I cooked up this dish back in February when the snow and frosts were making foraging rather difficult. Walking in my local park in London the only plants that seemed to have enough foliage for me to take a little bit were Alexanders (Smyrnium olusatrum) and Crow garlic (Allium vineale).
Sweet violet (Viola odorata) Violet flowers first sprung up in London well over a month ago, and have doggedly persisted ever since, refusing to accept that spring is late in arriving. Frost hardy to -7°C, the unique colouration of their flowers make them easy to spot at this time of year amongst the sparsely populated…
This is far from the best year for wild fruits, but there are still some ripe pickings out there. Hawthorn berries and rose hips can be found in abundance, but I have struggled to find decent patches for elderberries, sloes and cherry plums in London.
Hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium) Caution: Hogweed is a member of the carrot family which contains several highly poisonous species. Direct contact with the raw plant can cause phototoxic effects, so always wear gloves and long sleeves when handling. Hogweed is very widespread, growing in meadows, hedgerows and along the edges of fields. It has large pinnate…
Hairy bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta) I did not have to go far to find this peppery little plant – I picked it from between the paving slabs in my back garden and then sprinkled it on my lunch. Hairy bittercress thrives in freshly disturbed ground, and is therefore most common in well weeded gardens, under orchards and…
Gorse (Ulex spp.) There is an old saying: ‘kissing’s out of season when gorse is out of bloom‘ and fortunately this is very rarely, as you can nearly always find at least a few flowers on a gorse bush. Even in the depths of winter it is still possible to find a bush in full…
Burdock (Arctium Lappa) Whilst the ground may be frozen solid and covered in several inches in snow, there is still plenty out there of interest, although you won’t find much to eat. Even in the middle of winter when a plant has completely died back it is still worth being able to correctly identify it,…
Alexanders (Smyrnium olusatrum) When I went for a stroll the other day I was quite surprised to see this patch of Alexanders flourishing so early in the year. Normally I wouldn’t expect them until late February/ early March, but it appears this year they are taking advantage of the mild winter to get a head start on…
Forage Wild Food 