Finding Wild Edible Plants in Cities

Jackie takes you on a city backyards tour to identify and describe 6 invasive wild edible plants found in Waterloo region which is on the boundary of Zone 5 and Zone 6 in North America. Described in this video are wood sorrel, wild lettuce, dandelion, violet, wild carrot and mallow.

Jackie is an Environmental Studies part-time lecturer at the University of Waterloo.

Jackie McMillan has been helping people enjoy getting healthier for over 25 years. As an autistic child, Jackie realized that some environments and actions (whether physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual) made her challenges worse, while others made them dramatically better.

Two years of pre-medical and a degree in Environmental Studies brought depth and a passionate understanding that her discoveries could improve life for everyone -- not just autistics. Individuals, families, child development centres, hospitals, boards of education, advisory committees, and others, continue to benefit from Jackie's help in finding their own best paths toward optimal well-being, and realizing potential. When she's not teaching workshops or using her therapeutic skills, Jackie can usually be found either learning things, or gathering wild foods.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• urban
• harvesting
• Wild
• Edible
• Plants
• food
• foraging
• eating
• finding
• leaves
• roots
• flowers
• stems
• pods
• seeds
• wild
• sorrel
• dandelion
• lettuce
• violet
• carrot
• mallow
• Jackie
• McMillan
• Waterloo
• zone
• north
• america

[JackieThrives]

@maynardmalign Hi Maynard, you're very right, and I do cover that on my walks. However, this was a fun backyard project, done on a whim. If anyone is finding and eating wild plants on the word of one video, I'm concerned. I do a lot of research before I include a new edible plant in my own repertoire, especially regarding look-alikes, and indigenous and traditional medicinal uses. This gives you much more information about limits and safe quantities.

[JackieThrives]

Water hemlock grows in moist soil (vs. sandy and dry), but hog weed will grow where wild carrot does. If you haven't yet invested in a good plant identification book such as Newcombe's wildflower guide, that would be a great place to start. The leaves are sufficiently different that I have no trouble telling them apart, but I've grown up knowing them. Please don't eat anything you aren't 100% certain about what it is, and how edible it is!

[angrynhpatriot]

with the water hemlock and hog weed do they only grow around water...or just anywhere where its usually moist soil

[rhondalees4]

Good for you Maynard - complaining is always so much easier than contributing constructively and adding value to the conversation. People are interested and looking for information, wherever and however they come across it.  Seek to understand and then strive to clarify. Try again.

[maynardmalign]

Wildcrafting plants is something that requires a good deal of common sense. Much more in fact, than knowing how to (having the initiative to) do a Google search for both plants to see how identification is properly done. I'm sure you can find hundreds of pages, so why would I rewrite the damn thing? Hell, you all should be grateful I said anything to begin with, because NOBODY else caught this potentially lethal pitfall!

[genmama1955]

PS can you eat Scotch Broom? It's a very invasive plant in Calif. Thanks.

[genmama1955]

All I know for sure is miner's lettuce (yum) rose petals, pansy petals, violet petals,nasturtium petals, dandelions (flowers, leaves but I haven't tried the tubers yet). I eat all those. I want to learn more about other edible plants from a teacher, in person. But your video was informative.

[fudgedogbannana]

O how I wood sorrel you (3hearts). I buy dandelion greens at the super market( i grow it too), the leaves are 12-18 inches long and red-ish, is that a domesticated dandelion?

[blajing]

@maynardmalign Yes, poison hemlock can be deadly.

Purslane is another good one though - a superfood weed!

[rhondalees4]

@maynardmalign THEN YOU should show it and add a link rather than just complaining about something not being done right. Thanks for pointing it out, but no thanks for not adding any value to the topic, my dear!!