List of forageable plants facts for kids

Wild plants can be a fascinating source of food if you know what to look for! This article will help you discover some common plants found in nature that humans can eat. Remember, some parts of a plant might be edible, while others are not. Also, some plants need to be cooked before they are safe to eat.

It's super important to always be careful when looking for wild food. Always use a good guide to identify plants very carefully before you even think about eating them. Eating the wrong plant can be very dangerous and make you sick. Some edible plants can also cause allergic reactions in certain people. If you ever feel unwell after trying a wild plant, it's best to get help right away. Also, old or poorly stored plants can cause food poisoning, just like other foods.

This list focuses on wild plants. There are also other lists for edible seeds, mushrooms, flowers, nuts, vegetable oils, and leaves. It's also a great idea to learn about list of poisonous plants so you know what to avoid!

Discovering Edible Wild Plants

The plants below are listed by their scientific (Latin) names.

Trees and Shrubs You Can Eat

Plant image	Part image	Common name	Scientific name	Where it grows	Edible parts and how to use them
		Juneberry	Amelanchier lamarckii	Found in Western Europe	Berries (in June) are tasty raw.
		Barberry	Berberis vulgaris	Grows in Europe, North America, northwest Africa, and western Asia	Berries (from July) can be eaten raw, dried as a spice, or cooked into jelly.
		Sweet chestnut	Castanea sativa	Common in woods and parks across Europe and parts of Asia	Nuts (October to November) are delicious raw, roasted, boiled, stewed, or baked.
		Hazel	Corylus avellana	Found in many European woodlands, at the edges of woods, or in old hedges	Hazelnuts (late August to October) can be eaten raw or used in cooking.
		Hawthorn, may-tree	Crataegus monogyna	Native to Europe, northwest Africa, and western Asia; also found elsewhere	Young leaves (in April) are good raw in salads. Berries (in autumn) can be eaten raw or made into jellies, jams, and syrups.
		Beech	Fagus sylvatica	Grows in Europe, south to central Italy, and in mountain forests around the Mediterranean	Nuts (September or October) are good raw, roasted and salted, or pressed for oil.
		Sea purslane	Halimione portulacoides	Found on seashores and salt marshes in western and southern Europe, and from the Mediterranean to western Asia	Leaves can be eaten raw in salads or stir-fried.
		Hop	Humulus lupulus	Native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere: Europe, North America, Asia	Young shoots and leaves (until May) can be cooked like a vegetable.
		Walnut	Juglans regia	Native to Central Asia, but found in temperate zones worldwide	Nuts ripen in September and are great to eat.
		Juniper	Juniperus communis	Grows across the Northern Hemisphere in North America, Europe, and Asia	Berries (both green and dark) are bitter raw, but used as a spice, for drinks, as jam, or roasted for a coffee substitute.
		Oregon-grape	Mahonia aquifolium	Native to North America, sometimes found in Europe	Berries can be eaten raw (though they are a bit sour) or made into jelly.
		Crabapples	Malus sylvestris and other Malus species	Malus is native to the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere, in Europe, Asia, and North America	Fruit (from July) can be eaten raw. If they are too bitter, cook them into jelly (they have lots of pectin!).
		Medlar	Mespilus germanica	Found from Southeast Europe to West Asia, sometimes in Britain	Fruit (in November) is edible after it has softened for a few weeks, a process called bletting.
		Bog-myrtle, sweet willow, Dutch myrtle, sweetgale	Myrica gale	Grows in parts of the northern hemisphere, including Japan, North Korea, Russia, Europe, and North America	Leaves can be dried for tea or used raw to stuff roast chicken. Nutlets and dried leaves are used as seasoning, even for beer.
		Scots pine	Pinus sylvestris	Native to Europe and Asia	Young needles (April to August) can be boiled for tea or soaked in olive oil for a fragrant oil. Nuts are tiny and hard to get from cones, but are edible raw.
		Mesquite	Prosopis juliflora	Native to Southern America, but found worldwide in dry, hot places as an invasive plant	Seed pods can be eaten raw or boiled, dried and ground into flour, or fermented to make a mild alcoholic drink.
		Wild cherry	Prunus avium	Native to Europe, western Turkey, northwestern Africa, and western Asia; found in hedgerows and woods	Cherries are delicious raw.
		Bullace, damson, other wild plums	Prunus domestica subsp. insititia	Prunus species are found across the northern temperate regions of the globe	Fruit (ripe from early October) can be eaten raw.
		Sloe, blackthorn	Prunus spinosa	Native to Europe, western Asia, and parts of northwest Africa; also found in New Zealand and eastern North America	Berries are very sour raw unless picked after the first few days of autumn frost.
		English / French oak	Quercus robur	Native to most of Europe, and from Anatolia to the Caucasus, and parts of North Africa	Acorns (ripening in September to October) are too bitter raw. They can be chopped and roasted as an almond substitute, or ground for a coffee substitute. After soaking in water to remove bitterness, acorn meal can be used like flour.
		Golden currant	Ribes aureum	Native to northwest North America	Berries are edible raw but tart.
		Wax currant	Ribes cereum	Native to western North America	Berries are edible raw but might be slightly toxic, so be careful.
		Blackcurrant	Ribes nigrum	Native to north-central Eurasia	Berries are often used in jams.
		Redcurrant	Ribes rubrum	Native to western Europe	Berries are used in jams and kissel.
		Flowering currant	Ribes sanguineum	Western United States and Canada	Berries are edible raw and used in jams.
		Elder	Sambucus nigra	Grows in Europe, North Africa, Central Asia, and Anatolia	Flowers (June to July) can be eaten raw in salads, pickled, or used to make tea or drinks. Berries (August to October) are edible when ripe (turning upside down) and cooked; raw berries are mildly poisonous.
		Whitebeam	Sorbus aria	Found in Central and southern Europe	Berries are edible raw once they are very ripe and soft (bletted).
		Rowan, Mountain-ash	Sorbus aucuparia	Native to most of Europe (except the far south) and northern Asia	Berries (August to November) are bitter, but can be cooked into jelly or used for flavoring.
		Wild service-tree	Sorbus torminalis	Native to Europe, south to northwest Africa, and southeast to southwest Asia	Berries (from September) are edible raw, but hard and bitter unless they are softened (bletted).
		Lime	Tilia × europaea	Sometimes found wild in Europe, or commonly grown in parks and along roads	Flowers (in full bloom, June or early July) can be used to make a tea (popular in France as tilleul). Leaves (without stalks) are good raw in salads.

Edible Herbaceous Plants

Plant image	Part image	Common name	Scientific name	Where it grows	Edible parts and how to use them
		Yarrow	Achillea millefolium	Native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere	All parts in small amounts, especially young leaves.
		Amaranth, pigweed, tumbleweed	Amaranthus retroflexus	Native to tropical Americas, but found worldwide	Leaves can be boiled like a vegetable, or eaten raw if young. Seeds can be eaten raw or toasted, or ground into flour.
		Spear saltbush, common orache	Atriplex patula	Found in semi-arid deserts and coastal areas in Asia, North America, Europe, and Africa	Young leaves and shoots can be eaten raw or cooked like spinach.
		Ice plant, sour fig	Carpobrotus edulis	South Africa and many places with similar climates, like Australia, California, and the Mediterranean	Figs (May to July) are edible raw.
		Fat-hen, wild spinach	Chenopodium album	Found worldwide in nitrogen-rich soils, especially on wasteland	Leaves and young shoots can be eaten raw or cooked like a green vegetable.
		Good-King-Henry	Chenopodium bonus-henricus	Most of Europe, West Asia, and eastern North America	Young shoots (until early summer) can be cooked like asparagus. Leaves (until August) can be cooked like spinach.
		Cogongrass	Imperata cylindrica	Native to tropical and subtropical Asia, but found worldwide as an invasive species	Young flowers and shoots can be cooked. Roots can be chewed raw. Ash can be used as a salt substitute.
		Poppy	Papaver rhoeas	Found worldwide, mainly in northern temperate zones	Seeds (from September, when dry and gray-brown) are edible raw as a spice or flavoring.
		Samphire, glasswort, pickleweed, sea beans, sea asparagus	Salicornia species	Grows on seashores and other salty places in the northern hemisphere and southern Africa	Young shoots (June or July) can be eaten raw or cooked, and also pickled.
		Bladder campion, maidenstears	Silene vulgaris	Found as a wildflower in temperate zones of Europe, Western Asia, North Africa, and North America	Young shoots and leaves can be eaten raw. Older leaves can also be cooked. It's a special food in parts of the Mediterranean.
		Chickweed	Stellaria media	Found worldwide, growing annually in colder climates and as a perennial evergreen elsewhere	Stems and leaves can be eaten raw or cooked.
		Dandelion	Taraxacum officinale	Native to Eurasia, but found elsewhere	Leaves are edible raw or cooked when older.
		Stinging nettle	Urtica dioica	Very common in Europe and Asia, less common in North America	Young shoots and leaves (until May) are edible after soaking or boiling them like a vegetable, or used in soups or purees.

See also

• Sansai, foraged plants in Japanese cooking
• Rubus
• Wild edible plants of Israel / Palestine