The First-Time Forager by Andy Hamilton

The First-Time Forager by Andy Hamilton

Find edible wild plants in this seasonal foraging guide for beginners

• A friendly, honest guide for wary would-be foragers
• Only plants that are easy to find, easy to identify and tasty
• Clear photographic guides to the species

We all love the idea of foraging – as a way of being connected to nature and discovering new tastes. But in reality, most of us are very wary, and sometimes a bit underwhelmed when we do try. What’s needed is this totally honest, safety-first guide for softy first-time foragers. This book concentrates on 40 plants that are easy to identify and worth the effort – plants that are tasty and abundant in the wild or in gardens and parks. There are simple recipes to try as well. This isn’t an armchair guide for people dreaming of being Ray Mears or Bear Grylls. It’s for everyday people who lives in towns and suburbs as well as the countryside, and who want to get a little closer to nature and discover new tastes, without stress.

Andy Hamilton has been writing and teaching foraging for 20 years. His gentle and humorous approach to the subject is as inclusive as it is engaging. He is driven by the idea that everyone would benefit from at least a little bit of foraging in their lives.

He’s cooked hedgerow toffee apples to an audience of 6 million, live on Autumnwatch. Took the Countryfile team across his home turf in search of wild food, had a BBC Radio 4 food programme dedicated to his Wild Booze and fed wild cocktails to Cerys Matthews and Shelia Dillion.

He the author of the Self-sufficientish Bible, Booze for Free and Fermenting Everything.