Important! Plants and fungi can have multiple edibility icons. Please read the information below to understand.
One of my favorite fungi field guides uses a few icons to denote edibility and some fungi features. I’ve also found a wild flower site which makes use of this for plant characteristics. I really like this approach as it offers key information at a quick glance. I have some background in graphic design so have been slowly working on making icons which are, hopefully, easy to understand and get used to and different enough from each other to allow fairly clear information at a glance. Below you’ll find information on each icon group and definitions I’ve decided on for each.
Edibility & Uses
I spent a day in a definition wormhole last year. Words like poisonous, toxic and edible can have very different meanings. For the sake of clarity, these are the definitions I am applying on this site.
As you will see, a species can be both “Edible Caution”, “Poisonous” and “Medicinal”. For example: Common Hogweed
Edible – Something that is good and fairly safe to eat. I say ‘fairly safe’ because some people can have reactions to any number of food items. The onus is on you to make sure you don’t before chomping down on your foraged hoard. And make sure if you do have ANY known allergens to be cautious.
Edible Caution – These are species which need some closer attention before interacting with them (touching, eating, sniffing etc.). Where Edible Caution is shown, I’ll always have further information in the species information.
Inedible – A species which has little to no edible benefits, or is unknown.
Medicinal – Species with medicinal properties.
Poisonous – A species which is, at normal levels, harmful to humans either by ingestion or handling. THESE CAN INCLUDE EDIBLE SPECIES. So take note and get further information.
Seasons
These icons represent general foraging seasons for the species, not their flowering time or growth time. Do bear in mind that, like humans, plants and fungi can step out of the accepted norm. So whilst a species has a general active period, this is only one of several indications for identifying a species.
Growth Cycle
Annual – A plant which completes its entire lifecycle in a year or less.
Biennial – A plant which completes its entire lifecycle in two years.
Perennial – A plant which has a lifecycle of three or more years.
Evergreen – A perennial plant whos leaves are green throughout the seasons.
Deciduous – Most commonly refereing to trees, these a plants which loose their leaves for a period of the year, normal Autumn and Winter.
There are a few main reasons why knowing a plants growth cycle is important to the forager.
- Identification
- Harvesting
- Flavor