Many generations of rural Americans grew up collecting nuts and berries as a family tradition. At the appropriate times of the year, they would go collect black walnuts, hickory nuts, pine nuts, chestnuts, blackberries, elderberries, wild strawberries, blueberries, cherries, mulberries, apples, grapes and other bounty from the forest. These are some of the foods that people from just a few generations ago took for granted.
Foraging has enjoyed increased interest as more and more people are realizing the great value in being able to identify feral foods that are still essentially free for the picking.
When North America was exclusively Native American territory, just about every food plant was carefully exploited. Nuts, berries, greens, flowers, roots – all were used and surplus was dried for later consumption.
Today, people take…
