How to Forage for Wild Foods and Medicinals | The Guidelines and Ethics

[@galelascala105]

I just taught a foraging class at my home to local people and they were fascinated by how many common "weeds" were edible. It was a lot of fun to watch them taste the plants. I included the medicinal aspects too. We need to share this valuable skill.

[@galelascala105]

Oh, and I made your chamomile sweet rolls and they were a huge hit!

[@smoochysmoochy7267]

Yeah I find People Dont Have a Clue.... Slowly WE r getting BaCK to Nature where We were Always Meant to be 😘

[@dcmurray6466]

Some very good information here. One way to avoid mis-identification is to grow your own plants - if you have the time and room. I am a full time artist, so I do have the time and I have access to a small amount of space to grow my own. Looking forward to Part 2!!

[@YourPainting1]

I really appreciate that you make note of not taking endangered species. Wild raspberries grew in bushes at a nearby forest to my childhood home and over the course of 6 years they were completely wiped out by all of the newcomers from all the new houses that were being built in my city.

[@teresab4563]

I just got a black light flash light to check for hornworms on my tomatoes after dark. They glow. What I was surprised to see was these little glowing blue tiny strings of kinky plastic. You can not see them in the daylight or after dark with your nekid eye. But they show up everywhere under a black light in the dark. There absolutely everywhere. I am in Rural Missouri. I found out there is something known as plastic pollution and it’s everywhere. I would suggest no matter what clean natural herbs your using strain your liquid through a fine mesh cloth. I was shocked over my findings. Love your channel! So informative!

[@gomezaddams6470]

Wow!!!

[@farinaca]

Great advice!

[@blackthornsloe8049]

Yikes ! Our species have been like a cancer on the earth ☹️

[@minatheminstrel]

Ewwww good to know!

[@AlwaysAndForever7]

Thank you for bringing up permits! I think a lot of people don’t realize there are regulations around foraging and just jump into it

[@maryshowsoff5374]

I love that you mentioned Queen Anne's Lace and Hemlock. I don't know many herbs yet, but I remember a lot of Queen Anne's Lace growing in my neighborhood as a child. I just learned about hemlock being a lookalike last year. Looking back, all us kids were so lucky it was actually Queen Anne's and not hemlock. We used to pick it all the time. Where I live now, we have a lot of buckeye trees and they drop nuts in early to mid fall. It was interesting to read that all parts of the plant are poisonous and can cause paralysis if ingested, but the local indigenous people discovered how to roast the nuts to make them edible and used the bark medicinally.

[@nairbvel]

"There are a lot of ethics involved, and a lot of guidelines." Back when I was younger (I'm 63), that was pretty much true for life in general. :-) Knowing what one is doing AND the effect one is having on others and/or the environment is something overlooked far too often in these days of, "But this app shows me a picture of it on my phone!" Thank you, Annie -- it's always good to hear someone bring such concerns to the forefront.

[@wildearthchild2832]

Loving this series. Could you maybe do one that walks us through your step by step of foraging. The foraging, harvesting, cleaning and drying process.

[@flowerbunlove6182]

I agree! I always am trying to find a step by step process.

[@minatheminstrel]

Thank you for this video! It reminds me of the one day, I picked up poisonous hemlock as I thought it was yarrow (They dont even look alike and today I really can decide and recognize both) and I am SOO glad, that I checked on multiple sources before making a tea out of it. Since then I am just sooo carefull with plants I am not 100 percent sure about! Uff that could really went wrong!

[@MamaUrsa13]

The violets nettles cleavers and chickweed already started growing im super excited

[@Pharm2be]

Sometimes the time of year has a lot to do with how poisonous a plant is. Pokeberry shoots are edible when they’re young in the spring but after that point it’ll make you super sick if you try to eat them. But the berries, while poisonous, make a beautiful red-orange dye in the fall.

[@melanieselin4187]

I know this is a little bit of an older video but now spring is coming and it is so useful ! I am also blessed by living in Sweden where we can forage everywhere (except for endangered species of course)

[@kiki121471]

Am I the only one that wants to go foraging with Annie? Thanks for the great info, always such a pleasure ❤

[@SwordsAndMoss]

I’m learning so much from you! I appreciate you sharing your knowledge with us

[@tamisheiffer8568]

Thank you for discussing native and invasive plants as part of the ethics of foraging.

[@xJadeWolfxx]

I definitely needed a video like this. There are so many places in my area where foraging is technically prohibited I've been unsure what to do. Basically all the parks, regional parks, and the like are off limits legally. It makes it hard to feel certain I'm not breaking the laws.

[@jturtle5318]

Check with your city parks department. Things like garlic mustard, which is ivasive, and wild grape leaves, which are abundant, might be okay.

[@SwordsAndMoss]

These kinds of videos are always so peaceful….. ♥️

[@MotherNaturesEdge]

Thank you for speaking on the ethics of foraging and asking for permission this is so important.

[@Steve197201]

This is great information! I watch prepper channels that talk about the importance of activities like foraging, but they seldom go into the details of how to do it. Thank you for this good information, Anna!

[@jturtle5318]

Of you don't already have them, get field guide books (real ones, not e-books) for trees of your region, edible wild plants and poisonous plants.

[@MaximusOfTheMeadow]

Thank you, for making this video, and being so ethical about it

[@succubooks]

thank you! So helpful! I've only just started to forage, and this video was perfect!

[@JFaro326]

This was a very very helpful video!!! I am studying herbalism and I get scared to forage any herbs other then dandelion’s, violets and plantain. I agree, studying and cross referencing is an important step before going out. Instead if foraging right now other herbs I spend some time trying to identifying an herb like a scavenger hunt! You are the best! Thanks again!

[@johndayan7126]

I've been foraging for decades. A great introduction and overview of foraging. Very helpful. 🧡🧡💛💛💚💚💙💙💜💜

[@Littlewing6was9]

Have a beautiful day. Love and Blessings from Manchester England 🌼 🤗

[@jamieloom22]

I really appreciate you educating people to the ethics and guidelines for foraging conscientiously.

[@yellownightjar]

Ordered one of your books… so excited to get it

[@yellownightjar]

Love foraging to use in tinctures. I do forage in a neighbors yard that’s not sprayed. Do b careful foraging as weird creatures been viewed in National Parks recently.

[@obsidianathame8783]

This was very important I love the way you put it

[@notificationgangmember9339]

I’m glad I’m early- and only a few seconds in the video is already gorgeous!

[@withandi7055]

Thank you so much for this information! My first step will be to research my county. ❤️

[@gomezaddams6470]

A beautiful and calming video to watch and listen to. What I'm amazed at is what you're saying is common sense. Yet in this world it seems to be not even in existence in so many places. It is like a New Concept to people? It's a little confusing to me, I am much older than you, and I was doing this stuff as a child my mother the same her mother and her mother. Despite the name I am a woman. We were intuitive and conservationist at the same time. Today it seems like people often just take without thought. I think your videos should be shown in schools. You're not promoting anything but common sense in this particular video. So many people are trying to follow this path, not necessarily knowing why. This part of thought has been left out. Now I'm just being redundant. Thank you for making this I wish it was more available to the general population. I'm still shocked at how much Roundup is still being used in this day and age. I'm also shocked at living in a state that grows Moss naturally that people are worried about moss and their lawn. The word lawn actually brings up anger for me at this point. I'm in a very strange mood today so excuse if anything feels negative. I know that you can let that run off your back like water on a duck. I really just came to thank you for putting out the information.

[@ruthieshields189]

Great information. I know a few people who have foraged for medicinal herbs and didn’t properly identify them. They were sick for days. I love your content and your voice is so soothing. Thank you for sharing. 🥰

[@Lina_vlogs_life]

ok so im a young witch and i have a forest in my back yard thats really clean.=]

[@TomahawkScout]

Hello Annie, I'm so happy to see you finally delving into sharing the blessings of foraging for self-sufficiency. This wisdom will be sorely needed in times near to come. I have a question for you... Will you ever be going into the subtleties and energetics of harvesting and preparing medicinal plants and their subsequent effects and changes? (ie: The drying upside down or right side up. Cinching at the base before cutting verses cutting only... etc. The effects of storage ie: The energetic changes to medicinal properties caused by the material of the selected storage container. The energetic changes of storing with added select herbs in said chosen container for specifically tailored medicinal and magickal workings.) I find this area incredibly valuable for healing and spell working. But sadly, nobody out there seems to talk about it. Blessings

[@jturtle5318]

Have you watched She is of The Woods, she's an herbalist with a great approach.

[@yellownightjar]

Plz carry mace or some protection when out foraging by self as better to forage with friend. B careful . Love your channel

[@LilMaychu]

thanks for posting a video educating us about foraging! i think it’s really important to know how to do it safely and it isn’t something that often gets taught.

[@linwong1494]

Off topic but just wanna say that I love your new outfit! Looks good on you. Also ohh the pain of living in a super urbanized city. It's practically impossible to forage unless you travel to one of the islands or go some hours away to find clean plants to forage.

[@karinanalbandyan3009]

I understand why you say to forage far from urban areas, or any place that are contaminated by humans. It’s because these places are not natural, not organic, not wild. What I understood over the years is that this doesn’t just apply to where we should or should not forage, but to everything that’s connected to human existence. I realized that humanity has to make a u-turn and go back to organic, natural existence. Every aspect of human existence should align with the organic flow of life on earth, and by everything I mean humans must mimic nature in all ways, and tune in with organic environment, ecosystems, and cycles. Everything we do, produce, use, consume, etc, must be done as naturally as possible. This will heal humanity and all life on this planet

[@alwayscuriousalwayslearnin]

like different parts of the plant being good and bad like the tomatoe the leaves are not good and can kill you but the fruit is great or Rubarb the leaves can possibly kill you or at least make you feel ill but the meatier parts red parts under the leaves are great there is also another one that I cannot remember the name of but they can get rather large and have huge nice looking flowers but if you have direct contact with the skin it can cause severe burns if you go into the sunlight they are also an invasive species I think its called hogweed I only know what my grandparents and father taught me but there is many many species like this. I do love it when someone younger is explaining such things as foraging and where, how, and looking up the areas. around my place every year, I live in a smaller town, there are these tall blue flowers that I cannot tell the difference if it is Hickery or blue aster but I never really looked to close at the center oif the flowers I do thing that they look great because they are right next to the sidewalk on the side of the road and are probably 4-5ft tall growing with some other plants and flowers, I am sure there used to be a house maybe 30 years before that was there a few meters away which is now a parking lot but they left these to grow the blue really stands out whith the evergreen tall green hedges behind them, I hope that they stay sop far every year for the past 7 yrs I have been living here they pop up in the summer thriving in the dry heat. plants also suck out poisons from the ground sort of cleaning the area. three or four years back I foraged some fireweed near where I work and I did it wrong I make tea out of it to test if it will help with my cluster migraine or whatever people call the severe headaches that can take my 59yr old 240lb 6'2" body out of commission for a long while until he pills I have kick in ( I really don't like taking pills) but they haven't come back so I pretty much killed them off not intentionally, I was in a hurry when foraging.

[@slownaturalliving3218]

This is a very important video for everyone who is interested in foraging. I'm a guide on wild edibles and always give an introduction on how to forage before I start my guided tours. 👍😊

[@jturtle5318]

Call the city parks department to ask. I harvested wild grape leaves from the shrubby areas under the trees, away from streets and park lanes. They were amused, but assured me they hadn't sprayed anything.

[@dragos200]

Hi! You helped a lot when I started being a green witch and even now. Very quality content and you explain very well! I look forward to the next episode!

[@bonsaidanceflow]

I have just started foraging and this was very helpful, thank you💓

[@nooralmalaka.k.amonasarrai5995]

Thank you dear friend

[@DannysYacht]

Thank you for making it video! I have been really wanting to do foraging for a little while and bring able to know all of the basics before I dive into it is really nice. Good luck on your foraging!

[@donatelladuplessis4832]

Thank you for such a lovely video, Annie.

[@hearthandsagehealing]

Just noticed this 🌿💚✨ thank you!

[@justin_a_greenwitch]

I like to keep my foraging spots a secret. The deer are enough competition for me!

[@ChooRoo]

Neat. We do a tonne of foraging, especially for edible mushrooms. It is super rewarding and a lot of fun. Not to mention it get's you out in the open air.

[@TheEmpressgoth]

Very good stuff to know

[@leannebarrett3280]

Thank you 🙏 very informative. I would love more videos like this!

[@tjgnkc]

Thank you for this. Any books or plant/botany apps recommendations to help identify while in nature?

[@ginbrunson7692]

Thank you

[@DawnMK2023]

I work on a golf course and the border has natural areas with wild herbs and berries. I run a risk eating any berries due to the chemicals sprayed on the turf near them and getting covered in over-spray, even though my boss uses organic and environmentally friendly products when he can.

[@Coelumadventures]

Love your videos! Keep up the amazing content. I was a little sad when I didn't see the list of endangered species in the description however.

[@snowflakesinthesun1116]

Thank you! You gave a lot of really good information (:

[@addlibrarian]

I understand not collecting plants in the city for medicinal purposes. Makes sense. Should I assume that the same is true for non-medical/magical working? Should I not forage around my home n the city? Should I just get what I need at the National Foods co-op? Should I not bother growing my own herbs organically at home even if I’m not planning on ingesting them? Thank you kindly for your reply!

[@surfit.]

Dandelions are one that I can't identify if it's edible or not. Will you go out into the forest and actually show us which plant is safe and the look-a-like that is not safe? Field trip!

[@jturtle5318]

Dandelions are delicious, I mostly add some leaves to my greens before I saute them.

[@everythingcoffee8901]

From what I’ve heard, the stem isn’t edible and the seeds aren’t edible but everything else is

[@AmyBGz]

Thank you!!

[@anguissette87]

If I may make a book recommendation, Wild Witchcraft by Rebecca Beyer. I just found her book recently and now I see your lovely video, the universe is speaking.

[@jennglow4647]

Cool 😀

[@kdog9922]

If you can’t really forage, is there a store or website we can order fresh herbs and flowers from?

[@johnadamski4012]

🌲🍀🐾🐕🌿🍄🌻🌺🌸💚mindfully artistic Professionalism👏. Love Hazel's 🐶 cameos💚🍄🌿🐾🌲.

[@blackthornsloe8049]

Found wonderful comfrey by the road .just brought some home to plant in my yard to help the soil . Split it into six plants. They're doing great . The rest are gone now . County sprayed them with round up ☹️ Going to wait a couple years to use any internally . Will it be okay in a couple of years ?

[@Kira_Martel]

You might want to do some research on pyrrolizidine alkaloids in comfrey. While some people still choose to take comfrey internally, many avoid it because of the liver damage these alkaloids can cause.

[@K1PAKIPA]

I’m literally surrounded by rlly old houses, polluted rivers, AND a loud highway right behind my house ;-; I’m off to an absolutely wonderful start 😀🔫

[@mikesantavenere3864]

Hi Annie! May I ask what invasive species of plant do you harvest/use that are in your area? Also I know you used to Live in Virginia...I live in Northern Virginia, do you know any good invasive species out here that I could maybe use in my practice? Just purely curious! Thanks for yet another amazing video!

[@ky3139]

👋Hi neighbor!

[@tamisheiffer8568]

Some invasive plants in Northern Virginia that are edible are garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) and shiso or beefsteak plant (Perilla frutescens). Shiso is in the mint family, and I've heard garlic mustard pesto is good. I don't know if they have medicinal qualities. Wineberry (Rubus phoenicolasius) is also invasive and delicious.

[@silversoulfox]

Great video ty

[@XNyxX]

There are quite a few forest preserves around where I live that also have bike paths going around them; do you think that would be safe, or would it still be considered too 'humanized' to risk foraging?

[@jturtle5318]

If it's away from motor vehicles it should be okay. I give stuff from these areas an extra wash because you don't know who peed on it last.

[@crystal260]

A good thing I’ve heard about foraging is only pick 1/3. That leaves 1/3 for wildlife and another 1/3 for natural regrowth

[@Kira_Martel]

This is okay only if you're the only person who will be foraging there, and if the plant is very prolific. In my nettle patch, if I picked fully ⅓ of it, I would be devastating that patch. One tenth or less is a much better rule, and that's only if the population is large enough that it can sustain it. If two or three foragers come by and they all take one third of what they see, that is an incredibly huge impact on that plant population.

[@MrsLadyJae]

For people such as myself that are stuck in the urban locations void of almost all opportunities to forage, what would be your advice? I know we could try to grow our own herbs, but not sure which ones would be easier to start with.

[@rabidlovinggg]

as far as medicinal plants go, calendula is great if you grow it in a contained environment. it can get really widespread and invade your whole garden, so steer clear of planting too much of it outdoors.

[@rabidlovinggg]

i would say plant it in a pot about six to eight inches deep and try to get it in front of a south facing window, or any window that gets direct sun at least part of the day. if it starts to look wonky you can put it under red or blue LED lights and that can supplement some of the light it’s missing! this goes for basically any plant btw ! also if you already know all of this stuff or have better alternatives feel free to disregard LMAO

[@glendacox6540]

Sheesh….think I will just forage in my own back yard just to be safe!🤓

[@faramund9865]

You look... Italian? Saw the image and thought you'd grown your hair out, looks great.

[@demonshelby1311]

I'm looking forward to finding magic mushrooms. Very good for trauma

[@lsco2284]

Are their any poisonous plants in Northern Illinois or Southern Wisconsin

[@koya326]

There are so many, as a Wisconsinite. A simple google search can show you that, but stinging nettle, wild parsnip, hemlock, and bitter nightshade are all ones I’ve heard of in my area (the driftless area)

[@cindypaige7563]

You are a wonderful girl...thanks for all you do❤💞❤💞❤💞❤

[@MotherNaturesEdge]

In my friend group I am known as the pacifist, the herbalist who doesn't kill. My house is a no-kill policy, we barely mow, and generally try to be good stewards to the land and inhabitants of the nature around us. However, it does surprise my friends at how much joy killing invasive plants brings me. They're always so startled when I begin ripping things out of the yard, "you're killing something?" "They must DIE" Hahahahaha I love finding invasive species that are also good for medicine, I help the environment by removing them and help everyone else with the medicine I make! Win win ☺️

[@janiceknepp4604]

I want to get into foraging but I am scared because I don't know where to start

[@cyansalvatore6011]

Start by getting a local plants herbarium with close descriptions and images of the plants.

[@juliereminiec4937]

Only old frame buildings that were built before the mid 70s, will have lead paint on / in them

[@juliereminiec4937]

and Aespetos

[@ackrok]

Please know the laws when you forage in national or state parks. It's illegal in some parks, for good reasons. Some require a permit.

[@PerfectPride]

See, I feel like I would never be able to go foraging because I would never feel 100% confident in my identification. 😂

[@marisolc770]

What are the best herbs to use for tincturing?

[@Malgorbia]

Where does she get her shirts and suspenders though 🥺😤????

[@sandrairen1988]

Why avoid electrical lines? There are electrical lines going through our garden, and all my herbs and berries are there.

[@michaelk6472]

Sometimes they spray herbicide under electrical lines to stop tall plants from growing.

[@TheBusyHoneyBee]

If the eletrical line is in your land you might know what they did there, but If you do not live in the area, the electical Company could spray herbicide to slow the growth of plants to keep the access to the electical structure easy. Think more like electical line on more wooded áreas and abandoned farms.

[@TheBusyHoneyBee]

@@hawthorn9305 that I don't believe. Our homes have electicity running tru the walls and we eat food that was kept in refrigerators, we cook with electicity and our food still have the same good evergy. Lets not forget that electicity is only the movement of eletrons. Our brains run on eletricity, our thoughts are eletrical inpulses tru our neurons, If our thoughts are eletrical, our spells are also eletrical. Then If a power line did indeed left plants with "bad vibrations" a simple blessing would remove any bad vibrations, wouldn't It?

[@rebbiejoanthony5362]

I understand why it's important to stay away from foraging near roads, rails, buildings, and parks, but it does make me sad because those are the only places I have access to most of the time. There's not much wild land around here.

[@marvinreese9564]

ρяσмσѕм 👀

[@cherieheyn6553]

Leaves of 3,let it be. I learned this as a child.

[@JustLouns]

This is so sad. Most of nature is polluted and other half us only accessible if you can pay for permits. I’m grateful for my parents garden

[@jennikramer1625]

How I wish I lived in a place in which there were actually plants to forage. 😔 Only dirt and tumbleweeds here in the arid desert 🏜. Limited things that can be grown here as well. 😔

[@Kira_Martel]

Check out the ethnobotany of the people indigenous to your area. Even in desert environments, native people survive and thrive with the plants and animals that live there with them. Some desert herbs are really well-known medicinals like creosote bush or ocotillo.

[@TheArtofAdulting]

Thank you so much!