Foraging | First We Eat

Check out our Interactive Boreal Forest Foraging Guide.
Hover over an icon to see its name in English and in Hän.
Click on an icon for more information.

Mähsį’ Cho Georgette McLeod and Mary Henry for the Hän translation.

The Foraging Cycle - a year-round directory of wild foods. From the Foraging section of the website for First We Eat, a documentary by Dawson City, Yukon filmmaker Suzanne Crocker about eating only locally-grown foods in Dawson City, Yukon, in Canada's North, for one year.

Foraging Ahead
All around us, nature has provided a bounty of edible plants we can use to supplement our diets.

This section highlights some of the forageable plants found in the boreal forest. While the time of appearance in your locality will vary with latitude, the order in which they appear should stay the same. Most foraged foods are best when they are young, which sometimes makes them difficult to identify (for example, before they flower).

The photos reflect the plant when it is ready for harvest.
Suzanne shares what she learns along the way.

It is important to forage sustainably and avoid areas where pesticide or other chemical use might be an issue (i.e. road sides).

Photo by Cathie Archbould

The Palate Palette and the Rule of 6!

“You need to try a new food or drink 6 times before you decide whether you like it or not. Our bodies will begin to crave things that it needs, but we have to develop a relationship with it first.”
– Gerald Bruce Miller (subiyay), Skokomish Tribal Leader

	Juniper Berries Year Round Ts’ok lähjë̀k The ripe berries can be picked any time of the year, but you may have to dig to find them under the snow in the winter, as juniper is a low lying shrub. Eaten raw, juniper berries have a distinct aromatic spicy flavour reminiscent of gin. Juniper berries make an excellent spice — especially once ground into a powder. A small amount of ground juniper berry goes a long way. They also help digest gas-producing foods such as cabbage. Also, because juniper berries have a light coating of yeast on their skin, a few berries are often added to ferments to help out the lacto-fermenting process. Pick with great respect as it takes 3 full years for a juniper berry to ripen. > Read more
	Labrador Tea Leaves Year-Round. Flowers July Kʼëläkʼày’ Labrador tea leaves can be harvested year round. Their characteristic aroma means your nose often finds them before your eyes. A little goes a long way. A couple of leaves makes a calming, caffeine-free aromatic tea on its own or combined with other tea herbs such as chamomile or mint. Dried and ground makes a spice for red meat (add a bit to your hamburger patties). Can also use a leaf or two instead of a bay leaf in stews. Full of Vitamin C.
	Fireweed Shoots Early May Kon’ gų̀ The first plant of spring! Most of its parts are edible. Early fireweed shoots are tender and asparagus like - good raw or steamed. A good source of beta-carotene and vitamin C. > Read more
	Coltsfoot May Roll the leaves and let them dry. Once dry they can be burned and the ash actually tastes salty. > Read more
	Horsetail Mid-May Łąy cho chè’ You can eat the young male shoots (while the fronds point up) raw or steamed, or dry them for tea. Anti-oxidant rich and high in calcium, magnesium, and sulphur. > Read more
	Dandelion Leaves Mid- May Leaves are best when fresh and tender, before the flowers come into bloom. Packed with Vitamins K and A, plus C and B6, as well as thiamine, riboflavin, calcium and iron; high in fibre. > Read more > Dandelion Salad recipe
	Spruce Tips Late May till early June Ts’ok li’a’ Light with a tang of citrus. Work in both sweet and savoury dishes. Spruce tips can be eaten fresh, frozen fresh or dried. Really good candied! Ready to pick when tips are bright green with a small brown husk at the end. > Read more > Candied Spruce Tips recipes > Spruce Tip Spritzer recipe
	Lungwort Late May The young leaves and flower buds can be eaten raw or added to salad or even steamed or added to soups and stews. > Read more
	Stinging Nettle Late May Best harvested for eating when the young shoots are less than a foot tall, leaves still have a purple tinge and before they start to flower. Rich in vitamins A and C as well as in minerals including calcium, potassium, magnesium and iron. Steaming, blanching or freezing gets rid of the sting. They are a delicious alternative to any recipe that calls for spinach and can be added to soups and stir-fry’s for added nutrition and vibrant colour. Leaves can also be dried and used to make a healthy and hearty tea or seasoning. The whole plant can also be juiced. > Read more > Nettle Juice recipe
	Wild Rhubarb Late May till early June Ts’ey gų̀ Tastes like domestic rhubarb. Look for stalks that are not too thick, not too hollow (they hollow as they age), and are juicy when you break the stalk and squeeze it. Peel back the leaves and eat the stalk raw or cooked as you would cook domestic rhubarb. Stalk can be chopped and frozen. High in Vitamins A and C and calcium. Leaves can be eaten steamed or cooked. > Read more
	Lungwort Flowers Late May and June Delicately perfumed with a touch of sweet Lungwort (blue bell) flowers are best eaten fresh while grazing outdoors and can also be used as a garnish on salads. Pick gently, always leaving some flowers to attract the bees. Remember to avoid eating all other blue and purple flowers. Do NOT eat Delphinium, Lupine, or Jacob’s Ladder. If you are not sure not sure which is which, check the leaves. > Read more
	Dandelion Flowers Early June till late June The flowers should be picked when they're in full blossom, and the petals should be removed immediately after gathering. Dandelion flowers can be used in variety of ways: they can be eaten raw in salads, or used for stir-fries, baking, or sauces. > Read more
	Rose Petals Early June till Mid June Inchǫ’ Wild rose petals can be eaten fresh, used as an edible garnish, steeped as a tea, or sun-steeped for rose-flavoured water. They can also be dried or frozen for storage through the year. The best time to harvest is when the blossoms have just opened and are most fragrant. Pluck just a few petals from each flower so the inner portion can turn into rose hips and the flower can still attract bees. > Read more
	Chickweed June and July Cooked, chickweed can be eaten on its own or added to stews, soups, or pastas, or used as a replacement for spinach in other recipes. It can also be eaten fresh as a salad green, or instead of sprouts in a sandwich or in dips. Chickweed is rich in vitamins C and A as well as the minerals calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, niacin, phosphorus, potassium and zinc. > Read more > Chickweed Recipe
	Yarrow Mid-June to August Common yarrow is frequently found in the mildly disturbed soil of grasslands and open forests.. Cut the plant at the base once it flowers, and hang upside down to dry. Dried flowers can be made into a tea (avoid during pregnancy) while the dried leaves can be used as a spice/herb. > Read more
	Fireweed Flowers and Leaves July kon’ gų̀ The leaves and flowers are both edible. Leaves can be sautéed or added to a stir fry. The flowers can add a garnish to a salad or made into fireweed jelly. Contain Vitamins A and C.
	Wild Strawberries Early to Mid-July Jëk cho Wild strawberries are one of the first wild berries to ripen. They are located very close to the ground, often hiding underneath their foliage. You’ll typically find wild strawberries in meadows, young woodlands, sparse forest, woodland edges, and clearings. > Read more
	Lambsquarter Leaves July Kha k’è Also sometimes known as pigsweed, lambsquarter has been dubbed "northern spinach." Its leaves can be eaten raw, or used in cooked dishes and stir fries. The leaves keep well in the refrigerator for a couple of days, or for the long term can be dried and stored for later use in sauces, soups, or stews. Lambsquarter is rich in Vitamins A and C > Read more
	Raspberries Mid-July to August K’ä̀nch’ok Raspberries are also called brambles because of their thorny canes. They can be found in roadside ditches, woodland edges, old gravel pits or open fields. Refrigerate berries immediately, and avoid washing until they're ready for use as they fall apart quickly after harvesting. Eat fresh, or use in desserts like pies or muffins, or to make jam. Freeze them by drying well with paper towels after washing and placing them individually on a cookie sheet then, once frozen, transferring them into containers or freezer bags.
	Wild Chamomile July and August Also known as pineapple weed. The yellow heads makes a great herbal tea. Easily dried and stored in a mason jar year round.
	Plantain July and August Nodlët k’è Leaves can be eaten raw in salad, steamed, sautéed or added to soups. Vitamins A, C, K and potassium.
	Sage July and August Gų̀ tsän There are two types of wild sage, the more familiar sage coloured artemisia frigida and the more prolific artemisia tilesii, aka stinkweed. Both can be dried and used as a herb. It is easy to distinguish artemisia tilesii from other tall weed lookalikes by rubbing the leaves with your fingers and smelling the distinctive sage smell. Artemisia tilesii also acts as a mosquito repellent (along with yarrow flowers) and, according to Bev Gray’s Boreal Herbal helps with sore feet if you put some leaves in the soles of your hiking boots. > Read more
	Strawberry Blite July, August and September Gų̀ däl The red flowers are easily plucked off and snacked on raw. A refreshing nibble but don’t expect the taste of a strawberry or you will be disappointed. The leaves are also edible raw or cooked.
	Blueberries End of July till August Jëk ba One of the tastiest of wild foods, blueberries are most commonly used in pies and jams, or eaten whole. They freeze very well, retaining their flavour. Wild blueberries boast nearly twice as many health-boosting antioxidants as their cultivated counterparts.
	Soapberries August Shär jëk Also known as Buffalo Berries, soapberries are bitter in flavor due to the presence of a chemical compound called saponins which causes the soapy consistency of the crushed berries. The berries are edible fresh but are quite bitter and get sweeter after a frost. The berries, juice, leaves and stems can be used medicinally. > Read more
	Dogwood August and September Otherwise known as bunchberry. The white flower will transform to an orange-ish red berry mid August. The berry is very bland, but can act as a thickener when added to pies or jams if don’t have any other grocery store options! > Read more
	Rose Hips Mid-August to September Nchǫ̀’ The rose hip is a fruit of the wild rose plant. Rose hips are used for herbal teas, jam, jelly, syrup, rose hip soup, beverages, pies, bread, wine, and marmalade. They can also be eaten raw, like a berry, if care is used to avoid the hairs inside the fruit. Rose hips are particularly high in Vitamin C, one of the richest plant sources available. Rose hips can be harvested all winter as well. In fact their Vitamin C content increases after they are frozen.
	Highbush Cranberries Mid-August to September Trantthel Despite its name, the highbush cranberry (Viburnum trilobum) is not actually a cranberry. The name comes from the red fruits which look superficially like cranberries, and have a similar flavor and ripen at the same time of year. The fruits, sour and rich in vitamin C, can be eaten raw, juiced (and juice can be frozen) or cooked into a sauce to serve with meat or game.
	Low Bush Cranberries September to October ǹtl’ä̀t Lowbush cranberries, also known as Lingonberries, are easily preserved and have excellent flavor. They can be used as a substitute in any recipes employing commercial cranberries, but have more flavor and color. Because of their high acid content, all cranberries should be cooked in glass, enamel, or stainless steel cookware. They should ideally be picked after the first frost. For best flavor, choose berries that are ripe and firm. An excellent source of antioxidants.