What Super Mario taught me about foraging

I’m a child of the 90’s. (Born in ’87, don’t remember any of the 80’s)

So there’s Mariah Carey, Power Rangers, and of course, Super Mario.

And I played Mario like the best of ’em. If you have never played the classic Mario game, there’s a common occurrence.

Mario runs along, and suddenly encounters multiple boxes with question marks on them. He can:

1. Run past said boxes
2. Bust open one or two, see what’s inside, and keep going
3. Bust open all of the boxes, making sure to get all the goodies.

Inside the boxes can be coins, or special powers, or Mushrooms!

For Mario, eating mushrooms can mean growing more powerful or gaining extra lives.

For us, eating mushrooms and other wild edibles can mean enjoying a delicious meal, or dying from toxicity. So here is the warning

DON’T EAT WILD EDIBLES UNLESS YOU HAVE A PROFESSIONAL SHOW YOU WHAT IS SAFE.

Got it? Read manuals, check with people who know what their doing, wild edibles can kill you.

Now, on to the lesson Mario taught me.

Never stop searching for wild edibles. They could be anywhere.

Bust Every Box.

Wild edibles are hard to find. but the reward is great when they are found. Here are three that are easier to identify and enjoy

Morel Mushrooms-

Unlike many mushrooms, morel season is a spring season. Morels are a very unique mushroom, and so they are easy to identify. Look for the sponge like head pushing up vertically through the forest floor.

There is a false morel, identified by a separation between cap and stem. A morel, when cut in half, shows no separation between cap and stem.

Morels are excellent sauteed in butter, cooked with eggs, or battered and fried.

Sometimes Mario would find a secret invisible box, filled with green 1up mushrooms. Where you least expected it, suddenly there it would be.

Like mario, Ive searched the wood of CT for these yummy mushrooms, only to be disappointed. And yet, a friend of mine discovered some on the edge of a parking lot in town. Bust Every Box!

Wild raspberries-

More easy to find, wild raspberries are a late spring early summer fruit, and can be plentiful! You will have to deal with the thorns when harvesting, but go slowly and they should not be a problem.

We have found many wild raspberry bushes on our property. We transplanted these bushes from less favorable areas to new places, and although the original plant didn’t usually take, the root sent out sucker which did begin growing, so in a few years we will have lots of wild raspberries to enjoy, safe from our goats.

Another great way to increase yield of wild raspberries is to create clearcuts on your property. If you have seen some wild raspberry bushes on your property, chances are the seeds are mixed though your soil, and given the right conditions, they may sprout up. Three years ago we opened up a large section of forest, cut the large hemlock trees to make lumber, and planted clover for deer and turkeys to enjoy. We were very surprised this year to find the field full of young raspberry bushes sprouting up!

Ramps-

Also a spring wild edible, Ramps are a great find! They look similar to scallions, only smaller. They are made up of 2 big broad green leaves, leading down in the ground to a bulb.

Ramps are full of flavor, great paired with any meal. Generally when you find one you find many.

Harvest Sustainably! Ramps take a long time to bear seed, so when harvesting, leave the base of the bulb, cutting the top of it off and leaving the bottom and roots in the ground.

Remember Super Mario had to bust every box to find which ones had mushrooms for him. Finding wild edibles is hard, and honestly, for me any way, usually isn’t a very successful endeavor. But the worst thing that can happen is that you go on a nice walk in the woods with friends!

What wild edibles do you enjoy finding?