i know there are a few, I'm leaning towards this because of the color photographs, since I have no idea what I'm doing. But also I'd like one that treats a wider spectrum of climate areas as I don't know where I'll be (europe, asia, etc). What did you find useful?
Posted Jul 26, 2011, 9:07 PM UTC
The book depends on the area.
Yep, get one local for your region or its worthless. Ive read the SAS Survival guide a few times over but the sections on what food is edible in Europe and Asia is worthless to me.
But then if you have to move during an emergency it is not as useful.. I have a book for my specific area, I would love a more in depth book :)
I have heard it said that there are 10,000 species of edible plants, though most people barely eat 100. Finding something that covered all 10,000 would be difficult indeed. It looks like there have already been several good suggestions, though.
I like this one. It's not the most comprehensive, nor the most general, but I find its approach spot on.
The Forager's Harvest appears to be in the same vein as well.
Wow, both of those look great. I'll definitely be picking them up.
Yup, this is the one that I was talking about. But I'm looking for something that's not North-America specific, since I'm in Europe and I'll be leaving on a long trip in Asia.
I would love to find one that focused on Texas and other southern states.
I asked the same question a month ago for the eastern U.S. Here's the thread:
Here's a start. I personally like looking at what the native cultures subsisted on.
I have this one which covers known uses by the various native tribes in the Pacific Northwest. It is very interesting, it has everything indigenous I have ever looked for, and casually explains how one tribe used the plant this way, and another used it another way, and another tribe had no knowledge of it. There are decent drawings to help with identification. Another suggestion is to see if your nearest agricultural extension offers a master gardener class, they are a wealth of information.
Hey, would that book apply to Vancouver Island?
I would certainly think so.
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How about Willamette Valley/Western Oregon? I would assume most of Cascadian flora and fauna is quite similar, but wanna be sure...
The map in the book looks like it covers west of the Cascades and maybe a little bit across that part where the Klikitat lived, down to the Washington border. If you have plant species in mind I could check.
No book is comprehensive. There are a lot of plants.
I recently took a 3-day wild edibles course from a leading school. Taking a course was a great way to start for me, because I was pretty intimidated just going from books.
If you just put a book on the shelf, it won't help you much. The instructor's recommendation: learn a plant every month, and learn it well. If you have a yard with weeds, start there. At class we ate a lot of yard weeds.
Top guides they recommended: Peterson's are good, and Newcomb's Wildflower Guide is very helpful because of the way it's organized. Steve Brill's book was on the list too. You want something reliable, because some guides out there could get you killed.
Your most important task is to avoid poisonous lookalikes. Peterson's Guide to Wild Edibles is good about pointing them out, and they also have a guide to poisonous plants. Water hemlock, the most poisonous plant in North America, looks a lot like wild carrot. One bite will kill you. Death camas, the second-most poisonous plant in North America, looks like wild onion (but doesn't smell like onion).
Until you're really experienced, just avoid edibles with poisonous lookalikes. Plants vary. Photos are nice but not as important as you might think. You're looking for specific identifying characteristics.
It's a pretty nice feeling, walking around town, seeing wild weeds everywhere that you know you could eat.