Many people treat poisonous plants with fear and revulsion, but with a slight shift in perspective you can learn to appreciate their power and beauty. Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging as we learn about noteworthy poisonous plants (and a few mushrooms!) of the Upper Midwest. The focus will be on Minnesota species, though most folks living in the eastern and central regions of the US and Canada will benefit from this knowledge. We will discuss identification and toxicity, and go over edible species that are considered “look-alikes.” Covered species will include poison hemlock, water hemlock, poison ivy, destroying angel, deadly galerina, and more.

Come join the Wright County Master Gardeners for Spring Days—a fun-filled and educational gardening day! Kicking off this exciting event will be a keynote presentation, followed by three jam-packed informational sessions. There’s something for everyone!

Easy Foraging: Common Wild Edibles of Minnesota

If you’re interested in foraging wild foods but don’t know where to start, look no further! Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging for an introductory lesson discussing common mushrooms, fruits, and greens. You will leave with basic knowledge of how to identify, harvest, and prepare several wild edibles on your own, impressing your friends and family with new tasty foods!

Ready to dive into identifying, processing, and even tasting evergreens this winter? Maria will share information about some of the evergreens commonly available in the upper Midwest, how to identify, harvest, or source, and prepare them in this hands-on version of her popular lecture. Maria will lead the class in preparing white pine, white cedar, and juniper, and students will go home with a sample of juniper butter. The classroom is sure to smell great, and students will have lots of time to get all their questions answered.

Wildlife tracking is a skill that has sustained humanity since our origins. Though most of us no longer need it to survive, this practice is fundamental to our species; reconnecting to it brings joy, improves the use of our senses, and builds relationship with other animals. With time, dedication, and guidance, we can learn to read animal’s signs on the landscape as one reads words on a page.

Join Maria Wesserle (certified Professional Track & Sign through CyberTracker North America) as we immerse ourselves in our surrounding environment while interpreting evidence left by fellow creatures. We may come across footprints (tracks), scat, feeding sign, burrows, and other marks on the land of animals such as deer, raccoons, red fox, woodpeckers, owls, and more! Together we will learn about and discuss foot morphology, gaits, animal behavior, and ecology.

Juniper berries give a fresh, distinctive flavor whenever they’re used, so distinctive that they are sometimes a challenge for a cook to incorporate into a Nordic meal. Expert forager and a person with an appreciation for juniper’s unique qualities, Maria Wesserle, will teach you how to identify, prepare, and serve juniper in a variety of ways.

Animal tracking offers many gifts, one of them being its ability to help engage your senses and slow your mind. Join Maria Wesserle (certified Professional Track & Sign through CyberTracker North America) as we immerse ourselves in our surrounding environment while searching for evidence left by fellow creatures. We may come across footprints (tracks), scat, feeding sign, burrows, and other marks on the land of animals such as deer, raccoons, red fox, woodpeckers, owls, and more!

Many people think that you can’t forage in the winter, but this is not true! Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging as we head outside into a winter wonderland to explore what wild edibles the season has in store. Plants we may cover include Kentucky coffeetree, hackberry, and juniper. We will discuss laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species.

Ready to dive into identifying, processing, and even tasting evergreens this winter? Maria Wesserle will share information about some of the evergreens commonly available in the upper Midwest, how to identify, harvest or source, and prepare them in this hands-on version of her popular lecture. The classroom is sure to smell great, and students will have lots of time to get all their questions answered.

Fall is an abundant time of year for foragers, with roots, nuts, and late-season fruits ripe and ready for the picking! Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging to learn about wild harvesting through this bountiful season. We will discuss laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species. Wild edible plants that we may find include black walnuts, crab apples, hackberries, burdock, and more. If we’re lucky, we may get to harvest some nuts or fruit together!

It’s unnecessary to trek into the wilderness to harvest wild edibles—there are options right here in the city! Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging to explore the urban environment in search of wild foods.

The class will focus on easy to identify seasonal fruit and nuts, starting right on ASI’s campus. Participants will also discuss other wild edibles found along the way as well as the cultural heritage of foraging in Sweden and other Scandinavian countries.

Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging for a full day of foraging! Take a trip out to the countryside for an in-depth exploration of wild plants and mushrooms. We will discuss laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species. Foragables that we may find include dock seeds, hackberries, chicken of the woods, hen of the woods, and more! If we’re lucky, we may even get to harvest some late-season mushrooms, nuts, fruits, or other foods.

Take a trip out to the countryside for a foraging field day! Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging to learn about wild harvesting of plants and mushrooms in rural areas. We will discuss laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species. Plant and mushroom species that we may find include nettle seeds, elderberries, hen of the woods, puffball mushrooms, and more! Bring your basket, as we will be able to sustainably harvest wild edibles that we find!

We share this Earth with a multitude of plants and animals, but we might not notice them in our daily lives. Though we’re born with the ability to recognize these beings and their signs on the landscape, most of us aren’t encouraged to learn this practice. Support and mentoring from experienced teachers can activate this capacity. While we no longer need this skill to survive, developing familiarity with our kin can yield deep peace, joy, and connection to a greater whole.

Join Maria Wesserle and Kirsten Welge to awaken your senses and relate to the land and its inhabitants as a part of an interconnected, resilient earth. This program will weave together experiences of foraging, wildlife tracking, and shinrin yoku (forest bathing) to help you become more familiar with your plant and animal neighbors. Participants will be introduced to sensory exercises, identification of edible plants and mushrooms on the land, and animal track and sign identification.

Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging and Jaime Rockney of Chick of the Woods for a day of foraging fun! Learn all about edible fall goodies in the woods! The morning will be mushroom-centric with a presentation by Chick of the Woods on common edible fall mushrooms, followed by a walk in the woods searching for, talking about, and picking the mushrooms we find. A home-style lunch will follow and will be included with your ticket. The afternoon will be focused on all things plants! Maria will teach us all about plants, berries, and nuts that are in season followed by a walk in the woods finding, identifying, harvesting, and even tasting some forest delicacies.

Join us at Sapsucker Farms in Mora for an introductory foraging workshop with Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging. We'll be learning all about the different native plants and mushrooms suitable for medicinal and culinary use, and how to identify them. Foraging has been around for centuries and this program will touch on the ethics of preserving plants for future generations.

Join Ariel and Maria for a full day of foraging fun at the Hartley Nature Center in Duluth! The workshop will start with two indoor slideshow presentations: one covering introductory information about wild mushroom foraging, and the other about wild edible plants we may find in the area. We will then break for lunchtime (please bring your own bag lunch!) and hit the trails afterwards to apply our newfound knowledge to the surrounding landscape. Mushrooms and plants we may encounter include nettle, meadowsweet, bunchberries, wild cherries, chicken of the woods, chanterelles, porcini, oysters, and more! Bring your own bags or baskets, as we can pick any edible mushrooms or fruit we come across! Please note that we are not allowed to pick plant parts like greens, flowers, and roots.

Wild edibles grow all around us, you just have to know what to look for! Bring your basket and join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging as we hike around the forests, fields and wetlands of Wargo in search of wild edible plants and mushrooms. We'll discuss identification, sustainable harvesting methods and preparation. If we get lucky, we may get to pick some fruits or mushrooms! This class will be held rain or shine, so please dress for the weather.

Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging for a full day of foraging! Take a trip out to the countryside for an in-depth exploration of wild plants and mushrooms. We will discuss laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species. Plants and mushrooms that we may find include wild grapes, wild plums, chanterelles, and chicken of the woods! If we’re lucky, we may even get to harvest some mushrooms or fruits. (We won’t be able to collect greens, flowers, or roots, but we can learn about them!)

It’s unnecessary to trek into the wilderness to harvest wild edibles—there are options right here in the city! Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging to explore the urban environment in search of wild foods.

The class will focus on easy to identify flowers and fruits, starting right on ASI’s campus. Participants will also discuss other wild edibles found along the way and the cultural heritage of foraging in Sweden and other Scandinavian countries.

Take a trip out to the countryside for some forest foraging! Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging to learn about wild harvesting of plants and mushrooms in rural areas. We will discuss laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species. Plants and mushrooms that we may find include milkweed, stinging nettle, chanterelles, chicken of the woods, and more! If we’re lucky, we may even get to harvest some mushrooms. (We won’t be able to collect greens and roots, but we can learn about them!)

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to travel to rural areas to forage! The urban environment contains a diverse (and delectable!) array of wild edibles. Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging as we learn about common wild fruits and herbs that grow in urban areas, including mulberries, raspberries, yarrow, and wild bergamot. If we’re lucky, we may get to harvest some fruit together! We will also discuss other wild edibles found along the way.

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to travel to rural areas to forage! The urban environment contains a diverse (and delectable!) array of wild edibles. Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging as we learn about common wild fruits and herbs that grow in urban areas, including mulberries, raspberries, yarrow, and wild bergamot. If we’re lucky, we may get to harvest some fruit together! We will also discuss other wild edibles found along the way.

Plants are among our oldest ancestors, and like good elders, they are full of stories and wisdom. Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging and Owen Marciano of Nonna Terra as we explore plants as elders, teachers, and guides, helping us connect to our past as we envision bright new futures.

This workshop is an opportunity to practice plant identification and to learn about the history of colonization through one plant’s stories. Through a mixture of foraging, research, and discussion, we will grapple with the weight of these histories so that we can dream forward together.

Gather together on the longest day of the year with Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging to learn about summer foraging of medicinal plants. Several species are traditionally thought to reach their peak in midsummer, including yarrow, wild bergamot, and mugwort. We will discuss identification, edibility, and medicinal uses of these species, and talk about other wild edibles we encounter in the field.

We live in inherently dysregulating times. Genocides, global warming and the quickening of late stage capitalism deeply impact our spirits and nervous systems, individually and collectively. This class offers a space to tap into one our oldest and deepest relationships. Our plant kin offer a space of remembrance, support and friendship. They also connect with our bodies medicinally, offering calm and comfort in moments of distress. This class will explore how remembering our interconnection to all beings allows us to access our grief and also offers the medicine to keep going. We will look at trauma through a non-pathologized, politicized lens, and explore what it means to be in reciprocal relationship with our plant kin. We will tell stories, hold space, and engage in embodied practice.

Discover the richness of foraging in the city! Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging as we learn about common wild fruits that grow in urban areas, including juneberries, raspberries, cherries, and aronia. Juneberries should (hopefully!) be ripe and ready to harvest. We will also discuss other common wild edibles found along the way.

Join us at Sapsucker Farms in Mora for an introductory foraging workshop with Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging. We'll be learning all about the different native plants and mushrooms suitable for medicinal and culinary use, and how to identify them. Foraging has been around for centuries and this program will touch on the ethics of preserving plants for future generations.

Take a trip out to the countryside for some forest foraging! Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging to learn about wild harvesting of plants and mushrooms in rural areas. We will discuss laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species. Plants and mushrooms that we may find include wood nettle, virginia waterleaf, oysters, chicken of the woods, and more! If we’re lucky, we may even get to harvest some mushrooms! (We won’t be able to collect greens and roots, but we can learn about them!)

A surprising number of the plants that grow all around us and are scorned as “weeds” have awesome healing properties! Furthermore, some of the beautiful flowers that are favored for landscaping are also healthful herbs. Join Four Season Foraging and Maria Wesserle as we learn edible and medicinal traits of common herbs, and how to identify them. Some plants we will cover include dandelion, linden, yarrow, and wild bergamot. Please note that we will not be harvesting any herbs, but we will have lots to discuss about them!