The interest is so keen, in fact, that Toronto city
council recently found it necessary to reinforce a
bylaw prohibiting foraging in city parks.
“Harvesting plants removes seed sources that allow
the plants to spread, and decreases biodiversity and
food sources for wildlife,” the statement said. “It
would only take a small number of foragers to
remove the majority of plant resources growing in
the city.”
The City of Windsor also has a similar bylaw in
case you were tempted to visit your neighbourhood
park in order to stock up on salad greens. Public
lands are not the places to scout for wild edibles.
Most park lands are either weeded or treated to
keep unwanted plant life at bay. If something worth
plucking is found, chances are good it may have
been subjected to unknown substances or visits
from a passing dog and are best left alone. Protected
naturalized areas are also off-limits. Places such as
Point Pelee and Ojibway Park are there to protect
native species, and foraging, as back-to-nature as it
sounds, would be counter-productive.
It wasn't so long ago that foraging was the way
most families procured their food. We don't have to
go back as far as the hunters and gatherers to
connect with the practice. I only have to reach back
two generations to remember the mushrooms my
grandmother came home with from a walk in a
nearby forest. Our aunts and uncles still tell the
story of how during a meal of foraged mushrooms,
the tried-and-true method of making sure the
found treasures were not of the poisonous variety
was accidentally forgotten. Having discovered the
incriminating evidence at the end of the evening,
the entire dinner party felt compelled to eliminate
the meal the same way it came in, just in case the
poisoned mushroom was the one that made it to
their plate.
Many of my own generation remember stocking
up on grape leaves, herbs and edible weeds as well
as the mushrooms and asparagus, depending on
their ethnicity. Those that weren't lucky enough to
Rashel Tremblay of Locally
Germinated, a Tilbury-based farmer’s
co-operative, periodically holds
forgaing walks. You can learn to
identify edible common weeds and
learn how to eat or use them for
basic homemade medical
applications