We Spied a Magnificent Morel!
The Nature Museum welcomed Ari Rockland-Miller, of The Mushroom Forager fame, this past Saturday for two sold-out back-to-back programs and walks revolving around the joys of spring wildcrafting with a focus on tonics and medicinal mushrooms.
Following Ari's informative presentation, the group forayed into the great outdoors. Ari explained that there are many wild plants out there that you can harvest and not have to worry about sustainability issues because they are prolific reproducers. However, wild ramps and wild mushrooms are quite a different story and must always be sustainably harvested.
Ari willingly fielded many questions from participants and stressed that no matter what you set out to forage this year, it's important to do your research to ensure that what and how much you collect will not cause harm to the ecosystem. By prioritizing sustainable harvesting, you can ensure that future generations will not have to learn about these edible wonders from a history book!
Some of the best wild edibles we found this year were burdock leaves, violets, stinging nettles, Indian cucumber, plantains, cattails and the highly coveted morel mushroom! Ari told us this was his first time leading a guided adventure when he found these very choice morels!
If you are kicking yourself for missing this opportunity to learn from such an experienced forager, don't delay in signing up for Ari's next program with The Nature Museum in August. Several have already registered for his return visit in August for a program titled, "Wild World of Mushrooms".