22 Edible and Medicinal Plants You Can Forage in the Winter

It ’s late November here in Quebec , and the nose candy is already a pes deep . The pantry has been well stocked with plate - grow and foraged bounty . That say , we wish to forage year - round , and the cold month are no elision . Below are 22 plants you’re able to scrounge in the winter , range from nuts and seeds to fruit and fungi .

Plants and Trees

Herbaceous plants drop leaves or die off in the winter , but many still have fruits hang to their branches . Furthermore , many also have eatable and medicative roots that you could dig out up .

As for trees , there are both deciduous and cone-bearing species that can be foraged and enjoyed during the dusty months , count on where you live .

1. Rose Hips (Rosaspp.)

Do wild roses grow in your sphere ? If so , it ’s potential that you ’ll find rosehips cling to the vine — even beneath the snow . These fruit are compact with vitamin C and are fantastically tasty in tea , jam , jelly , and even dried into a powder .

2. Stinging Nettles (Urticaspp.)

If you ’ve ever tried to get rid of nettles , you ’ll know how stubborn and unyielding they can be . Truth be told , it ’s this persistence that makes them priceless for winter forage . I ca n’t tell you how many times I ’ve labour into the snow and uncovered nettles growing just above soil degree .

3. Wintergreen (Gaultheriaspp.)

These low - growing evergreen plant shrubs are wide spread worldwide . Their leaves have a sharp , minty fragrance and are often used medicinally . Some species also have eatable fruits .

Do some research to determinewhich wintergreen speciesmay mature near you , as well as the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree they often grow nigh . Then sweep away nose candy from the area to check whether any of these plants are grow beneath it !

4. Sunchokes (Helianthus tuberosus)

These can be unmanageable to dig out of frozen soil , but hungriness can be a great motivator .

As members of the helianthus family unit , sunchokes ’ aerial parts can raise up to 10′ highschool . These dry out into tall canes in winter , which are easily seeable above even the deep C. P. Snow . To dig out the comestible tubers , clear out airfoil snow and then use a pickaxe to cut into the frozen ground beneath . The knotty Tuber will contrast brightly against the dark soil .

5. Pine Needles and Bark Cambium (Pinusspp.)

Pine trees might not be the first to come to mind when you guess about plants you’re able to scrounge in the winter , but they ’re rather howling to figure out with . test brew the needles into tea , or drying out the inner bark ( cambium ) to expend as flour in parched goods .

Note that some pine species can have abortifacient properties . [ 1 ] As such , char who are pregnant or trying to conceive should void eating or salute pine products .

Fir needles can be used in the same direction as pine . what is more , they have a gentle flavor and are less resiny than other conifers .

Just be very careful when harvesting them ! The dominion for identify true fir tree is that their leave are “ matted and favorable ” . That ’s great , but there are some highly poisonous trees out there whose leave also fall into this class .

For deterrent example , yew tree diagram leaves are flat as well , but a loving cup of yew tea can be venomous if have .

7. Spruce (Piceaspp.)

Use spruce needles for afternoon tea the same way you would with pine or fir .

to boot , spruce beer is a adorable , non - alcoholic soda that ’s gorgeous during the festive vacation season . you may buy it from Canadian grocery retailer , or try brew your own !

8. Cedar (Cedrusspp.)

Much as with true pine and spruce , cedarwood afternoon tea has been sipped by indigenous peoples for chiliad of years . Its high-pitched vitamin 100 content can aid stave off scurvy , and its warming , anti - rabble-rousing properties can boost immunity and trim down frigid and grippe symptom .

Simmer a fistful of sweet cedar leaf in about 4 cups of water for 15 minute . Then dulcify to savor , if desired .

9. Birch Bark Cambium (Betulaspp.)

dry out and powder internal birch rod barque the same as you would with pine cambium . It has a lovely , gross flavor with just a pinch of minty sweetness .

Please do n’t draw bark off support trees , however . If you cut one down for firewood , take the bark off once vanish , and scrape out the cambium then .

10. Burdock Root (Arctiumspp.)

You should be capable to find burdock plant even in the dead of winter . Their tall stalks , covered with the velcro - corresponding burrs that stick to literally everything , tugboat several feet up , out of the snow . Just chop down the stalk , get the burrs out of your fuzz , and dig up the longsighted edible taproot .

This can be fake and rust like a murphy or turnip . In fact , pickle burdock etymon are often used in Nipponese and Korean cuisine . We julienne them to tot to kimchi , or pickle them for sushi rolls .

11. Cattail Roots (Typhaspp.)

If there are wetland areas near you , then you could pull up some tasty cattail roots . They ’re starchy and delicious , and can be cooked and eat on as they are , or transform into flour .

Cattail roots were a staple food for First Nations peoples for millennia . They ’re unusually various , and idealistic summation to the wintertime dieting .

12. Usnea (Usneaspp.)

Be sure to keep usnea in mind when looking for plants you could scrounge in the winter . This fruticose lichen is one of the most medicinal works out there ! Furthermore , it ’s easier to regain in the wintertime because it is n’t obscure by dense foliage .

Look for it on dead or die cone-bearing tree diagram throughout North America and Europe . You may also retrieve it growing on die walnut , orchard apple tree / crab apple , hickory , or oak tree trees .

Nuts and Seeds You Can Forage in the Winter

If you ’re going out winter forage , retrieve that you ’re not bound to inhabit plants . Many metal money have comestible nuts and seeds that stick to around after the plant themselves have died back .

13. Pine Nuts (Pinusspp.)

You bed all those pine cones that citizenry garner for decorations ? They ’re filled with eatable seeds commonly roll in the hay as “ pine nuts ” . you could eat these raw or cooked , tossed into various smasher , or made into pesto .

Just please be certain that you know whichPinusspecies is growing near you . Norfolk Island pines , Lodgepole true pine , and Ponderosa pine are all toxic to man . Foraging for eatable and medicinal plant life is fun , but importantly less so if you poison yourself and your family via misidentification .

14. Acorns (Quercusspp.)

If you have the time ( and the patience ) to percolate tannins out of acorn , then lend these to your lean . Acorns are easier to find in autumn than winter , unless you ’re in a property that does n’t get heavy snow . Out here , if we want to find acorns in the dead of wintertime , our best bet is to stab the snow away and search for them under leaf bracken .

Acorns are quite tasty when leached properly , but winter - gather acorns can be off or overleap . The key is to examine them cautiously when you find them . If you see a modest hole anywhere on the exterior of the acorn , toss it to the squirrels . Those holes show us that insect have read up mansion , and they ’re not tasty at all .

15. Black Walnuts (Juglans nigra)

Are you favourable enough to have contraband walnut tree growing nearby ? Then be sure to forage for some of their tasty junky over the insensate months ! You may have to push a few squirrels to get to them , but you could probably win that battle .

Unless they gang up on you .

16. Beech Nuts (Fagusspp.)

Beech trees are n’t as common as they were a century ago , but their nut are worth forage for . If these trees grow anywhere near you , be certain to go out scavenging — even if it ’s inhuman and snowy outdoors . The addict have to be leach of tannins , like acorns , but the sweet , earthy flavor is well deserving the crusade .

17. Curly Dock Seeds (Rumex crispus)

The seeds ofRumex crispusplants are as tasty as they are alimental . They turn non-white brown in autumn and winter , and can easily be found poke above the snow . If local wild birds and mammals have n’t take them all yet , you could harvest these quite easily .

Once they ’ve been harvest , roast or toast them lightly to dry them out . Then tot them to baked good , cook them into porridge , or drudge them into flour .

Then , utilise them to makepancakes , shuffle them with other flours , etc . Just note that like their buckwheat full cousin , these seeds can be quite bitter . As such , you ’ll call for to counteract that with honey ormaple syrupif you ’d like palatable adust goods .

Fungi

There are a number of fungi species that you’re able to still forage in winter , depending on where you ’re located .

18. Velvet Shank Mushrooms (Flammulina filiformis)

Are oak , ash tree , willow tree , or elm trees plentiful in your sphere ? Then track down around fortheselovely , velvety , edible ‘ shroomies . Flammulina velutipesmushrooms are wild cousins to farmed enoki mushrooms and are as good to our wellness as they are yummy .

attend for them throughout Europe , the UK , and North America , but be certain to identify them decently . There are some lookalike specie that are significantly more toxic and less tasty .

19. Turkey Tail Mushrooms (Trametes versicolor)

These may not be the tasty plants you could forage in the winter , but they ’re certainly some of the most medicinal . These mushrooms are take with antioxidants and are natural resistant boosters . what is more , they stop polysaccharide K , which is used as a cancer adjunct therapy worldwide . [ 2 ]

20. Oyster Mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus)

Depending on how severe winter gets near you , there may be huitre mushrooms usable . These delicious edible mushrooms grow on idle or decaying hardwood trees such as oak , aspen , birches , and beeches . They ’re found all over North America and section of Europe and are some of the most common wild edibles you’re able to find .

Just be sure to do your research so you bed you’reidentifying them properly .

21. Chaga (Inonotus obliquus)

If you go in a cold section of the Northern cerebral hemisphere where birch rod ( Betula ) trees are plentiful , then definitely try foraging for chaga .

This good fungus grow exclusively on birch Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree and is prize in the Scandinavian and Slavic nation for its healing properties . In fact , mod study are confirming why chaga has been used to effectivelytreat cancerfor thou of long time . [ 3,4 ]

wintertime is my best-loved metre to forage for chaga , since it ’s much more seeable . Additionally , it ’s easier to prise it light when it ’s frigid out .

22. Reishi (Ganodermaspp.)

This polypore fungus is known as the “ mushroom cloud of immortality ” . It ’s been used medicinally in China and Japan for thousands of years , and contemporary discipline are currently delving into its efficacy .

Use Caution

As with all plants — comestible or medicative — please do exhaustive research before foraging and/or consume anything . Take bill of possible contraindications with pharmaceuticals you ’re necessitate , as well as potential allergens . For deterrent example , someone who ’s allergic to buckwheat may react to curly bobtail , and someone with a mildew allergy should n’t take chaga or reishi .

pull in these items with the help of an experient forager whenever possible . Furthermore , stress a tiny bit to see if you ’ll have a damaging response . Everybody will respond differently , so use caution and common sense .

Finally , when foraging plants in the winter , please coif warmly and take precaution . Foraging is no fun when you ’re freeze , and getting ill ( or frostbitten ) will put just about anyone off wildcrafting in the future .