Edible wild plant books

troutfisher13111 said:
The Peterson's field guide covers what parts of the plant can be eaten, and even how to prepare them. The only thing I think it lacks in is color photos. There is a few, but not many.
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The problem I run into is that they have good pictures and little info or good info and crappy drawings. This problem has led to a book collection that is continually growing.
 
Good eye. She is indeed a maligator. We adopted her from a training facility I used to work at. She kept biting the handler so they deemed her unfit for police work. I think the other handlers were too heavy handed with her because she works great for me. She's a real sweetheart.
 
GhostWolf said:
Good eye. She is indeed a maligator. We adopted her from a training facility I used to work at. She kept biting the handler so they deemed her unfit for police work. I think the other handlers were too heavy handed with her because she works great for me. She's a real sweetheart.
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I used to work at the DoD Military Working Dog Agency at Lackland AFB. Got to work with the Belgies every day. If you ever work a wrap with one and you don't fall in love, you're not human. I was one of a handful in my second MOS that got to go to Patrol Dog Handler's Course and I still get weepy thinking about my training dog, Rex 352L. He was absolutely push-button. Two weeks after I completed the course, I had to euthanize him because he had pancreatic cancer that had metastatized to everything else.

I understand that the DoD is now allowing former handlers to adopt decertified MWD's. I wish that I had a bigger place. You're very lucky.
 
I agree with Doc on multiple books for cross reference. A good place to look for a book for your area is the store at a State Park or National Forest Service Office. They typically have ID books produced by your state college or university. I have had great success in this regard as I travel a fair amount around the U.S. Also, if you are new to plant ID, spend 15 minutes to read the forward, preface, and/or 'how to use this book.' It will lay down a good botanical foundation making things easier for you in the long run.

Arrrrrggghhh!!!! It pains me to say this, but I carry a PDA and if I have EVDO service I hit the USDA Plant database when needed which is another good cross reference. www.plants.usda.gov

These are also good websites for your area...

http://www.cnr.vt.edu/DENDRO/DENDROLOGY/main.htm

http://herb.umd.umich.edu/

http://www.bio.brandeis.edu/fieldbio/Survival/Pages/home.html
 
DeadeyeLefty said:
Here's a quote that might shed some light on the huckleberry topic, from Wild Berries of the Pacific Northwest by J.E. Underhill, ISBN 0-919654-06-1. Great pictures and good descriptions, presumably because it was intended more for home canners than as an encyclopedic reference.

"Blueberry, Blue Huckleberry, or just Huckleberry...about a dozen kinds of related shrubs in the genus Vaccinium that all bear some claim to one or more of these names...To make matters more complicated, easterners use the term 'huckleberry' for an entirely unrelated plant."

It goes on to say that the terms huckleberry,blueberry,billberry,whortleberry, and cranberry are typically used interchangeably.
Then again, you don't want to rely on a single field guide...
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That's the problem with common names. Some people call Cattail (Typha spp), Bulrushes (Scirpus spp.) and so on. That's why I always use binomials in conjunction with the common names. In fact, I only use common names because my buddies throw things otherwise. :(

Further to my post, every picture I saw of Gaylussacia baccata showed red(dish) flowers but the wild food book referenced above said they were white. I checked with Britton and Brown, Book 2 and they said the flowers are "pink or red". (An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States & Canada, Nathaniel Lord Britton / Hon. Addison Brown, Dover, ? , ISBN# 0-486-22643-3 Vol. 2 page 696) and I take their word for just about everything, plant related. However, in view of the extra posts on the subject, I checked with a Peterson guide (A Field Guide To Trees & Shrubs, George A. Petrides, Peterson, 1972, ISBN# 0-395-17579-8 page 280) and it says the flowers are, "greenish white or greenish red", so I guess Elias and Dykeman are off the hook and once more, everything's right with the world. :D

Doc
 
Quiet Bear said:
I agree with Doc on multiple books for cross reference. A good place to look for a book for your area is the store at a State Park or National Forest Service Office. They typically have ID books produced by your state college or university. I have had great success in this regard as I travel a fair amount around the U.S. Also, if you are new to plant ID, spend 15 minutes to read the forward, preface, and/or 'how to use this book.' It will lay down a good botanical foundation making things easier for you in the long run.

Arrrrrggghhh!!!! It pains me to say this, but I carry a PDA and if I have EVDO service I hit the USDA Plant database when needed which is another good cross reference. www.plants.usda.gov

These are also good websites for your area...

http://www.cnr.vt.edu/DENDRO/DENDROLOGY/main.htm

http://herb.umd.umich.edu/

http://www.bio.brandeis.edu/fieldbio/Survival/Pages/home.html
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I feel the PDA pain. Everywhere I go, I've got my bible, an encyclopedia, ~4,000 works of fiction, several favorite movies, some Ray Mears episodes, a dictionary, thesaurus, word processor, a few dozen albums of music, around 50 medical books, a collection of Army field manuals, and the list goes on. PDA never gets any heavier, though. Need to find a solar charger and an Otter Box for it. One thing I haven't found is a PDA book on plant identification...that would be great.
 
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