6 Edible Plants to Forage this Fall

     Fall is a great time for foraging. The bounty is really endless; fall fruit, nuts, herbs, and all kinds of other stuff. This list consists of a few of my favorite fall staples that I come back to year after year, with one or two new ones thrown in. I selected plants based on my experience in the Southeast, but most of these plants have a wider range from the Eastern US to worldwide. I have found most, if not all, of these plants in urban, suburban, and rural areas. Most of these plants are incredibly common, so keep your eyes open next time you are out and about and you might come home with a delicious fall harvest!

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Persimmons

    Persimmons are the holy grail of fall foraging. Juicy, tangy, free fruit; what could be better! Here in the Southeast, they ripen around September and slowly fall off the tree through winter. The easiest way to harvest persimmons is to simply gather them off the ground as they fall. A word to the wise here though, I'm not joking when I say that eating an unripe persimmon is one of the strangest and worst sensations I have ever experienced. It doesn't taste like normal unripe fruit, but more like if cotton balls and a dust storm had a baby. It dries out your mouth and makes your tongue feel incredibly grainy. The effect is so strange that it has become a rite of passage between me and my friends to try one unripe persimmon just for the experience. That being said, if you want to avoid unripe persimmons, choose fruit that is very squishy and oozes juice when you break the skin. 

    Persimmons are delicious eaten raw or added into various recipes. They grow in US hardiness zones 9-10 in North America. While persimmons do grow wild, I have had the best luck finding them around old farms, at the edges of fields, and other areas where people might have planted them back in the day. 

Check out this post by The Foraged Foodie for identification information and this recipe for persimmon bread from The Hidden Pantry. 

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Goldenrod

    Have you ever noticed those bright yellow flowers that bloom along the highway in late summer and fall? That's goldenrod. It will grow almost anywhere with disturbed soil and sunlight; roadsides, unused lots, trailsides, and so on, which is great for us because this common flower is actually incredibly useful. It has been commonly used to treat respiratory issues, and soothe aches and pains. Goldenrod tea is a popular remedy for seasonal allergies, which is especially convenient because it blooms around the same time as ragweed. You can use goldenrod by drying the flowers and making tea, or by making a tincture. In fact, people in the New England colonies actually used goldenrod as a substitute for English tea during the revolutionary war. 

    Goldenrod is native to most of North America. It is most common in open, sunny areas. 

Check out this post by The Nerdy Farm Wife for identification information and instructions on making tea and tinctures. 

Sassafrass 

    Technically, you can identify and use Sassafrass trees any time that leaves are on the trees. People in the Appalachians historically used it in early spring as a tonic after the long winters. But I'm including it in this fall round up because the warm, spicy flavor of sassafras tea is perfect for a chilly night around the fire. Plus, you can gather the roots and save them year-round, making for a great mid-winter pick me up. The most common method for Sassafrass tea is to harvest a piece of the root or twigs from the tree and soak it in water with some sweetener like honey or maple syrup. Some people also crush the fragrant leaves and add them to soup as a spice or thickener. 

    Sassafrass trees grow in a wide range from Ontario to Florida. You will be most likely to find them on mountain slopes interspersed in the understory of hardwood forests. 

Check out this post by Rabbit Ridge Farm for identification information and this delicious sassafras tea recipe from Epicurious. 

Hickory Nuts

    Gathering hickory nuts always takes me back to childhood when all the neighborhood kids would comb our backyards for hickory nuts and smash them open with old bricks to get the delicious nuts inside. Fresh hickory nuts taste sweet and earthy, miles away from the packaged walnuts or pecans you might find in grocery stores. They fall from the trees throughout autumn and you can harvest them off the ground as they do. You can also use the bark from Shagbark Hickory trees to make syrup with a nutty, somewhat floral flavor. 

    Hickory trees cover the Eastern seaboard from the coast to the edge of the prairie. They are often found in hardwood forests. You are likely to find them anywhere that oak trees grow. 

Check out this post from Eat the Weeds, and Other Things Too for identification information and recipes for hickory nut pie, cookies, and other goodies. 

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Rose Hips

    I just recently learned how to identify and forage rose hips, and man am I glad I did! Rose hips are the fruit that wild rose bushes produce after their flowers bloom. You can find these small red fruits on rose bushes in late fall and throughout winter. Rose hips are extremely high in vitamin C which gives them a delicious citrus flavor. Once you scoop out the seeds in the center, rose hips can be used in pretty much anything you want, from jellies and baked goods to salad garnish. They also make a popular ingredient for skin products because of their anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties. 

    Wild roses grow in a variety of habitats around the world, so chances are, you can find some near you. They favor sunny, open areas like roadsides, clearings, and the edges of fields. Look for hips that are slightly soft, dark red, and without black spots that sometimes develop after hard frosts. Many different songbirds and deer depend on rose hips to eat during winter, so always leave some on the bush when you are harvesting. 

Check out this post by Grow Forage Cook Ferment for identification information, recipes, and medicinal uses of rose hips. 

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Acorns

    I have never actually tried this one, but a fall foraging list wouldn't be complete if I didn't mention the fact that you can eat acorns. Well, technically grind them into flour and eat them as bread and other delicious baked goods, but still, cray right?! Humans have been gathering and using acorns for hundreds of years. Many Native American tribes in the Eastern woodlands depended on the starchy, rich acorn flour for sustenance over the winter. In fact, acorns are a nutritional powerhouse; they are a complete protein as well as being high in healthy fats and starches. It is necessary to go through a number of steps including sorting, shelling, grinding, and leaching acorns to get rid of the tannins and make them edible. They can then be made into a flour to use in baking, or used in soups and other recipes. 

    Oak trees are widespread across the US, and acorns from all types of oak trees are edible. Some people think the large acorns from White Oak trees taste better because they are less bitter. Acorns fall in Autumn, from September through November depending on where you live. 

Check out this post by Grow Forage Cook Ferment for identification information, processing instructions, and recipes. 

For more delicious plants, check out other posts about foraging here!