Foraging for Herbs in Your Own Backyard

​My husband wanted to cut the grass in our backyard on Saturday. Since I had been so busy with my garden, I had procrastinated in collecting all of the dandelion and plantain herb leaves that are prevalent in my yard.

I am glad I have a privacy fence because I was frantically running around the yard, cutting the leaves with scissors as fast as I could! I must have been a sight! I was able to get two large bags of these wonderful, edible herbs!

Nettle (top image) is my favorite herb. It is so versatile and nutrient dense. It is great for seasonal allergies and as a daily infusion for vitamins and minerals. It can be tricky to pick because it stings so always suit up with long-sleeves and gloves when handling. Once crushed or cooked, nettle loses its sting. 
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Dandelion leaves are wonderful in salads, steamed, or lightly sautéed in a bit of fat like ghee or coconut oil. Full of vitamins A and B, calcium and potassium, these leaves are much more than weeds! They are a bitter which also helps with digestion and liver cleansing.
For even more information on dandelions, visit The Leaf Lady.

Plantain herb is also edible, full of vitamins and can be used as a substitute for spinach. It is much more well-known as a healing herb. It is wonderful in healing salves. My kids know to chew some up, spit it out and apply it to bug bites for itch relief!

There are a couple hundred varieties of plantain herb so do an internet search and see what variety you have near you.

Chickweed is a lovely little herb that packs a punch. The little white flowers are hard to see but they are there.

It is a great weight loss tonic and is known to blast fat cells! I use it in teas and salves like Baby Bum Balm.
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One of my favorite herbalists,  Susun Weed has wonderful things to say about chickweed! 

I’ve been teaching my children recently how to identify common herbs so they can use them when they are out playing. It is so important to know what medicine is all around you!
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What herbs do you forage?