‘If you’re not sure, don’t eat it’.
Part of the joy of foraging is that when you meet a fellow
forager you are sure to learn something new and often useful.
I was out picking blackberries with my brother who mentioned
there are plants that looks rather like wild parsley, but are poisonous!
Look up ‘Fool’s parsley, Water Hemlock or Poison Hemlock on
the Internet to do further research. Hemlock is fatally poisonous and is
infamously interwoven with history, most notably because when the Greek
philosopher, Socrates was declared a heretic he was forced to drink it.
There are similarities to wild parsley, but Fool’s parsley
emits an unpleasant smell when bruised and has white flowers. Hemlock also has
an unpleasant stink - a warning from Mother Nature. It also has red spots on the bottom half of the stem.
Now don’t hang up your foraging bucket in panic. This is just a warning to be careful.
There are plenty of things you can forage for without fear – I have yet to hear
of a lethal blackberry, though I am expecting my blackberry vodka to
have quite a kick.
Auntie
Allie
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