocketbook, your health, and a survivability of the planet. Enjoy, but please do so prudently.

Mary Syrett is a freelance writer and an avid student of nature.