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As anyone who spends time in the wilderness can confirm, there is no more challenging period for outdoorsmanship than winter. Regardless whether the winter is mild or severe, spending time during the cold season become much more difficult in any natural environment. This is especially true for a survival situation where life or death can hang by a thread and be directly connected to what a person can find and use.
Some might think that in that case, the chances of surviving in the winter would plummet like the temperature, but this does not have be the case. The main knowledge that can help in that kind of situation is knowing what wild edibles you can forage in the winter. To help with that, here is a list of wild edibles that can be found through winter foraging.
Small Plants
Firstly, here is a list of small plants that can be used.
Burdock
This thistle comes with a tasty and edible root. There are numerous types of thistles that can be used for food if they can be dug up and the ground is not completely frozen.
Cattails
Found near bodies of water, cattails come with an edible root and stem, while its top also has a range of benefit. Primarily, it is a perfect kindling material.
Chickweed
Chickweed or Stellaria media is nutritious and applied in meals as a leaf vegetable, including salads. A famous Japanese dish includes this plant as one of its main ingredients.
Chicory
This plant is widely available and it has a root system that can be applied as a meal through the winter. Also, it is possible to make a caffeine-like drink using chicory by simply boiling it.
Clovers
Clovers are more than lucky in a survival setup. They are full of fiber and while not much nutrient comes inside of them, they are still most definitely a winter survival food.
Dandelion roots
The root of this plant can easily be collected during the cold season and even when they are covered with snow. It is bitter tasting and like chicory can be a coffee-like substitute.
Garlic mustard
This plant is one of the most widely-used flavorings, reaching back to 17th-century cookbooks. It is also full of vitamins C and A, which adds to its nutritional value.
Jerusalem Artichoke
Type of knobby tubers, these plants become more digestible if they went through a frost. Jerusalem Artichoke can be found in many locations in the wilderness.
Sheep Sorrel
In regular situations, Sheep Sorrel is mainly used as an addition to soups and sauces. However, it can act as food in a survival setup and even help with inflammation and opening of the nasal passages.
Teasel
Teasel might not look that appetizing but its young leaves and even shoots can be eaten. Often it is noted as an asparagus substitute.
Watercress
Watercress is a plant that does well in cold environments and has a peppery taste. It can be used just like any other type of leafy greens.
Wild onion and garlic
These are best known for their flavor and widespread accessibility, even though not the same caloric value as their domesticated cousins. Yet, they are a stable of survival food and one of the easiest targets for winter foraging.
Trees
After a detailed list of smaller edible plants you can forage during winter, here are some trees which offer the same advantage:
Acorns
Acorns are one of the key foods for many forest creatures. Finding and using them is not a big challenge in almost any forest in the northern hemisphere.
Beechnuts
As the fruit of the beech, these are known as both mast and beechnuts and they can be eaten. Small and triangular in shape, they are edible even though they come with a bitter taste.
Black Walnuts
There is a big misconception that Black Walnuts are not completely digestible and this is totally untrue. They are and they can be eaten raw, but even when cooked in water, they will not have the same taste as the commercially available ones. Still, they should be on any winter foraging list.
Hop Hornbeam Seeds
Industrial hop is no stranger to beer but Hop Hornbeam Seeds can also be useful as emergency food. Mainly the seeds of the tree are both edible and taste good, especially if you like their specific flavor.
Maple Tree Seeds
Helicopter-like in their structure, the maple tree seeds are fully edible. They will be dried up during the winter season and offer little in terms of taste, but they are very much useful nonetheless.
Pine Needles
Dried up pine needles provide no benefit apart from being useful as kindling. But, fresh needles are full of Vitamin C and when cooked in boiling water present a great form of winter foraging food.
Pine Nuts
Pine nuts come with edible seeds that can be taken out of their shell. Their nutritive quality, as well as the size, differ from one type of pine to the other, but they can all be eaten.
Tree Sap
Sap, when properly collected, is a form of winter survival food. Some trees might have a bitter taste or even poisonous sap, but for example, you cannot go wrong with maple sap – that is where maple syrup comes from.
Birch trees
As previously mentioned, the sap of some trees is great winter survival food and birch is one of them. Even a type of wine can be produced if the sap is collected in a proper manner.
Berries
Some berries are among the wild edibles you can forage in the winter. In fact, they are regularly found in many dishes and meals that do not include any survival factor – they are simply delicious. Here are some of the most useful ones.
Chokeberries
Chokeberry yield edible berries that are either red or purple. They differ between each other and the red ones are supposed to be more palatable, but both can be used for winter survival food.
Crabapples
Often referred to as ornamental fruit or wild apples, crabapples are still edible. There are hundreds of sub-species and hybrid types of crabapples but they are all mostly similar to apples in their nutritional content and basic taste.
Cranberries
Wild cranberries are one of the most ideal things for winter foraging. They are able to handle freezing temperatures without many difficulties and many can last the whole winter. They are even used by wilderness enthusiast to produce fermented honey products.
Juniper berries
You should be careful around juniper berries because some might be very bitter, to a point of not being digestible. But, a few berries can be eaten safely at a time, allowing them to be used with other winter foraging foods.
Hawthorn Berries
There are many different types of hawthorn berries and they are all able to persist during the cold season. Some are tastier than others by none are poisonous as long as the seeds are not consumed. Without the seeds, hawthorn berries are excellent survivalist food.
Rose Hips
Like the fruit that comes from the rose flower, they can be easily found in the wild. They are rich in Vitamin C and thus can be used to make a very useful survivalist tea, along with health benefits.
Teaberry (Wintergreen)
Teaberry, also know as checkerberry come from a wintergreen plant. They can be made into a very refreshing tea or even chewed raw so their survivalist usefulness is unmistakable.
Mushrooms
Finally, on this list of wild edibles, you can forage in the winter are the mushrooms. As a species of plants, they are really effective because all fungus and mushrooms possess many elements of basic animal species. This provides them with a good chance of not just surviving but also thriving in the winter season. These are some of the most important species that have been used for that purpose:
Chaga Fungu
This mushroom has been used for centuries and is believed to have many medicinal properties. It usually grows on birch trees and it slowly grows back but works great in an emergency.
Oyster mushrooms
Oyster mushrooms mostly tend to grow on dead trees, either women logs or those which are still standing. They can be located in winter just as easy as during another season. A hard freeze will take them out, but beyond that, they are accessible for food.
Turkey Tail Mushroom
This type of mushroom grows during winter and is always at the top of the winter foraging lists. They are mainly used in the form of a tea and are known to act as an effective immune system booster.
Velvet shank mushrooms
The Velvet shank mushrooms are mainly famous because of its ability to survive even if it is frozen solid during the entire winter. Even then it is still tasty and easily located during wintertime.
Witches Butter
This mushroom is very unique in its shape and appearance. They can be found thanks to their bright yellow color. They are mostly seen as flavorless and bland in their taste, but they are definitely edible and thus useful in a survival setup.
Yellowfoot Chanterelles
Yellowfoot chanterelles are very challenging for cultivation outside of the wilderness. There they grow on rotten wood and in bogs, but they are still considered an excellent type of food, which is mainly prepared in soups or fried. Even dried, the mushroom will keep its nutritive value.
With these plants that can be found and foraged during the winter seasons, anyone will be able to find the means to keep them alive. If you find yourself in such a situation, use the things on this list for the very same purpose.
