square miles of the entire Hoosic River that extends to the neighboring Green and Taconic mountains . Collins says the walks and conservation efforts are rooted in the belief that a healthy river is good for the health of the entire ecosystem — humans and non-humans alike . “ The walks help inform us on the health of the plants on the riverbanks and the watershed as we want the watershed to be healthy to continually provide wild healthy food for us .”
For those joining Collins at the Clark for her guided woodland walks , people meet at the reflection pool on the grounds . She goes over ethical harvesting and then gets right down to business . They keep a lookout for plantains , not the banana-looking fruit but a low-to-theground “ basal rosette ” leafing structure . “ Look for leaves with parallel veins ,” she says . “ You can use it as a bandage and also masticate the leaf and place it on a wound or bug bite to help it heal .” Any flora sampling on the walk is just a nibble introduction to edible plants for the new foragers . White clover . Red clover . Wood sorrel . Pineapple weed ( a relative of chamomile ). Eastern hemlock ( the tree , not the herbaceous plant that killed Socrates ). White pine . Multiflora rosehips . Goldenrod . “ Goldenrod is a good digestive bitter , and as a tea can treat allergies and be healthy for you like Mugwort ,” she says .
All her wild edibles walks and dinner events involving wild foraged goods from the woods , and the goal is still the same . “ I want to introduce people to the plants you see in your own yard , or walking down the street in the Berkshires ,” Collins says . She also will come to review the bioavailability of your own backyard across the different Berkshires seasons . “ Together , we will walk your land and identify greens , flowers , fruits , nuts , tubers , and mushrooms that you can eat — all growing right on your property .”
Aimee Gelinas leads another roster of year-round hikes , foraging walks , and winter snowshoe programs , and has fall foraging programs including the “ Housatonic Heritage Program : Celebrate the First Day of Fall ” event , a plant , tree , wild edibles , and waterfall hike at Tamarack Hollow on September 22 . As a 20-year veteran boreal forest naturalist , she leads forest programs at the rolling 3,000- acre terrain of The Trustees of Reservations ’ Notchview conservation lands . She also serves as executive director , co-founder , and lead naturalist educator for the nonprofit Tamarack Hollow Nature & Cultural Center in Windsor .
Exploring the high elevations of the hill towns on top of the Berkshire Plateau ( where the ecology is similar to the summit of Mount Greylock as well as the Green Mountains ), Gelinas ’ team works to conserve 88 acres of rare elevation boreal forest , fields , and watershed , with local land trusts and conservation organizations working with them . Gelinas also forages with both specialized and broad knowledge of the boreal forest ecology , as well as the valleys , northern hardwood forests , and fields along waterways and floodplains across the Berkshires .
Mullein in second year of growth , spotted on the foraging walk at the Clark . Collins says that mullein has healing properties .
She likes to expose foragers to harvesting trees and plants found more commonly only at high elevations . Like the usnea genus of bearded lichen , sometimes called Old Man ’ s Beard . “ This amazing lichen can be harvested and is nicknamed ‘ lungs of the forest ,’” says Gelinas who notes she is not a medical professional . “ As an asthmatic who experiences bronchial issues , this is a go-to tincture that I make from usnea that has been naturally wind-blown onto the ground , as it takes a long time to grow .” That last fact is one to pause on , as the spirit of ethical harvesting — minding both what and how one harvests on foraging walks — is a common refrain from responsible and respectful naturalists . Whether you are stomping around the forest and respectfully saying “ thank you ” as you seek out ground beans in fall , harvesting balsam fir resin all year to make into balms that work for cracked skin and eczema , or even kicking off spring by finding some clintonia borealis , or blue-bead lily ( a plant that emerges from spring forest floor yawning to life in the dampness , appearing as a rolled up green cloth napkin and has the crisp flavor of cucumbers ), there are a range of ways to get educated on the plants and people to seek out for some wild foraging fun this fall and beyond .
As it turns out , a number of retreats , educational gatherings , walks , and resources are available as the yearning to forage sets in this fall . Throughout October and early December in New Marlborough , there are weekend Wild Earth Sisters Retreat getaways , led by Tes Reed , a naturalist hosting wilderness workshops for the New Marlborough Land Trust . The retreats cover everything from acorns to nettles to evergreens , and attendees camp and learn to gather , process , and even eat or make medicine with wild plants .
For those that want to just dive in and absorb information from various resources , there is everything from the 2,000-plus member Berkshire Mycological Society group on Facebook to join . Or , gems like the online list of more than 190 edible plant species native to Massachusetts and the Northeast ecoregions , thanks to Wild Plants I Have Known … and Eaten author and Massachusetts-based Russ Cohen . A wild edibles enthusiast and naturalist , Cohen has led edibles walks May through October in the past and has a nursery of many of the plants on the list that he propagated from seed himself . His nickname , one that checks out , is the “ Johnny Appleseed of Edible Native Plants .”
Learning from the bounty of Berkshire resources , walks , and retreats are a great way to make sure you don ’ t get the nickname : “ Person who ate a wild mushroom they shouldn ’ t have .” n
For more information :
offeringsforcommunitybuilding . com / wild-edibles tamarackhollownatureandculturalcenter . org tesreed . com / wild-earth-sisters-retreat facebook . com / BerkshireMycologicalSociety users . rcn . com / eatwild / bio . htm
Holiday Fall 2023 2024 BERKSHIRE MAGAZINE // // 77