Candyroot
Candyroots vary in heigh and colort. Photo by Green Deane
In the realm of plant populations there is endangered, threatened then rare. But there is a huge distance between rare and common. The yellow bloomer to the right — Candyroot — is not on any about-to-disappear list but one doesn’t see them that often. You have to be at the right place — seasonally damp pine scrub — and the right season, May in Florida but it can be found later in the year. Candyroot comes in two colors, yellow that can sometimes make it to orange. Native Americans and early Europeans would chew the roots, which have a spearmint-esque flavor, or wintergreen, and to some palates licorice. The tap root is also rather small, so it’s not much of a chew. Kind of like a woodland breath mint. To read more about Candyroot you can click here.
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Yellow ponds, that’s how I think of it, or in some places, yellow rivers. That’s because the American Lotus is in blossom. The first time I saw a small lake of these blossoms was when an old dry lake was deepened for a housing development. The next spring suddenly what was for decades a dry lake was full of American Lotus blossoms. This is because the seeds can stay viable some 400 years, or so the experts report. Talk about a survival food! There are multiple edible parts on the American Lotus but I prefer the seeds. I also think when collecting by hand the seeds proved to be the most calories for the amount of work. The roots are edible but digging them up can be a messy, laborious job. Locally American Lotus are easy to find now: Just look for a lake with large yellow blossoms on long stems. Further north and west they are a favorite sight on rivers such as the Mississippi. To read more about the American Lotus go here.
Classes are held rain or shine or cold.
Foraging classes: As most places have opened up I’ve scheduled out a few weeks. (I still don’t know about Haul Over Canal both sides) and I’m also hoping the Port Charlotte class in June matches the mango season. Ripe fruit there rots on the ground.
Saturday May 30th, Eagle Park Lake, 1800 Keene Road, Largo, FL 33771. 9 a.m. to noon. Meet at the pavilion near the dog park.
Sunday, May 31st, Mead Garden: 1500 S. Denning Dr., Winter Park, FL 32789. Meet at the parking lot. 9 a.m. to noon.
Saturday, June 6th, Colby-Alderman Park: 1099 Massachusetts Street, Cassadaga. Fla. 32706. Meet at the bathrooms. 9 a.m. to noon.
Sunday, June 7th, George LeStrange Preserve, 4911 Ralls Road, Fort Pierce, FL, 34981. 9 a.m. to noon.
Saturday, June 13th, a mushroom class in Lake Mary, FL., 9 a.m. to noon. Details to follow.
Sunday, June 14th, Blanchard Park, 10501 Jay Blanchard Trail, Orlando, FL 32817. Meet at the pavilion between the YMCA building and the tennis courts. 9 a.m. till noon.
Saturday June 20th, John Chestnut County Park: 2200 East Lake Road, Palm Harbor, FL 34685. Meet at the trail head of the Peggy Park Nature Walk, pavilion 1 parking lot. 9 a.m. until noon.
Sunday, June 21st, Bayshore Live Oak Park, Bayshore Drive. Port Charlotte. 9 a.m to noon. Meet at the parking lot at Bayshore Drive and Ganyard Street 9 a.m. to noon.
For more information, to pre-pay or to sign up for a class go here.
Though demonized, forgiven, and demonized again eggs have always been a large part of my diet. I eat ancestrally and eggs were definitely on the menu. The local farm store has sales that sometimes includes duck eggs which I grew up eating. We also had chickens (and pet squirrels, rabbits, dogs, cats and horses… my mother collected horses and I had to take care of them so much that in 1969 I volunteered for the Army to get away from horses and haying.) During a private class this week Marcy gave me a dozen eggs including two Turkey eggs! First time and they were wonderful. I also joyed the duck eggs and the run of the nest chicken eggs (unwashed they can last for several weeks on the counter if you turn them.) A few years ago I noticed that most “survivalist” and or “prepper” sites and articles just did not mention eggs. That prompted me to write a large article on eggs, birds to fish. You can read it here.
Green Deane videos are now available on a USB.
Changing foraging videos: My nine-DVD set of 135 videos has been selling for seven years. They are the same videos I have on You Tube. Some people like to have a separate copy. The DVD format, however, is becoming outdated. Those 135 videos plus 15 more are now available on a 16-gig USB drive. While the videos can be run from the DVDs the videos on the USB have to be copied to your computer to play. They are MP4 files. The150-video USB is $99 and the 135-video DVD set is now $99. The DVDs will be sold until they run out then will be exclusively replaced by the USB. This is a change I’ve been trying to make for several years. So if you have been wanting the 135-video DVD set order it now as the price is reduced and the supply limited. Or you can order the USB. My headache is getting my WordPress Order page changed to reflect these changes. We’ve been working on it for over three weeks. However, if you want to order now either the USB or the DVD set make a $99 “donation” using the link at the bottom of this page or here. That order form provides me with your address, the amount — $99 — tells me it is not a donation and in the note say if you want the DVD set or the USB.
This unknown seed capsule is from our Evening Primrose and was seen in Gainesville.
Want to identify a plant? Perhaps you’re looking for a foraging reference? You might have a UFO, an Unidentified Flowering Object, you want identified. On the Green Deane Forum we — including Green Deane and others from around the world — chat about foraging all year. And it’s not just about warm-weather plants or just North American flora. Many nations share common weeds so there’s a lot to talk. There’s also more than weeds. The reference section has information for foraging around the world. There are also articles on food preservation, and forgotten skills from making bows to fermenting food.
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Speaking of eggs, years ago my BSA troop overnighted at what I think was 7 Pines Farm in Winnipeg. and the bus company to pick us up ran late. They very kindly fed us breakfast, farm raised ham, home made toast and butter, pancakes and peahen eggs. They were delicious. I corrected the young men for almost 2 years while would say “Remember when we ate peacock eggs?” Peacocks don’t lay egggs. 😉