 is a small deciduous tree found in sunny forest-edges with moist soils, below moderate elevation. They are common along stream banks, river banks, and open places.
Elder grows up to 20 feet high, with many long branches carrying opposite, lance-shaped, toothed leaves. Tiny star-shaped whitish-yellow flowers grow in sprays of dense flat shaped clusters. They bloom in early summer in lowlands and in late summer in the mountains. Deep blue berries develop in August through October and can get heavy enough that they cause branches to droop down toward the ground.
Unripe elderberries are poisonous. Raw berries can cause nausea and other gastro-intestinal upset. But cooked, ripe elderberries are perfectly edible when prepared properly. Elder flowers are harvested in spring when most of the flowers are open and others are budding. Elder berries can be harvested in late summer to early fall. Wait until shiny blue-black berries look powdery.
Gaultheria shallon | Summer | Native
Salal is found throughout the Pacific Northwest in coniferous forests. Salal is an evergreen that creeps into an erect shrub with hairy branching stems and dark, thick, leathery leaves.
Aside from being a popular addition in flower arrangements, salal is harvested for its edible berries and medicinal leaves. The berries are ripe during late summer when they are deep blue, plump and tasty. They can be used raw, cooked, or dried, and can be used like other berries in preserves, pies, drinks, and fruit leather. The leaves are used as a medicine for wounds, coughs, colds, and digestive problems, and can be made into a pleasant tea.
Rosa gymnocarpa | Fall to Winter | Native
Baldhip rose is located in the moist, shaded understory of Northwest forests in mountainous and riparian areas within eastern and southern exposures. It is a spindly deciduous shrub with brittle weak straight spines. Its leaves are alternate and compound, with an odd number of double-toothed leaflets. Its flowers are pink, single, small, and have 5 petals, and pink-rose in color during May and June. Its fruits are orange to scarlet pear-shaped hips.
Rosehips are used for food and medicine. The hips are high in Vitamins A, B, C, D, and K, calcium, silica, iron, phosphorous and pectin. Be sure to only eat the outer rind, because the seeds contain hairs that are irritating to the digestive tract. Rosehips tea is used for sore throats, colds, diarrhea, and other conditions.
Cantharelles cibarius | Fall | Native
Chanterelles are among the most popular of fungi found in Pacific Northwest. There are several varieties of chanterelles in this area, several of them edible. Golden chanterelles have an earthy, peppery taste and their tan yellow skins make them relatively easy to spot—in theory!
Mushrooming can a be fun, satisfying, and delicious hobby, but knowing how to properly identify edible mushrooms—and avoid toxic or poisonous look-alikes—is the most important component of this activity. Before you go, make sure you know what you’re looking for, and what you’re not looking for. Consult ID guides in books like Wild Edible Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest. The Mushroom Forager website describes a few of the most common chanterelle imposters, as does Leslie Land. Study up on the imposters and bring some pictures with you if you can.
Tips: Always remember these stern words of warning from Northern Bushcraft: “Do not attempt to identify a mushroom by matching the pictures alone; compare all the listed characteristics. Never experiment with a mushroom that you cannot positively identify, that is over-ripe, damaged, or collected from contaminated areas. Consuming poisonous mushrooms can kill you.”
BONUS recipe from Pam Hayes, steward of FSC®-certified forest Hyla Woods:
Chanterelle Pasta Sauce
heavy whipping cream
1. Clean and chop chanterelles.
2. Dry saute them in a skillet and when they are cooked and most of the liquid has evaporated, add some white wine and let it cook down. Remove chanterelles.
3. In skillet cook chopped shallots and remove. In skillet cook thinly sliced chicken breast meat. Co