Hi, I'm new to this forum, so hello everyone. I'm a small space gardener and native plant lover in MA. I'm glad to hear you are interested in native edibles, Jim; I've found them to be really fun. When I was twenty I tried to eat a lunch of all wild foods every day for about 6 months--not enough calories, I suspect, given what I was eating, but it was a great experiment. There are probably better field guides, but for the excitement of reading and getting involved in wild foods I love Euell Gibbons's books. There was a series, beginning with Stalking the Wild Asparagus, I believe. He was a wild food advocate and genuine eccentric, as far as I can tell. He used to go into the woods with boy scouts and just find food for a few days at a time. I remember one of his books dealt specifically with the arid west, though I didn't check where you were out west. Gibbons's staple was always cattail hearts. It was the starchy thing that he started with before going off to find freshwater clams or something more difficult. I didn't have cattails at the time of my experiment with wild foods, but since the nature class at the school where I teach brought some in, and I found them easy to eat, better than most wild foods. Sunchokes are tasty, raw and cooked, though you can have too much of their characteristic chestnut flavor quickly. Poke weed is good, but must be double boiled, which is irritating. It tastes very much like spinach. I also love the non-native purslane, both raw and in stir fries; eating it helps take care of it as a weed, which it is here. In fact, it really incentivizes weeding to know which ones are edible and use them. I pretty quickly cleared out all of my dandelions when I was eating wild foods and had to move on to other yards. Fiddlehead ferns are popular in my area, though I haven't tried them yet. Folks compare them to asparagus. -hope that helps. I'd be curious what you find tasty.

Petersons publishes both a medicinal plant and edible plant guide that are invaluable resources but if you are a novice to wild plants and identifying them, I would suggest starting your learning from someone in person. Books are wonderful and I have taught myself much from them but my first teachers about plants, plant safety, and plant identification were my parents when I was very young. I also have taken many in-person identification and herbal medicine classes as well as guided walks and tours. Please look for classes or perhaps herbalists in your area. Wildcrafting and processing the plant material is time-consuming. I'm sure many herbalists would trade learning for help in collecting and processing botanical material. And in learning about your wild resources, be sure to check out United Plant Savers for a list of plants that are "at risk." These are native, medicinal plants that have been decimated in the wild. Be sure to temper your collecting with good stewardship. Good luck in your endeavors! FataMorgana Here is a link that might be useful: Amazon link to Peterson's Medicinal plant book

I'll be posting fresh seeds this summer. I foraged them in my yard. I didn't plant them, water or care for them. But, the leaves made the best quiche. Better in the quiche than in a salad. Didn't like the rough leaf on my tongue... and healthy too. LOVE the Wild Amaranth Quiche (recipe online). Xtal Here is a link that might be useful: ForagingTexas: Wild Amaranth

My mil died at age 99 and never had an ache or pain, she was interested in everything even though, in the last five years of her life, she went blind. She still knew every politician and all the news of the day, listened to music and books on tape. She didn't move around much in her last years as she never adapted to being blind but, prior to that, she was physically active. She started every day off with two espressos and fried hot hot chili peppers, so hot her face would turn red and tears flowed. What was the secret? Who knows, she was orphaned at age 10 when her mother and seven brothers and sisters died of the Spanish flu in one week. Just that fact alone shows she had a strong immune system with death all around her. I think all people who live longer than average believe it's their dna. My Mom was one of eleven children. All of them lived to their nineties and two are still alive!! One is 99 and the other is 100 so go figure. Your friend has great DNA.