What do you do with a ton of Fennel? Harvest, preserve, cook, and make medicine! That's what! Here’s how to identify wild (and domestic) fennel, benefits and uses, plus a delicious recipe for fennel candy for digestive health! Last year, my husband brought a fennel plant home from
The medicinal uses for mullein are vast and extensive. Learn about smoking mullein for cough and respiratory ailments, plus other medicinal values.
Learn how to harvest lemongrass, a fragrant culinary herb, used to flavor a variety of dishes and brewed into herbal tea.
If you're not growing comfrey in your garden, you should be. We'll show you how to get started with this multi-purpose herb and why it's a must-have.
Soapwort is easy to grow, harvest, and use around the home. It can clean your skin, hair, your delicate fabrics, and your home!
In this comprehensive guide, we'll discuss how to find (and sell) wild ginseng. We'll also look at some of the legal and moral responsibilities of hunting this rare plant.
Tips and tricks on cooking nettles, as well as harvesting nettles, which are high in vitamins and protein. Think spinach, only better.
Chicory is one of the safest wild edibles you can forage, with a huge number of health benefits. We tell you everything you need to know about it.
Wild fennel is considered an invasive weed, but in the culinary world, it's coveted for the fresh golden pollen from its fragrant flower heads. Here's how you can harvest the rare spice (for free!).
Learn about the benefits of rosehips, including why we should be growing our own, harvesting, preserving, and using rosehips medicinally.
Ramps are a spring ephemeral, which means they're only here for a very short time. A short harvest window helps us appreciate natures bounty, but sometimes its just not enough. There are simple ways to preserve
Burdock is a hardy, multi-purpose herb. If you're thinking of growing burdock in your garden, this guide will tell you all you need to know to get started.
An invasive species to the US, Japanese Knotweed is native to Japan, China and Korea. Luckily, it is not only destructive but also delicious! In this post I'm covering how to find Japanese Knotweed and
Natural Living Resources Here are some of my favorite resources that will help you along your Grow Forage Cook Ferment and Herbalism journey! Please note that some of these are affiliate links, which means that
Commonly mistaken for a weed, purslane is one of the most nutritious vegetables on the planet. Find out how to identify it and use it in 20 delicious recipes! #purslane #verdolagas #foraging
A large, upright plant from the figwort family, mullein (Verbascum Thapsus) is a biennial, meaning it grows two years in a row. The first year, the plant produces a leafy base; the second year, a single upright stalk emerges from the center of the base and produces a thick head of soft yellow blooms.
Foraging in spring. These are the easiest and most abundant wild herbs to forage in springtime. Descriptions and uses.
Motherwort is essential in any medicinal garden and growing motherwort is one of the easier gardening propositions. Here's everything you need to know.
I may receive a commission if you purchase something mentioned in this post. More details here. The appearance of stinging nettles in my neighborhood is exciting, because it marks the beginning of the foraging season! Last year, spring came in so late that we were desperate enough to go collect nettles that had just barely […]
Spotting wild garlic on country walks is wonderful. You usually smell it before you see it, and it tells you that Spring is either here or on its way. Depending on where you live though, you may struggle to find some. So why not Grow your own Wild Garlic instead? Wild garlic is easily grown from wild garlic bulbs. The ideal time to plant it is from October to mid March, so there is still time to get yours going. Growing your own Wild Garlic We grew our first Wild Garlic about 3 years ago. You will find Wild Garlic bulbs to buy on Ebay at this time of year, which is where we bought ours. Please don't consider taking bulbs from the wild and planting them in your garden. Once the bulb is dug up, the garlic won't come back next year from wherever you took it. And besides, unless you have landowner’s consent, it is illegal. The plant can be highly invasive, so we decided a pot was the way to go. Having too much wild garlic sounds doesn't really sound like a problem at all when you don't have any. But there was a reason we did it this way. My father's front garden is overrun with wild garlic. Every Spring you can smell it well before you reach it. Lovely to visit, not sure I'd want to live with that overpowering smell every time I opened the windows. Hence we started ours off in a pot. Then we decided to pop it in the ground at our allotment. The bulbs reproduce quickly and we're looking forward to another great harvest this year. How to Grow It Wild garlic is easily grown from wild garlic bulbs. The ideal time to plant it is from October to early March, so there is still time to get yours going. When your bulbs arrive in the post they may look pretty uninspiring. Just pop them directly into the earth outside. Wild garlic thrives best in slightly acidic soil and in moist conditions. It certainly doesn't mind a bit of shade either. Foraging - How to Identify Wild Garlic The smell of wild garlic is, of course, unmistakable. But unless you happen upon an enormous patch of it, you may not smell it. We're lucky enough to have masses of it nearby on The Cuckoo Trail in vast amounts, walking distance from where we live.Lush green Wild Garlic stems look like a lot of other leafy Spring vegetation, not all of which is safe to eat. So you need to be cautious if you're collecting it in the wild. It can easily be mistaken for lily of the valley, lords and ladies or autumn crocus, all of which are toxic and will land you in hospital or worse. If you pick a leaf, crush it gently in your hand and it smells of garlic: it's wild garlic. In the years before we knew what it looked like we used to wait until the beautiful white flower clusters appeared to be absolutely sure we had the right plant. But flowers don't appear until the end of March at the earliest, often more like April. By then the leaves have got bigger and are a bit less tender to eat. But of course if you grow your own, you already know you have the right plant and that it's safe to eat. How to Harvest Wild Garlic Harvest Wild Garlic leaves, flowers and stems using scissors, being careful not to damage them as you cut them - they bruise easily. Wild garlic will wilt quickly after picking. So if you're not going to eat it straight away, pop it in a sealed bag in the fridge with a few drops of water. It should keep for a couple of days. Cooking with Wild Garlic Wild Garlic is a member of the Allium family, much like leeks, onions, spring onions and our more familiar bulb garlic. And like all of those vegetables, it is more pleasant to eat cooked than raw. You can use Wild Garlic in any recipe where you would use regular garlic, though bear in mind it's a lot milder than standard garlic. The leaves, flowers and stems are all edible. They're great for Wild Garlic Pesto, popping in garlic butter or in egg-based dishes like frittatas and omelettes. The flowers and tender young leaves, used sparingly, are very pretty in a salad. You can freeze it too. The leaves don't look so great when they defrost - a bit like defrosted lettuce. But defrosted Wild Garlic is perfect for adding to dishes where looks don't matter. Like Wild Garlic Pesto. I have also been known to make a mean Dauphinoise Potatoes with Wild Garlic. Absolutely delicious. My posts usually contain links to our webshop and/or affiliate links to other shops. If you click on them, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you. Find our disclosure policy here.
How to grow and harvest Valerian
Wondering what to do with elderberries? Here are a bunch of ideas for putting them to use-- including the basics of finding, harvesting, and prepping!
Yep, you really can grow liquorice yourself, right in your backyard! You might remember the old fashioned liquorice sticks you used to be able to buy? Those
How to grow and harvest Honeywort
Because it's always mojito season somewhere.
The best tips for growing egyptian onions, also known as tree onions, walking onions, perennial onions, winter onions, top onions in home vegetable gardens, How to grow and harvest Egyptian onions.
Soybeans are annual crops that grow and produce their harvest and then die off at the end of the growing season. Soybean plants are relatively easy to grow and are similar to known varieties of...
Chickweed may be a common backyard weed, but it's a little herbal powerhouse! Learn all about chickweed in this helpful article.
Learn about the benefits of rosehips, including why we should be growing our own, harvesting, preserving, and using rosehips medicinally.
The medicinal uses for mullein are vast and extensive. Learn about smoking mullein for cough and respiratory ailments, plus other medicinal values.
Mullein has a long history of medicinal uses, and you can grow this herb right in your backyard. Here is how to grow mullein in your garden this year.
Over-harvesting threatens to endanger a beloved springtime ingredient. Learn how to source ramps more responsibly.
Looking for a plant that's both medicinal and a beautiful option for shady spots? Check out black cohosh and start growing it today.
Learn where to find wild ramps - a sought-after spring delicacy - and how to harvest them sustainably.
Ever wondered how some plant roots can be worth hundreds of dollars?
Hostas are a classic landscaping plant, but did you know you can eat them? Try some delicious hosta shoots from your garden this spring.
It matters where you snip it.
There are two types of savory, summer and winter, but in this article, we're going to focus on how to grow winter savory herbs. Click here to find out about the care and growing of winter savory and o
Kousa Dogwood ( Cornus kousa ) Himalayan Dogwood ( Cornus capitata ) The fun thing about urban foraging is that you have a ch...
Learn how to grow, harvest and use rosella (hibiscus);a popular, yet delicious and versatile food due to their unique, though tart flavour.
Purslane has fleshy succulent leaves and stems with yellow flowers. They look like baby jade plants. The stems lay flat on the ground as they radiate from a single taproot sometimes forming large mats of leaves. The taste is similar to watercress or spinach and is perfect in in salads…
We love, love, love, love stinging nettle as a food. We harvest this wild green regularly and use it primarily in our very dense greens soup. Five years ago I would not have imagined that I would be harvesting nettle regularly. Even the slightest brush up against it would leave me with an aching rash […]
Nettle tends to pop up where you don't want it to be, but if you want to try growing nettle, you might be surprised by how easy it is to do so.
Queen Anne's lace is a pretty flower also known as wild carrot. It's edible and medicinal with distinct identifying factors and many uses.
Unfortunately, few microgreens regrow after harvesting. If gardeners harvest microgreens without cutting the lowest leaf, a chance exists that it can regrow. However, the regrowth is usually stunted and affects the taste of the microgreen.
Learn how to grow mullein in your garden. Growing mullein is easy, especially in temperate climates, this medicinal herb also embellish with beautiful flowers.
After starting snapdragons, growing, and harvesting for my first season, I find them entirely easy to start and grow and they are my . . .
