Monday, January 13, 2014

What lies ahead

 Dead nettle

I'm fast forwarding three months. Early to mid-April. I was marking up my early spring calendar to see when and where I could lead some walks, and found these pictures I'd taken last spring on a reconnaissance mission.

I know I say something like this every year, but anticipating this early green riot is almost the best part.

Almost.

 Field garlic

These plants excite me.

 Garlic mustard

There will be a lot of experimenting and recipe-writing. Late April and May will be busy in the kitchen.

 Japanese knotweed

We are closer now, in Harlem,  to two excellent foraging grounds - Inwood and Pelham Bay.

But I'm also scouting for private land whose owners don't mind the presence of a grazing plantswoman. I want more clean space, and the freedom to gather unfurtively; I really dislike the feeling that a park employee might jump out and say, Hold it right there! - while I'm collecting the juicy shoots of the most invasive and expensive weed on the planet: Japanese knotweed. As far as I know there is no collation of data on Japanese knotweed removal in the US, but the budget figures I have seen for its annual removal in the UK range from £70 million to £166 million.

The UK takes Japanese knotweed very, very seriously.

 Lesser celandine

 May apples

 Serviceberries

Violets

Also on the spring menu, the early cresses, cattails (I really need a clean source for those), and upstate ramps.

Got land? Have knife, can cook. 

6 comments:

  1. We do have land and you would be SOOO welcome here.... but we are in Massachusetts. That said, anytime you are in the 'hood let us know.

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    1. Thank you! I might make a field trip...Cattails? I am really looking for larder of sorts to gather ingredients for recipe development...

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  2. Looking forward to spring!

    Maangchi has a couple of videos of foraging for mugwort and wild onions in Inwood park, and then cooking some seasonal Korean dishes:
    http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/ssukguk
    http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/pajeon

    cheers,
    jake

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  3. P.S. Your photographs!!! So nice on a cold, snowy day.

    jake

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  4. Much dead nettle in my yard and the celandine, too. What is it i should use them for? Not much chance of Picky Eater trying them, but I'm game.

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  5. We do take Japanese knotweed very very seriously here in UK, because it very very quickly takes over everything native! I don't think we could eat it fast enough for this to be a solution, though it would be a much cheaper one..

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