Some Ethics for Foraging

It's foraging season! Ok, there's something to forage all year, if you try hard enough, or if you're in an area with more consistent weather than we have here in the northeast.  In NJ, we're coming into a much more abundant time now. Here are some tips before you go out there and just start taking things. This isn't a lesson in foraging. I won't be talking about identifying mushrooms or plants. That's way more than I can put into one blog and there are so many other great resources out there that I will link to at the end. Foraging is a subject I have mixed feelings about when it comes to profiting off of it. 

1. Learn everything you can!
    For your own safety, learn about what you are harvesting. Learn what the plant or mushroom looks like at different growth stages. Learn the look-alikes. Learn the environment, season and way in which it grows. Get to know the plant or mushroom. 
    Learning takes time. Be patient. If you’re still in the process of learning, get a second or even third opinion from an experienced and knowledgeable forager. Please, do not trust apps, especially for mushrooms. Al just isn't that good yet. Neither are your pictures in all likelihood. Apps are known for being dangerously wrong. Books can be helpful, but they can also be confusing. They are a great resource for learning. If I'm trying to identify a new mushroom, I'll reference something like iNaturalist to start with and get a rough idea. Then I might reference a book. Then, if I'm new to this species, I'll get an opinion from someone I know and trust to be knowledgeable. Often times, I leave it behind, taking only pictures and studying it some more. Especially if that third opinion isn't available which is most of the time. I'm not a bold forager and I don't need the food. As they say, "There are bold foragers and there are old foragers, but there are no old, bold foragers." I like the idea of living a good healthy life!
    Studying helps improve your brain. Read the books. Make some detailed drawings or take pictures from many angles. This helps you get to know the plant or mushroom better, you can get intimate, and it helps you form respect for that living thing and all that depend on it for life as well. Also, it can save your life. And please, please, do not study by watching TikTok videos!
    Learn what you're looking at and what to look for. Ask and answer lots of questions, like...
What does it look like when it's old, or young, or unhealthy? Pay attention to color, shape, size, details. 
What does the cap look like? 
Then look underneath. Does it have pores, gills or teeth? Too many times someone sends me a picture of the top of the cap of a mushroom. That's like trying to identify a person from just the top of their head. It might be possible, but a face shot really helps!
How big is it?
What does the base of the stipe look like? It might be underground, but it holds some key identification points, dig it up when you're learning.
For a plant, how big are the leaves and do they have a distinct shape? What does the leaf margin look like?
Are there flowers, fruits or seeds? What are their characteristics?
Look at the bark, it's growth structure and size. Inspect the stem and whether it's upright or prostrate. 
    Learn the smell. Sometimes this is a giveaway for foraged foods. Sometimes it's not. Ramps will smell like garlic. Chanterelles supposedly smell like apricot but I have never been able to pick up on it. Oyster mushrooms have a scent that I can almost always depend on to identify them because I've been around them so much.
    Learn the taste. Make sure you've tried a little from someone else before you go out and harvest a bunch of something. You may find you don't like it, or worse, you are sensitive to it. Just because it's edible, doesn't mean you don't have an allergy or sensitivity to it, or it simply doesn't agree with you!
    Mushrooms can also be tasted to use as an identification tool. You only put a little in your mouth, chew it a little and spit it out. Do not swallow it! The taste may be sweet, bland, bitter, or it might even burn. I don't do this often. I'm a bit chicken and sometimes it can be very unenjoyable!
    Learn the growing season. What time of year does it grow? Chances are if you find a maitake in spring, it's not really a maitake.
    Learn the location and habitat. What environment does it prefer? Does it grow under oaks or pines or in the grass? Does it grow in wet marshy areas? Does it grow on a tree or in the sand? This can save you a lot of time and aimless wandering! Is that environment clean and safe? And do you have permission to be there?
     Learn if the plant is endangered or at risk. Everyone gets so excited for ramps, but they are considered at risk or threatened in some states. They grow and reproduce slowly, taking 7 years to produce seeds. White sage is another slow growing plant considered at risk to some. We don't have it wild here in NJ, but I know a lot of people love to use it. It is found only in Southern California and northwest Mexico. Luckily people have been able to cultivate both of these, so check the source of where it's coming from if purchasing and use harvest sparingly if you do. If you want to forage locally for a replacement for white sage or Palo Santo, we have so much mugwort. Nobody will complain if you take some! If you are of European, Asian or Native American descent, it was probably used by your ancestors. United Plant Savers is a good reference for more information. The IUCN Red List is another great resource for plants, mushrooms and even animals worldwide.

There were so many great foods to forage for in this park. Until I saw this!

2. Observe
    This is part of learning. Books will only take you so far. You can learn a lot by observing something for a year before you harvest any. You'll learn growth stages, reproductive patterns. You'll see if it grows fast or slow, who else enjoys this as food and whether or not it comes back yearly. Observing a specimen and the space in which it grows is a great way to get familiar with nature. Plus, you never know what other great things you may also find! It's an excuse to go outside year-round, and when you have a mission, suddenly winter isn't so cold and long.
    Observe the location it's growing in. It's better to not harvest from the side of the highway, or in a location that's been treated with pesticides or herbicides or polluted. Ask a park ranger or someone who works on the land. Observe signs at the trail head. 

3. Think
    Think about all of the things you’ve learned and observed. It may change how you go about your harvesting or maybe influence you to not harvest at all.
    I've seen people decide to ignore their observations and insist something was what it wasn't. My aunt once tried to "plant" her favorite mushrooms in the yard. Something grew and she ate them, but they made her very gassy. I can't help but wonder if she was just so excited and not great at identifying mushrooms and wound up eating something else! We can so easily convince ourselves something is what it isn't if we're really excited, desperate, or wanting too hard! It can be like the mirage in the desert. Don't overlook the facts because you want something so bad.
   Once you trust your identification skills, and thought things through, then harvest a small amount and observe how you feel after touching it and using or ingesting it. Don't take a garbage bag full. 
    Think twice about harvesting from a place where foraging isn't allowed, State Parks in NJ for instance. It'll cost you a good $250 and you'll have to toss everything back!

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We left so much of this behind for others. It was definitely more than we needed or could possibly use!

4. Respect
     Don't take more than you need or can possibly use. A garbage bag or truck bed full of anything is likely more than you can eat or even store for later. Sharing is nice, as long as you check with the people beforehand. Don't take everything assuming everyone will want it or that you can sell it to some restaurant or mushroom store. 😅 You can always go back later or next year. Save some to-the next forager, or the other living things that also depend on it. Leave some to reproduce and continue on for future generations. If you observed well, you may have noticed that a deer, mouse, turtle, bird or slug eats this too. Respect them and share with them. They only take what they need, we should too! We're all together-here, trying to survive, and when we know it or like it, we all depend on each other in some way or another.
    Don't take from someone's private property. You can knock on their door and ask permission. Sometimes it works, and sometimes you form a good relationship, make a friend or educate a stranger.
    Don't harvest from conservation areas or nature preserves
    Be gentle. Don't trample plants and tear down branches. 
    Harvest some garbage along the way too!

Mushroom clubs are great resources and chance to learn and network!
NEW JERSEY MYCOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION - NJMA Home Page
Membership is cheap and you can learn so much about every mushroom and aspect of mushrooms out there from dying, to cultivation, microscopy and more.
North American Mycological Association
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