Foraging the Wild...
A one-day course
run by Fergus for up to 7 people.
COURSES TAKE PLACE NEAR CANTERBURY AND THE SURROUNDING COAST


Five innocent young ladies + one wild man = a great day foraging - what else........
http://innocentdrinks.typepad.com/innocent_drinks/2007/09/wild-man-wild-f.html

In spring when the sap is rising there is no better time to celebrate the wild and get to grips with nature's celebratory abundance. On this one-day course we shall harvest the sap, not just metaphorically with respect to the sense of individually connecting with that rising sense of energetic well being but, also, literally, as we tap our native birch for its delicious syrup giving sap. Looking forward to the revelries of summer we shall alchemically distil this innocuous sap, this powerful essence of nature's fertility into a potent Bacchian Birch Sap wine. And then, of course, there is my favourite wild white: Dandelion and
Gorse wine.

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Energy. In a complex and challenging world we need copious amounts of it just to get by. But, it is possible to transcend our reliance on crap, nutrient deficient mass-produced food. Wild plants are nutritionally rich - uniquely so. Unlike cultivated vegetables, salad leaves and herbs for which - even if grown organically, many of the essential nutrients - in the form of manure or chemical fertilizer - have to be transported to the artificially set aside growing site, a wild plant germinates and flourishes where it is because the perfect balance of water, sunshine and nutrients come together in that unique location.

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At all times mindful of sound ecological harvesting practices, we shall identify and harvest a number of these nutritionally rich salad plants to create a healthy seasonal salad. Of course, despite the claims of extreme elements, the body can unlock the nutrient potential of plants other than those consumed exclusively in their raw state. Foraging, generally, should be about finding balance, not just ecologically within the connected web of inter-relational life systems, but also in terms of the ingestion of foraged foods. Many nutrients are best absorbed only when a plant is cooked. So, finding the best available spring greens we will endeavour to wok the wild, get creative and give full reign to the beneficial harmonious blending of the plants we find with respect to their full aesthetic, nutritional and gastronomic potential - with out forgetting desert, of course.

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Plants give life; in a bouquet of flowers or the gingko leaf concealed with shy, agonising and embarrassed hope within the letter of a Japanese lover, plants have been used to flame the passions, express love and ignite latent desire. But love and life dissolve into insignificance in the face of the tragedy that is ill health. Plants can act as potent weapons in the fight against many common ailments, and this is something we will investigate in an ad hoc manner as we come across plants with such healing potential. However, we should not forget that the intrinsic power of plants is attested to with respect not just to their life giving potential but, also, with regard to their death inducing capability. In 399BC Socrates fell foul of the Athenians inability to distinguish sophistry from wisdom and suffered their stupidity in the form of a hemlock induced terminal and fatal paralysis. Stupidity is a demon lurking in the undergrowth patiently awaiting those unable to distinguish, amongst many other things, wild chervil from its deadly cousin hemlock. In the course of our walk we shall shine an astute eye on such demons.

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I look forward to meeting you.

Fergus (Wild Man Wild Foods)

email: fergustheforager@lycos.com



Courses typically last for between 8 and 12 hours and involve foraging in different habitats, for example, woodland, field, river and seashore. The aim is to provide a general introduction to seasonally available wild plants, how to harvest them sustainably and how to utilize them as food. Lunch is served inside with a range of deliciously cooked seasonal wild food that you will have collected. Dinner is cooked on an open fire. I like to encourage people to get involved with the cooking.

However, because these courses are tailor-made to meet your requirements, you don't have to cook at all! All courses are limited to a maximum of 7 people.

Please do be aware that cooking does constitute up to 40% of time spent on the course. If you are purely interested in identification to the exclusion of all else then this course is not for you.

All courses begin at 9am except Novermber courses, which will begin at 8am. The end time varies between 7pm and 9pm. If you have to travel a fair distance after the course we can discuss this and, possibly, try to finish nearer to 7 than 9.

COST:
The cost of the course is: £90 per person. This includes a full 12 hour day, 2 foraged three course meals*, something tasty to take home, information sheets and transportation back to your hotel at the end of the day if required.

*Occasionally only a two-course meal is prepared in the evening

Corporate bookings by special arrangement for up to 20 people

Courses on dates not given can possibly be arranged for group (5-7)

Gratuitous rabbit picture - my friend Sue's gorgeous bunny. Shortly after this he knocked over my camera and broke it - thanks bunny.

The last word goes to....

"I wanted to say a great big thank you for such an amazing day.... We all had such a good time - and we were all completely knackered afterwards - I had to lie down all Sunday too - I feel for you = all we did was follow you about - you kept leaping off into bushes and over streams and had to think of all the things to amuse us with too!

It was incredible to learn all those plants - everywhere I go now, I can't help scrutinizing the weeds.... just in case I could whip them up for a salad - there is a great crop of Fat [here] if you're ever in the area!

It was so fantastic - the whole day! We crammed soooo much in and you fed us sooo well.  Mum has already found a good source of [Jelly Ear] just down the road from her - in inner city Bristol!!  Rob's Mum has been talking about it non-stop since and has now vowed not to weed the allotment anymore as she is horrified by the fact that she has been pulling out perfectly good salad leaves for years!!

You really made an impression on all of us!  So thank you for being so inspiring and enthusiastic and great!  You're ace!

We have a request - please please please write your book - you have an audience that is eagerly awaiting it.

Also if you ever want to expand and start a cookery/foraging school let me know - I would love to be your assistant!

Anyway - take care and don’t work too hard!"

Claire 2007

PAYMENT AND CANCELLATIONS

Last year I tried to be really laid back and flexible about payment times, methods and booking confirmations- what a mistake, what a hassle, what a bloody nightmare! This year then it's the big bad grown up way so must apologise in advance if this seems ruthless and mean. It's not meant to be!

Place or places on a course will be secured only upon advanced payment of their FULL cost. Payment is by cheque only*. You may cancel up to 3 weeks before the course date and receive a 75% refund. After that time up until 4 days before the course any cancellation will result in half the payment being lost. Any cancellations within 4 days of the course date will result in a complete loss of all deposits.

If I cancel a course at any point a full refund will be offered.

Should you need to cancel, when possible, and if desired, I will try to arrange an alternative date for you - often though that is only possible during the week.

* a skills exchange would be considered with anyone experienced in natural skin tanning and preparation (no - not a sun tan!) or with experience in dying with wild plants - or anything else you think might interest me....

COURSES PURCHASED AS CHRISTMAS PRESENTS

For courses purchased this way, I fully understand that due to the surprise element of gift giving you may not be able to confirm a date you would like to book for until after Christmas. This is fine. However, A DATE WILL HAVE TO BE FINALISED BY THE 25TH OF JANUARY. I'm not good at juggling (marbles) so 40 people wanting to keep their options open for as long as possible will simply result in me losing all my marbles! I know it seems harsh, but if you have not confirmed by 25th January you will lose 25% of your deposit and the rest will be returned to you.

When booking please can you make sure you give me a land line contact number, a mobile number, email address, and land address. Also it is important that you specify any food preferences, allergies or intolerances you or your friends may have.

On the day of the course ideally you should bring waterproofs - both top and bottoms, good walking boots and a spare pair of Wellington boots. For October and November courses an extra jumper or warm coat is useful for the outside meal in the evening.

…..or, to be more inclusive, human beings cannot live by bread alone. True? Maybe. Certainly we need to be more inclusive in terms not only of gender or, of course, varied diet, but also in regard to our other needs for self expression – through music, poetry and art, as well as with respect to a whole plethora of other social, psychological and, no doubt, spiritual needs. However, the question that really interests me concerns wild food. Susan Campbell, in her paper, The Hunting and Gathering of Wild Foods: What’s the point? An Historical Survey  - a paper delivered at Oxford and reprinted in Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 2004: Wild Food, poses the dilemma quite succinctly when she states, “….nor have I yet met anyone who could convince me that modern man could subsist on wild food alone, legally or illegally, the year round, in a northern climate.” The question and the challenge, then, stand: Can a person live by wild food alone? There is only one way to answer such a question and that is by actually attempting to do so. However, a further question presents itself: Why would anybody in his or her right mind wish to attempt such a thing?
      Having utilised wild foods in my diet for a considerable number of years, I know that the sheer variety and range of what is generally available is quite astonishing. Such a vast myriad of both familiar and more exotic flavours, textures, and unique nutritional dietary contributors means that, given sufficient availability, it would surely be theoretically possible to live on wild food alone. Well…… that remains to be proved by the possible sweat and tears of actual practice. Nevertheless, addressing the question, “why?” , is at one and the same time to address those less tangible needs which, at the outset, it was admitted that without which we could not live. This is because eating wild food is not just about nutritional sustenance; it’s a lifestyle choice. That choice is in part a personal and practical answer to various disagreements I have with the world, the way it is, or rather, the way it is as an outcome of our interaction with it; the way it is, the way we are, but don’t have to be – culturally, socially, economically and, of course, environmentally……………….

      I’ve been thinking for two weeks now about carrying out the practice: living from only wild food a whole month and have decided to begin on the 30th of June – just a few days away now. I’m even going to subject myself to a battery of medical tests tomorrow morning. However, as the day itself approaches the likelihood of success seems to do the opposite, retreating instead into the far distance. In the first place, I am so ludicrously busy at the moment that I barely have time to think about cooking a meal, let alone producing one from wild food. In the second place, I thought that although it’s mainly leaves and seaweeds that are available now, this wouldn’t be a problem because, no doubt, I could always top up any nutritional deficit with a choice piece of roadkill; that was, until I had lunch with a friend – the sparkling Aglaia, She claims to be able to sniff out meat eaters from across the room. Actually, her method is more visual. Apparently it’s the dull eyes - compared with the bright sparkling eyes of the vegetarian - that’s the tell tale give away sign. Is it the shadow of death that dulls the inner flame, a corrupting of the soul to its very core or merely the sluggish arterial flow of stupefying saturated fats that deadens the vital light? Who knows the answer to such an imponderable question? All I do know is that after a few months of poor health – I fell in the woods carrying birch sap and really put my back out, what could be better than to start sparkling again? So, meat of any sort is completely off the menu – for now.
     Of course, referring back to the quote from Susan Campbell, there is no doubt I can, as she says, “subsist”. Yet subsistence carries the implications of just getting by, of the bare necessities, of surviving, being alive, but alive only to a paltry kind of mere existence. Perhaps for a month such an existence – given no other commitments, could prove to be a liberating and nature-engaged escape from the day-to-day grind of work related toil. However, for me those commitments do exist (they’re not all toil fortunately). No, I want to live fully, to be nothing less than a whole man, to transcend the everyday, to feel the struggle of the impossible and know that it can be surpassed. A month of wild food will be hard. I will learn that I’m sure. However, to really rise to the challenge I must embrace the whole year and its generous seasons. Only then will I know if it is possible to live by wild food alone.

     The coming month will be a preliminary study for a wild food year – beginning later this year. I will be writing a daily blog about how things are going over the coming month. If you are interested please return to this page which I will be updating every day.
     Now, time to go for an invigorating walk in the glorious lightening, thunder and rain……..