Watching my oldest son gather pawpaw fruits in a basket made by holding up the front of his shirt was a proud moment for this foraging father. What we hand down to our kids is what they share with the world. 

People believe that foraging happens in large forests and rural areas far from suburban developments. The truth is foraging happens wherever there is a person with the desire to forage. 

My family lives in a beautiful southern city. We are surrounded by neighbors, breweries, businesses, and an exploding population. Our yard plot is under an acre, big for the area, but not what comes to mind when you think of a homestead. 

Shooting hoops out front, my kids often reach down at the wood line and pick leaves of mint to chew in the spring and summer months. They have been doing it for years. Mint is a perennial herb that comes back year after year. 

We have discovered our own suburban foraging bounty and so can you. 

Don’t Reinvent the Wheel; Local Foragers Have Done the Work

If you are in the suburbs of any densely populated city, then some of the work of foraging has already been done for you. You simply need to visit the website www.fallingfruit.org and what you see will blow your mind. 

All over the world, suburban and even urban foragers use this website to note specific locations where wild food can be found. All you must do is find your suburb on the map and drill down close to see what is nearby. 

The map will show little red dots for edible foods. Hover your cursor over the dot to see what kind of plant or tree it is. 

You might even consider noting some of your own found wild edibles on the website. I often wonder how much wild food we could uncover and quantify if we all used Falling Fruit’s website. 

Suburban Foragers Always Forget About Trees 

I am as guilty as anyone else! For about 6 years I lived with a black cherry tree in my front yard. Not until I started studying medicinal trees did I come to realize what I had been walking by all those years. 

Tucked in the corner of my yard, this tree puts off tiny black cherries in bunches each summer. Inspecting the leaves and the fruit makes it quite easy to identify. The best clue is when you strip away some bark. The bark contains a fragrant cherry scent that is undeniable. 

I use cherry tree inner bark to make a natural expectorant tea by steeping about 2oz of chopped inner bark into a cup of hot water. You can stir in a little honey, too. It is great in the fall when all the coughing starts. 

If you haven’t started learning about trees, then you are hardly taking advantage of what is forageable in your area. You could have food producing trees like hickories and walnuts or even the humble oak if you know how to process its acorns. 

As I mentioned, no tree gets my family as excited as the tropical pawpaw that extends as far north as Pennsylvania and produces a delicious creamy fruit in early September. 

Small Parks Hold Big Harvests 

Running the dirt trails of a park near my home, I looked up and saw what I thought was a big puff ball mushroom attached to a hickory trunk. The trouble is that puffball mushrooms grow on the ground. They like meadows and can even be found in sports fields. 

What I was looking at was a massive lion’s mane mushroom. Now, it is not uncommon for me to happen across edible mushrooms in this hardwood-dominated park. Though, I had never seen lion’s mane before in the wild. 

This was a very interesting find as lion’s mane helps heal the nervous system, benefits brain function, and even reduces the risk of heart disease. 

Small suburban parks hold a lot more than wild mushrooms. It is almost inevitable that you will run into some blackberry if you spend enough time exploring a park in the summer. 

Suburban Water Sources are Foraging Hot Spots 

I was standing in a shallow flowing creek and plucking blackberries that were still a little tart for the season when I noticed an even more beneficial bush growing up and over the thicket. The bank was a hill and the bush was peeking just over the top of the blackberries. 

It was a black elderberry. Black elderberry is an incredible immune booster when made into a syrup. Elderberries must be cooked before eating, so I didn’t start going one for one with the blackberries. 

Stinging Nettle

Along the opposite bank was a patch of that mean old seven-minute itch. Stinging nettle is something that people tend to avoid. It might surprise you to know that this plant is actually one of the most nutritious in the world. 

Nettle stings you with its trichomes. These hollow stinging hairs break when they come in contact with your skin and reveal a sharp point that does the stinging. You must have gloves if you are going to harvest stinging nettle. 

A mouthful of trichomes doesn’t sound like a good time so you blanch the nettle in boiling water. This destroys all the trichomes on the plant. Then you treat nettle as you would any other type of bitter green. 

Aspirin on the Water’s Edge 

Where there is water there is willow. The black and white willow tree both contain salicin. It is one of the primary compounds in the tree. This breaks down inside the human body to salicylic acid, which triggers analgesic and anti-inflammatory processes in the body. 

It affects the body in much the same way that aspirin, which has an active ingredient called acetylsalicylic acid, does. 

The leaves of willow are one of the best ways to identify them. They are long and thin, almost dagger-shaped. Many of these leaves will populate thin branches. White willow will have a silvery underside on the leaf. 

The bark is grey and green with deep fissures. In the past, the young branches were used for basket weaving because they are slender and flexible. 

Cattail

The cattail is a forager’s best friend down by the water. This is because it is so easy to identify. The cigar-shaped tops are a dead giveaway. Not to mention all parts of this plant are edible. 

You won’t often find cattail standing in a shallow summer creek. You’d be more likely to find it by taking your kids to a local pond in the summer for some bluegill fishing. These plants prefer slow-moving water. 

The cattail’s parts are all a bit unique in texture. The starchy root can sometimes take on the flavor of the water it’s in. It should be cooked before eating. Its shoots can be eaten as is and are much more refreshing. Even the tops can be roasted and eaten. 

Don’t Neglect Your Front Yard 

Each year I try to expand my own foraging expectations. It’s hard not to laugh about this because I can be sitting on the porch lamenting the fact that I should do MORE foraging all the while the front yard is full of wild foods.

If you allow your yard to be something other than a monocultured field of grass, chances are you are sitting on a lot of wild edibles, too! 

Common Plantain

This plant is not related to the banana but more akin to spinach. It looks like spinach and can be a real treat in the early days of spring. Like spinach, common plantain can get stringy and tough as it matures.

The other thing common plantain does well is act as a medicinal poultice for healing wounds. If you have a cut you can chew, chop, or bash up plantain leaves and spread them over the wound before bandaging it. This will protect it from infection and hasten the healing period. 

Violet

Every year underneath one of our redbud trees, the violets return. Their green heart-shaped leaves appear first and then the five-petaled purple flowers. Nothing says spring like making a salad with violets and plantain leaf mixed in. 

Dandelion

Everyone sees dandelions but very few people SEE dandelions for all that they are. The golden heads of dandelions can be used to make bread or wine. The young leaves are delicious when added into salads, perhaps with violet and plantain?

Also, the roots can be roasted, ground, and brewed into a warm beverage that is similar to deaf coffee. 

Curly Dock

Curly dock is another one of those wild edibles that you have likely seen many times but never thought twice about it. This is another plant that is completely edible from seed to root. The young leaves are tangy like spinach but a bit sour. 

The thin delicate stems give way to a dagger-shaped leaf with a rounded point. As the plant matures these will get larger and even begin to curl, hence the name. 

The roots are very bitter and best harvested in spring or fall. Most people don’t treat them as food but more as medicine. Tea made with the root can help with constipation.

Meanwhile, the seeds are a great source of fiber and nutrients. They come at the end of the growing season but are impossible to miss. The curly dock plant will first put off brilliant yellowish-white flowers. The seeds and the chaff will be what’s left behind. 

Create a Suburban Foraging Journal 

We give our memory far too much credit. We forget so much and foraging honey holes are simply too valuable to leave to memory. 

It’s not only the location that is important. We also must remember the date because that can make a huge difference. 

A simple suburban foraging journal can be created using a composition book, blank journal, or even a binder with lined paper in it. 

Here are some details to include in your journal:

• Date 
• Plant Harvested
• Quantity 
• Location
• Notes