Edibles From A Food Forest

Food Forest Edibles Range From Fruits, Tubers, Roots & Berries To Nuts, Flowers, Bulbs & Seeds, To Be Cooked Or Eaten Raw.

I eat many of my food forest edibles in salads simply because I like salads. But the range of edibles from a food forest is immense. In the following lists I have pulled together some of the various types of edibles and listed them by the plant types they come from, eg, trees, herbaceous plants, climbers etc. As always the latter list becomes complicated by the fact that, say, a hablitzia leaf comes from a herbaceous climber so sits in more than one category. And some species provide both fruit and leaves, eg grape vines.

Here is my first attempt at listing in this way. No doubt I will revisit this page many times and regularly amend it.

1. Fruits & Berries

This category includes everything from tree fruits to soft fruits and ground-level berries.

• From Trees & Shrubs:
  • Apple (Malus domestica)
  • Pear (Pyrus communis)
  • Plum/Gage (Prunus domestica)
  • Cherry (Prunus avium & P. cerasus)
  • Medlar (Mespilus germanica)
  • Quince (Cydonia oblonga)
  • Fig (Ficus carica)
  • Currants (Black, Red, White)
  • Gooseberry (Ribes uva-crispa)
  • Raspberry (Rubus idaeus)
  • Blackberry (Rubus fruticosus)
  • Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) (requires acidic soil)
  • Juneberry/Serviceberry (Amelanchier lamarckii)
• From Climbers:
  • Grape (Vitis vinifera)
  • Kiwi (Actinidia arguta) (Hardy Kiwi)
  • Passion Fruit (Passiflora caerulea) (in sheltered spots)
• From Ground Cover:
  • Wild Strawberry (Fragaria vesca)
  • Alpine Strawberry (Fragaria vesca)

2. Leaves & Stems

This includes salad greens, cooking greens, and edible shoots.

• From Trees & Shrubs:
  • Lime/Linden (Tilia spp.) (young leaves)
• From Herbaceous Plants:
  • Perennial Kale (Brassica oleracea)
  • Good King Henry (Chenopodium bonus-henricus)
  • Sorrel (Rumex acetosa)
  • Mint (Mentha spp.)
  • Chives (Allium schoenoprasum)
  • Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) (herb)
  • Sweet Woodruff (Galium odoratum) (for flavouring)
  • Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) (peppery leaves)
• From Root/Bulb Plants:
  • Babington’s Leek (Allium ampeloprasum var. babingtonii)
  • Wild Garlic/Ramsons (Allium ursinum)
• From Climbers:
  • Hop (Humulus lupulus) (young shoots)
  • Hablitzia tamnoides

3. Tubers, Roots & Bulbs

Edible parts grown underground.

• From Herbaceous/Root Layer Plants:
  
• • Potatoes (Solanum tuberosum)
  • Horseradish (Armoracia rusticana)
  • Sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas)
  • Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus)
  • Mashua
  • Chinese Artichoke (Stachys affinis)
  • Pignuts/Earth Chestnut (Bunium bulbocastanum)
  • Wild Garlic/Ramsons (Allium ursinum) (bulb)

4. Nuts & Seeds

• From Canopy Trees:
  • Walnut (Juglans regia)
  • Sweet Chestnut (Castanea sativa)
• From Trees & Shrubs:
  • Hazel (Corylus avellana)
• From Herbaceous Plants:
  • Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) (pickled seeds as “poor man’s capers”)

5. Flowers

Edible blooms, often used in salads or for teas.

• From Herbaceous Plants:
  • Globe Artichoke (Cynara cardunculus) (flower bud)
  • Borage (Borago officinalis)
  • Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus)
  • Chives (Allium schoenoprasum)
  • Lime/Linden (Tilia spp.) (for tea)
• From Root Layer Plants:
  • Wild Garlic/Ramsons (Allium ursinum)

6. Other (Flavourings, Shoots, etc.)

• From Climbers:
  • Hop (Humulus lupulus) (cones for brewing)
• From Herbaceous Plants:
  • Mint, Chives, Fennel, Sorrel (primarily used as flavourings).
  • Good King Henry (shoots eaten like asparagus).

Tag: Food Forest Edibles

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