Experience the ultimate coastal adventure with our hands - on seaweed foraging courses. Our expert - led courses offer an unforgettable and unique day out, where you'll uncover the fascinating and mysterious world of seaweed. You'll learn the practical skills of how to sustainably and confidently harvest, dry and prepare a variety of delicious edible brown, green and red seaweeds. Ideal for nature enthusiasts, foodies, wild swimmers, curious foragers and aspiring wild chefs, you'll find out just how much more there is to seaweed than meets the eye, as well as their staggering biological feats and adaptations, including learning about seaweeds that grow to the length of a Boeing aircraft.
You will learn more about the profound nutritional benefits and surprising medicinal uses of seaweeds and just how important seaweeds have been in our global history - even, believe it or not, in Britain, including being used as a fertiliser for food, in traditional soap and glass industries - and to clarify beer!
Many of us have got seaweeds all wrong: they aren't just smelly piles that adorn our beaches. Our seaweed courses offer a deeper understanding of seaweeds' ecological importance and remarkable and baffling resilience, from growing in Antarctica to growing 50m deep in the Galapagos reserve. We'll also explore the endless list of innovative ways seaweeds can address major climate challenges, from being used as an alternative to plastic in biodegradable packaging, to petrochemical - free, biodegradable seaweed furniture foam, to seaweed - based seaweed dyes.
Delivered in an informal and digestible manner, our seaweed foraging courses are designed to captivate your curiosity, whet your seaweed appetite and expand your knowledge with plenty of intriguing and amusing facts about seaweeds (and a couple of seaweed props) along the way. Most of all, though, this immersive course will help you to rediscover the beauty and significance of our glorious coastline.
A discussion on the nature of tides and seaweed habitats - you'll find out where and when to collect edible seaweeds.
A short introduction on how to sustainably and safely and forage small seaweed harvests.
The laws of gathering and foraging coastal plants and macroalgae.
An immersive walk journeying through magnificent landscape.
An in - depth look at tasty coastal greens (up to 5) to supplement your salads with, as well as other plants that you need to be aware of - we will briefly touch on the folklore of some of the coastal plants including why the Romans introduced Alexanders and which plant was used as a punishment in Sardinia, giving rise to the reference "sardonic smile".
The biology of macroalgae and some of their surprising adaptation features.
An in - depth look at how to identify seaweeds (we'll look at between 12 - 20) including some of the seaweeds you want to avoid. We'll compare textures, tastes and flavours.
The nutritional profile of seaweeds and the discovery of the umami taste.
The history, folklore and traditional and modern uses of seaweed - you'll learn why dulse was served at pubs and why the Victorians traditionally took seaweed baths as a beauty treatment.
Methods and demonstration of preparation and cooking, conservation and storing - including pickling and drying.
A discussion on some of its medicinal uses so you can make your very own seaweed - based medicine cabinet.
A beautifully - designed Be Nutriful recipe book with a guide of commonly favoured seaweeds and seaweed - inspired recipes.
Kelp yourself to the buffet lunch!
Our coastal seaweed foraging courses are suitable for those interested in healthy living and curious about how to live in a more self-sufficient and sustainable way. If you're keen to have a fun and unique experience by the British coast, find tasty edible plants and seaweeds to cook with as well as learn how to prepare and store these extraordinarily nutritious powerhouses, then this course is for you!
Whether you're a complete foraging novice or whether you've dabbled in coastal foraging, this seaweed course will inspire you to get gathering and munching macroalgae!
Our courses are for adults or teenagers (above 12) with medium fitness. In total, we will walk around 5 - 6 kms at a slow and relaxed pace, but please note that there will be some steep climbs, slopes and steps involved, as well as some clambering over rocks (which can be slippery). Please note that all teenagers must be accompanied by an adult.
If you have mobility issues, please email for a tailor - made course. It's also worth mentioning that public toilet facilities won't be available on the shore and we'll be going to areas with minimal phone reception so we advise you make arrangements beforehand.
Before the coastal plant and seaweed foraging course, you'll be emailed a comprehensive list of what to bring. This includes robust footwear (hiking boots or sturdy non - slip wellington boots) since we will be clambering over some fairly slippery rocks. It will be a low - tide forage so you won't need to get into the sea (!) but we encourage you to wear waterproof, comfortable and warm clothing as it can often be quite a lot chillier and breezier on the shore.
We also advise that you bring a drink of your choice to enjoy with lunch, a hat and some sunscreen (if appropriate!), a pair of scissors or a penknife, and some mesh or ziploc bags as well as a notebook and pen to scribble down some notes and interesting and unusual seaweed facts!
While we're a fan of four - legged friends and find them very cute, we've found that dogs can be very distracting to others on the seaweed foraging course, as well as disruptive to wildlife on the shore (particularly birds). Sadly we don't allow any dogs on the course.
This fun and informative seaweed foraging course is led by Flora, a qualified medicinal herbalist and naturopath and passionate forager and storyteller, who will cover the variety of uses (culinary, medicinal, topical) of between 12 - 20 seaweeds, as well as memorable and unusual folklore and seaweed facts.
Find more about Flora's background here.
Coastal plant and seaweed foraging courses will be held in a variety of locations in Dorset, Devon and Cornwall. On Eventbrite, each course will indicate the nearest town and region in the course title and description. New events are often added so keep your eyes peeled.
Bespoke courses are also offered, tailored to particular locations, so please email if you would like to find out more.
Before the course, you'll be sent the exact GPS location (and what3words), as well as free parking information.
If you want to enquire about lift - sharing, please send an email before the course.
Our seaweed and coastal plant foraging courses can only be run on specific dates and times in conjunction with particular moon phases and around low tides.
We run the majority of our courses at the weekend (unless they are private functions) which means that the days we can run the courses tend to be limited. The best time for the best learning experience of the coast is on a spring tide (generally around the new or full moon) and when the low tide occurs (the timing of which varies depending on its location and date).
Please see our Eventbrite collection for all the upcoming courses. If you follow the Eventbrite page, you will receive immediate updates with new events added.
All our events are handled with the platform Eventbrite
If you have any questions about a private seaweed foraging event (minimum 2-3 people), please go to our contact page.
"Seaweed Foraging makes me feel truly alive!"
