Welcome to Mountain Edibles

I have been wandering the mountains of Utah as an amateur botanist for many years, and I am now trying to share some of what I have learned with those around me. I am a user of many edible and medicinal plants, and I believe the edible plants are the least known area of my expertise. This blog is a way to increase the popular knowledge of edible plants.

I also do plant walks to teach about edible and medicinal plants in person. If you are in the Northern Utah area, and are interested in arranging such a presentation, you can contact me using the contact form at the bottom of the page.

Thank you for coming.

Thursday, July 17, 2014

Fragaria virginiana

Fragaria virginiana
Fragaria virginiana
Finding wild strawberries has always been a frustrating experience for me. The plants are common enough, but to find ripe berries requires being at the right place and time (or elevation and season combination) and getting to them before the critters get them. Only rarely does it all come together for me. And even when they do, the berries are very small and difficult to find, hanging under the green sepals, which are under the leaves.

For identification, if you think you have something which looks like a strawberry plant (with leaves in threes, and 5-petaled white flowers with many stamens) the clincher to confirm it is a strawberry is to look for the red runners underneath. The ripe berries are also unmistakable.

The taste needs no description, of course. They melt in your mouth and are even more flavorful than commercial strawberries. But then, they are so small, they need to the extra flavor to be able to taste them.


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