ottawa foodies

Hello,

I am new to this site and to Ottawa region. I live on a large forested lot near the Rideau. I always loved gathering my own food as a kid, mostly berries and fish as I was raised in the Maritimes so the vegetation is close to the same but key items like mushrooms seem to be quite different.

I really want to learn more about the mushrooms and edible plants that are growing here and which one I can eat. Is there any places, that are kids friendly as I am a family package outside school hours, where I can go to learn these skill? Are their any gathering groups in the Ottawa/Kemptville region?

I have been trying to use technology to help me identify, but with such tiny difference and young kids wanting to try, I would rather learn from someone with experience in this region.

I thought this topic was going to be about making your own cookware! There is a talk scheduled on foraging at the Tree Festival at Brewer Park at 9:30am on Saturday (treefestottawa.org/events). There is now an enormous amount of material available on this topic, but I remember as a kid using the books of some guy from New England whose name I can't now remember (or find in a quick search), who was ahead of his time and thus seemed a bit eccentric. Except for mushrooms, it is pretty safe and easy, with the only caveat being avoiding sources of pollution or contamination.

I learned recently that the Ottawa area is great for morel foraging, though I think the season is well over. I'm not a forager and I wouldn't trust myself to properly identify an edible vs inedible mushroom at the grocery store so I can't be of much more help beyond this plain statement of fact, unfortunately. If you do find some morels I'll buy a few, I'm curious to try them and see what I can cook up.

Is foraging like fishing ?

The successful fisherman will tell you all about how they fish but will not tell you where they fish.

I've read a couple of articles so naturally I'm an expert on this! My understanding is that it's quite similar, nobody wants to give out info on their secret foraging spots.

The guy I was trying to remember is Euell Gibbons (www.amazon.ca). There are some very easy things. The unopened buds of day lilies, and the small flower pods of milkweed (before they turn into fluff!), make vegetables. The inside stalks of cat tails (the white part) are crunchy salad additions. Lemony greens are such things as lamb's quarters and purslane. None of these require secret hunting grounds or risking your life.