Wild Edible Foods in My Yard

Delicious, sweet wild strawberries

Our land is completely surrounded by forest. We keep the area as natural as possible, which leaves a transition area between the forest and the yard where all kinds of wild plants thrive.

Since we were out camping, the yard went a couple of weeks without mowing. This also allowed all kinds of cool edible plants to do their thing.

Late this afternoon I took the camera out to see what had sprouted up in our yard in our absence. I was amazed at the variety I found.

This is the best variety of wild lettuce. Tender, and not a hint of bitterness.

There were all kinds of greens at their prime. I also noticed that the blackberry bushes were covered in little green blackberries, and the blueberry bushes had tiny little green blueberries.

There were many wild strawberries fruiting. The ones that are reddish orange are not quite ripe. The ones that are a deep red are beyond description. Sweeter than any domesticated strawberry with a burst of intense, fruity pleasure.

I have noticed something odd about the poke salad. It used to have a scrumptious flavor that was a cross between asparagus and green beans. But this year it is very bland.

I noticed that when I was in Florida, too. I had picked poke shoots to cook for my sister to show her how good wild edibles could be. They were so bland I threw them out, rather than introduce her to something that wouldn’t impress her.

I know that Steve Brill says poke salad in New York has a very pungent flavor. So the taste must vary from location to location. Maybe all the rain we have had has affected the taste.

The blog editor is not letting me insert photos where I want them, so they will be out of logical sequence. For some reason, it is inserting the last photos here instead of at the end. Hope it’s not too distracting.