A selection from this week’s time out in the forest. I am so fortunate to have a large wilderness area near me. Even saw a deer this week. I saw coltsfoot flowers. Frogs eggs, mallards, and chickadees. Once you hear them calling ‘cheeseburger’ you can’t unhear it. I am looking forward to munching on some trout lily leaves and of course – fiddleheads. Plan to make some spruce tip jelly and this might be the year that I make spruce tip sugar. I’ve been thinking of getting my food handler’s certificate so that I can make food based herb products for sale. It’s a new moon tonight so I think I might sit out and enjoy the stars.
Speckled alder.
Goldthread
Time out in the forest is so restorative to my soul.
From top to bottom we have alder (Alnus incana) – what I like about this photo is that you can see both the catkins and the cones that alders have. I personally don’t use alder in my practice but it is known as an excellent lymphatic.
goldthread (Coptis trifolia) – A berberine containing plant it is an excellent anti-bacterial. The size of the roots makes it an herb to use sparingly.
and a fungus I think is a Ganoderma (not 100% on my identification) and not sure which one it is. Mushroom identification is not a strength of mine. The only one I find in abundance around me is birch polypore so the rest I prefer to buy from folks with the expertise.
I wish I had something more interesting to share this week. The pandemic continues unabated and we are still days away from the new measures having an impact. Stay home as much as possible and if you can safely enjoy some time out in the forest I whole-heartedly recommend it.