Foraging for Food in July

Highbush Cranberry (Viburnum edule)

Description: Shrub roughly 8 feet tall with white flower clusters followed by orange to red fruits.

Range: Most of Canada. Where to look: damp forests and wet- land edges.

Eating Tips: Juicy, tart fruits are rich in vitamin C and can be eaten raw or used in jellies and more. Remove stones before eating.

Red Huckleberry (Vaccinium parvifolium)

Description: 3- to 8-foot shrub most of canada. Where to look: wet meadows, swamps, marshes and riverbanks.

Eating tips: base of young leaves and the heart of young flowers can be eaten raw or boiled.

Trailing Blackberry Rubus (ursinus subsp. macropetalus)

Description: long trailing stems with thorns, white flowers and oblong black fruits.

Range: Southwest BC, including lower Mainland and Vancouver Island. Where: dry to moist sites, often in thickets, fallow ground, recently cleared or burnt out areas and forest gaps.

Eating: Eaten raw, or cooked in jams or pies; also make into wine.

Red Glasswort (Salicornia rubra)

Description: Annual herb, 4 to 10 inches tall with scale-like foli- age and spiky reddish flowers.

Range: Across Canada, though infrequent in southern BC. Where to look: wet salt marshes, shorelines, and alkaline to saline soils.

Eating Tips: The shoots can be eaten raw or gently cooked. Stems can be pickled.

Saskatoon Berry (Amelanchier alnifolia)

Description: Shrub to small tree, 6 to 12 feet tall with oval leaves, white flower clusters and bluish to black berries.

Range: From b.C. to Alberta and north. Isolated pockets in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario.

Where to Look: Open woods and hillsides. Eating tips: delicious raw, or cooked in pies, jams, sauces, syrups and wines.