Before humans learned to cultivate and harvest their own food, they had to gather food from wild plants. "On [the North American] continent alone, there are no less than 4,000 edible wild plants," says François Couplan, author of "The Encyclopedia of Edible Plants of North America." Along with roots and greens, fruits were a common product of gathering. They were not only sweet, but also provided high doses of vitamins and antioxidants for battling disease and maintaining a healthy body. With a little preparation and a skilled eye, identifying these plants can become easier over time.
Preparation
Step 1
Purchase a field guide focused on wild berries and fruits such, as the "Berry Finder: A Guide to Native Plants with Fleshy Fruits of Eastern North America," or "The Encyclopedia of Edible Plants of North America."
Step 2
Search for plants within the field guide that the descriptions or symbols designate as safe for eating. Examples would be raspberries, wineberries, blackberries, blueberries and black cherries.
Step 3
Study the descriptions and pictures of each plant in the field guide. Note the leaf arrangement, leaf shape, leaf texture, stem type, flower and fruit arrangement.
In the Field
Step 1
Search for bushes or trees that have similar general characteristics to the pictures you studied earlier. General characteristics would be bark texture, stem type, leaf arrangement and leaf shape. Refer to the field guide, if necessary.
Step 2
Cut a 2- to 3-inch portion of a small branch or stem with pruning shears from all the plants you suspect to be producers of berries or cherries. Make sure it has a plentiful amount of foliage available to examine.
Step 3
Examine the stem or branch closely, noting the leaf arrangement, leaf shape, leaf texture, stem type, flower and fruit arrangement.
Tips and Warnings
- Bring your stem sample to your local extension agency where someone can aid you in properly identifying the plant.
- Some berries that wild animals eat are poisonous to humans. Do not eat wild berries unless you are sure you know what they are. Have an expert double-check if you are not sure.
Things You'll Need
- Field guide
- Stem samples
- Pruning shears
References
- "The Encyclopedia of Edible Plants of North America"; François Couplan; 1998
- "Mother Earth News"; Foraging for Edible Wild Plants: A Field Guide to Wild Berries; John Vivian; October/November 1999
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