Today, more than ever, there is a dizzying array of short - term wellness fads that seduce us with promises of dewy skin and boundless energy. Whilst many of us are overwhelmed with an arsenal of distant spices and super herbs, we have overlooked the abundance of incredible native plants that thrive near us, plants that are not only tasty but can promote healing for ourselves, our families and our communities.
Modern life can sleepwalk us into a cycle of detachment - constantly checking our phones, scrolling through endless social media posts and spending much of our working life in front of a screen, disconnected, uprooted and unfamiliar with much about our local environment beyond road names and local shops. But nature and wild plants exist all around us - dandelions forcing their way through pavement cracks, cleavers unapologetically wrapping themselves around fence posts. Gathering plants is a powerful way to connect. Foraging takes us back to our roots, our core wisdom and our ancestral heritage and forces us to slow down and engage our senses, whether you live in an urban, suburban or rural setting.
Wild edibles, abundant in phytonutrients, also add colour and variety to our diets that are often dominated by uninspiring dishes of potatoes, corn and tomatoes. How many times have you had wild garlic pesto or nettle bread for dinner or made elderberry syrup in the winter? Foraging inspires us to become more resourceful, self - sufficient and, ultimately, empowered and empowering. It is a tool and a practice that adds richness and depth to the way we connect with life and our own outer and inner landscape, allowing us to attune to our senses, practice presence, wonder and gratitude and to recognise the interdependence, cycle and abundance of living things that surround us.
