The official foraging thread

[BRGriffith]

Hey All!

I just stumbled on this thread, and I'm really interested. See, I just moved to North Carolina. Before I moved, I had lived in northern West Virginia for my whole life. I knew everything they you could go out and find: Blackberries, apples, crab apples, onions, greens, etc.

I'm hoping someone on here knows what you can find around central NC. I see a couple things already, like persimmons and the grape vines.

If you know what all there is around here, could you post a description and maybe a picture to help me identify it?

Cheers!

 

[vanishingpint]

Just checked on my patch of ramps today. Looking good . Will harvest some in a week or two.Is it still foraging if I transplanted them onto my property 10 years ago? Feels like it.

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Just checked on my patch of ramps today. Looking good . Will harvest some in a week or two.Is it still foraging if I transplanted them onto my property 10 years ago? Feels like it.

If you found them and got them for free to begin with, I'd say yes.

 

[Mainer]

This fall I brewed a pilsner with foraged dogwood fruit, and this winter I made a lager with 5 pounds of concord grapes. Granted, those were both foraged from friends' property with permission, but still, I'm counting it.

Oh, also, I did a pale ale with spruce tips foraged from a local town-owned hiking trail.

I also did 5 gallons of cider this fall with apples I foraged from my boss and my in-laws.

 

[Mainer]

Also, for cooking not brewing purposes, my dad brought me about 5 lbs of foraged Hen of the Woods mushrooms last fall. I dried them and they lasted through early winter.

 

[howamidriving]

Cool thread! Really excited for spring and summer this year. Last year I managed to forage about 16# of mixed berries from the area. Made a clean fruit beer, have a sour sitting an some, and just started a melomel with the rest.

If it hasn't already been mentioned, The Homebrewers Almanac is a great resource for this type of stuff. Tons of cool ideas in that book.

 

[Kharnynb]

Can't believe I missed this thread for so long.....as fellow Finnish Inhabitants have pointed out, we are allowed to pick fruits, mushrooms and leaf of any wild plant not in someone's yard(if it's fenced or within sight of a property, don't take it, and don't take from farmer's fields or orchards obviously).

I pick mostly blueberries/bilberries, cloudberries, lingonberries and raspberries.
With mushrooms, I prefer to keep to ceps and chantarelles as they are easy to recognise and unlikely to be dangerous.

With fishing, you have to have a license if you want to cast/lure fish, but basic rod and worm is free.

 

[jmartie13]

Just checked on my patch of ramps today. Looking good . Will harvest some in a week or two.Is it still foraging if I transplanted them onto my property 10 years ago? Feels like it.

Every year I think about moving some closer to my house for convenience. I would think transplanting some when they're dormant would be the way to go?

I just started digging some, it'll be a couple weeks before they're ready to pickle, I like to let them fatten up a bit.

 

[vanishingpint]

Every year I think about moving some closer to my house for convenience. I would think transplanting some when they're dormant would be the way to go?

I just started digging some, it'll be a couple weeks before they're ready to pickle, I like to let them fatten up a bit.

As I recall I dug them around this time of year and transplanted them. Took them a couple of years to multiply enough for me to harvest some. I guess that depends on how many you transplant.

 

[Mainer]

Can't believe I missed this thread for so long.....as fellow Finnish Inhabitants have pointed out, we are allowed to pick fruits, mushrooms and leaf of any wild plant not in someone's yard(if it's fenced or within sight of a property, don't take it, and don't take from farmer's fields or orchards obviously).

I pick mostly blueberries/bilberries, cloudberries, lingonberries and raspberries.
With mushrooms, I prefer to keep to ceps and chantarelles as they are easy to recognise and unlikely to be dangerous.

With fishing, you have to have a license if you want to cast/lure fish, but basic rod and worm is free.

I planted some lingonberries, blueberries, and raspberries in my yard this weekend. Doesn't count as foraging, but they'll definitely find their way into a beer once they start producing.

 

[Fedora]

Here's our first morel haul of the year.

 

[keesh]

Bump. Anyone else interested in foraging? I was looking into harvesting stuff to be used in a beer, wine or cider.

I am in Southern California and I was thinking about doing an IPA with sage and maybe a prickly pear cider.

edit: just saw this is on the cooking forum but I'll leave it up

 

[orionol73]

@TwistedGray might have some tips and tricks

OT - It's getting to be morel season, anyone finding any yet?

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Nothing too interesting dandelions are starting to bloom, I want to harvest some for mead.

 

[bracconiere]

It's getting to be morel season, anyone finding any yet?

if anyone does and is willing to send me a few fresh ones....i'll send you back a spawn bag you can try your luck with burrying to see if they grow!

i cloned wild shaggy mane before and planted them before.....but i've heard morels are tough to cultivate....

 

[TwistedGray]

Bump. Anyone else interested in foraging? I was looking into harvesting stuff to be used in a beer, wine or cider.

I am in Southern California and I was thinking about doing an IPA with sage and maybe a prickly pear cider.

edit: just saw this is on the cooking forum but I'll leave it up

@TwistedGray might have some tips and tricks

OT - It's getting to be morel season, anyone finding any yet?

As always, I'm willing to pay for fresh morels shipped to my door (drool)

As far as foraging - tricky. You are possibly going to introduce wild yeast unless you have an action plan to kill it. I enjoy wild yeast, so I leave it and use it complementary to whatever yeast I plan to pitch. That being said, any wild adjuncts I use are for sours and funks, so I encourage bacteria growth (so long as it's not mold). Flower petals, berries, any and all fruits, things that can be used for tea (mint, plantain leaf, ...), and other herbs (although I personally don't have experience with herbs other than those used in teas, see previous parenthesis). I have also used cannabis trim (fan leaves and trim leaves), and you just have to be careful. A lot of "herbal" stuff can cause a good beer to otherwise taste like swill (example...cannabis trim).

With all that said, a candy cap brown ale could be quite nice! Candy caps are some of my favorite shrooms!

Happy to contribute

 

[Immocles]

Nothing too interesting dandelions are starting to bloom, I want to harvest some for mead.

I hadn’t considered mead!
I’m going to try a really small batch of dandelion wine this year. Between my house and my father’s place, I should be able to get enough for a couple bottles. Anyone have luck with mulberries? My old fishing spot has a couple trees...

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

I hadn’t considered mead!
I’m going to try a really small batch of dandelion wine this year. Between my house and my father’s place, I should be able to get enough for a couple bottles. Anyone have luck with mulberries? My old fishing spot has a couple trees...

Oh yes, mulberries make a very beautiful and tasty mead. I have a low tree in the yard that I harvest and store in the freezer until I have enough for a batch, the more the better.

 

[Immocles]

I concocted a very small batch of wine from the mess of dandelions at my father in laws shop. Should end up with one regular sized wine bottle, and a small beer bottle size. Smells really good and seems like it'll be a really unique color. I hope its enjoyable. Its such a gimmicky thing that I think it would go over well as an easy, fun gift.