Plant collecting is my favourite method of stocking my food forest; it’s slow, and requires patience, persistence and passion - a great anti-pattern to today’s instant culture.
This really is how to do it. Might I also add strawberry runners are exceptionally easy to acquire, and hardwood cuttings taken in late winter can be stuck in soil for an iffy cloning procedure come spring.
(Just keep in mind that if anything easily reachable from the sidewalk it's technically* free game.)
I'm glad to see a fellow plant collecting stroller! Yes, I love this method. I managed to get one of the quince cuttings I mentioned in this post to take this spring. Very happy about that.
Yes I love a good plant collecting/foraging walk. I'm in subtropical Queensland AU so I come across Surinam cherries, pink peppercorn, guavas, native figs, mulberries and the like quite commonly but occasionally you find the street planting of a grumichama, black sapote, Jamaican cherry, mango, icecream bean or white rose apple that actually tastes like Turkish delight. Those are quite special and very rewarding. I have a personal map I save on my Google maps of locations I find things with seasonality and accessibility details that I update from year to year.
The only problem is once you train your mind to recognise plants it's hard to switch it off! I don't myself always plant collecting/foraging on some level.
My 3 year old is starting to pick it up too. We were walking through the bush the other day and he spotted a few fallen feral passionfruit on the track. He'll give me a run for my money soon enough.
This really is how to do it. Might I also add strawberry runners are exceptionally easy to acquire, and hardwood cuttings taken in late winter can be stuck in soil for an iffy cloning procedure come spring.
(Just keep in mind that if anything easily reachable from the sidewalk it's technically* free game.)
*I do not know if this is true
I'm glad to see a fellow plant collecting stroller! Yes, I love this method. I managed to get one of the quince cuttings I mentioned in this post to take this spring. Very happy about that.
Yes I love a good plant collecting/foraging walk. I'm in subtropical Queensland AU so I come across Surinam cherries, pink peppercorn, guavas, native figs, mulberries and the like quite commonly but occasionally you find the street planting of a grumichama, black sapote, Jamaican cherry, mango, icecream bean or white rose apple that actually tastes like Turkish delight. Those are quite special and very rewarding. I have a personal map I save on my Google maps of locations I find things with seasonality and accessibility details that I update from year to year.
The only problem is once you train your mind to recognise plants it's hard to switch it off! I don't myself always plant collecting/foraging on some level.
Yes, it's true. I can't switch off now, it's like a continuous stream of information whereever I look.
My 3 year old is starting to pick it up too. We were walking through the bush the other day and he spotted a few fallen feral passionfruit on the track. He'll give me a run for my money soon enough.
Yes, my daughter does it too now.
Not a bad problem to have!
I find* myself always plant collecting/foraging on some level