NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) – When Dr. Charles Allen of the Woodlands Conservancy needs a snack, he looks to nature.
And he’s happy to teach you what is edible and what isn’t as it grows out of the ground all around you. He’s leading a plant identification workshops that is going on now detailing which wild plants are best for a quick and all natural snack.
Allen took a quick stroll recently and saw a variety of wild plants that are quite tasty.
“We saw several edibles, including elderberry, which was in flower,” Allen said. “The flowers are edible in the sense that you could put them in pancakes or in bread or you could add hot water and make a tea.”
You can also pick ripe elderberry fruits to make jelly or wine. Elderberry is a very useful plant with lots of edible characters to it, according to Allen.
One of the more interesting plants native to Louisiana is the poke. While it is poisonous raw, it turns into a delicacy when cooked correctly. Other naturals require less preparation.
“A very good edible is dandelion,” he said. “A lot of people don’t realize that. You can actually eat the greens. Dandelion’s in the sunflower family. It’s got very good greens to it. In January, February, March, your yard is probably full of dandelions. Just don’t go spray them, go eat them.”
Visit Woodlandsconservancy.org for more information and to sign up for the class, which runs through Sunday.