Alex's Foragable Plants

Artemisia vulgaris (common mugwort or common wormwood) is one of several species in the genus Artemisia commonly known as mugwort, although Artemisia vulgaris is the species most often called mugwort. This species is also occasionally known as riverside wormwood, felon herb, chrysanthemum weed, wild wormwood, old Uncle Henry, sailor's tobacco, naughty man, old man or St. John's plant (not to b less ↑

Reynoutria japonica, synonyms Fallopia japonica and Polygonum cuspidatum, is a large species of herbaceous perennial plant of the knotweed and buckwheat family Polygonaceae. It is commonly known as Asian knotweed or Japanese knotweed. It is native to East Asia in Japan, China and Korea. In North America and Europe, the species has successfully established itself in numerous habitats and is classified as an invasive species in several countries. less ↑

The Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus), also called sunroot, sunchoke, earth apple, or topinambour, is a species of sunflower native to eastern North America, and found from eastern Canada and Maine west to North Dakota, and south to northern Florida and Texas. It is also cultivated widely across the temperate zone for its tuber, which is used as a root vegetable. less ↑

Claytonia (spring beauty) is a genus of flowering plants native to North America, Central America, and Asia. The genus was formerly included in Portulacaceae but is now classified in the family Montiaceae, primarily native to the mountain chains of Asia and North America, with a couple of species extending south to Guatemala in Central America, and northwest to Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and Russia in eastern Asia. less ↑

Clover or trefoil are common names for plants of the genus Trifolium (Latin, tres "three" + folium "leaf"), consisting of about 300 species of plants in the leguminous pea family Fabaceae. A group of clovers is called a cluff. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution; the highest diversity is found in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, but many species also occur in South America and Africa, including at high altitudes on mountains in the tropics. They a less ↑

Oxalis acetosella (wood sorrel or common wood sorrel) is a rhizomatous flowering plant in the family Oxalidaceae, common in most of Europe and parts of Asia. The specific name is acetosella, refers to its sour taste. The common name wood sorrel is often used for other plants in the genus Oxalis. In much of its range it is the only member of its genus and hence simply known as "the" wood sorrel. While common wood sorrel... less ↑

Common chicory (Cichorium intybus) is a somewhat woody, perennial herbaceous plant of the dandelion family Asteraceae, usually with bright blue flowers, rarely white or pink. Many varieties are cultivated for salad leaves, chicons (blanched buds), or roots (var. sativum), which are baked, ground, and used as a coffee substitute and food additive. In the 21st century, inulin, an extract from chicory root, has been used in food manufacturing as a sweetener and source of dietary less ↑

A daylily is a flowering plant in the genus Hemerocallis /ˌhɛmɪroʊˈkælɪs/. Gardening enthusiasts and professional horticulturalists have long bred daylily species for their attractive flowers. Thousands of cultivars have been registered by local and international Hemerocallis societies. Hemerocallis is now placed in family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae, but used to be part of Liliaceae (which includes true lilies). less ↑

Matteuccia is a genus of ferns with one species, Matteuccia struthiopteris (common names ostrich fern, fiddlehead fern or shuttlecock fern). It is a crown-forming, colony-forming plant, occurring in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere in central and northern Europe, northern Asia, and northern North America. The species epithet struthiopteris comes from Ancient Greek words, struthio meaning ostrich and pterion meaning less ↑

Typha /ˈtaɪfə/ is a genus of about 30 species of monocotyledonous flowering plants in the family Typhaceae. These plants have many common names, in British English as bulrush, or reedmace, in American English as cattail, punks, or corn dog grass, in Australia as cumbungi or bulrush, in Canada as bulrush or cattail, and in New Zealand as raupō. Other taxa of plants may be known as bulrush, including some sedges in less ↑

Chamaenerion angustifolium is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant in the willowherb family Onagraceae. It is known in North America as fireweed, in some parts of Canada as great willowherb, in Britain and Ireland as rosebay willowherb. In the United Kingdom it is also known as bombweed, as a result of its rapid appearance on city bomb sites during the Blitz of World War II.: 112  It is also known by the synonyms Chamerion angustifolium and Ep less ↑

Helianthus annuus, the common sunflower, is a large annual forb of the genus Helianthus grown as a crop for its edible oil and edible fruits (sunflower seeds). This sunflower species is also used as bird food, as livestock forage (as a meal or a silage plant), and in some industrial applications. The plant was first domesticated in the Americas. Wild Helianthus annuus is a widely branched annual plant with many flower heads. The domestic sunflower, however,... less ↑

Capsella bursa-pastoris, known by its common name shepherd's purse because of its triangular flat fruits, which are purse-like, is a small (up to 0.5 m) annual and ruderal flowering plant in the mustard family Brassicaceae. It is native to eastern Europe and Asia minor, but is naturalized and considered a common weed in many parts of the world, especially in colder climates, including British Isles, where it is regarded as an archaeophyte, North America and China, but... less ↑

Rumex acetosella, commonly known as sheep's sorrel, red sorrel, sour weed and field sorrel, is a species of flowering plant in the buckwheat family Polygonaceae. The plant and its subspecies are common perennial weeds. It has green arrowhead-shaped leaves and red-tinted deeply ridged stems, and it sprouts from an aggressive and spreading rhizome. The flowers emerge from a tall, upright stem. Female flowers are maroon in color. less ↑

The Morchellaceae are a family of ascomycete fungi. According to a standard reference work, the family has contained at least 49 species distributed among 4 genera, but in 2012, 5 genera producing the sequestrate and hypogeous ascoma were added. The best-known members are the highly regarded and commercially picked true morels of the genus Morchella, the thimble morels of the genus Verpa, and a genus of cup-shaped fungi Disciotis. The remaining four genera produce the less ↑

Polyporus squamosus aka Cerioporus squamosus (yet to be confirmed new taxonomy) is a basidiomycete bracket fungus, with common names including dryad's saddle and pheasant's back mushroom. It has a widespread distribution, being found in North America, Australia, Asia, and Europe, where it causes a white rot in the heartwood of living and dead hardwood trees. The name "dryad's saddle" refers to creatures in Greek mythology called dryads who could conceivably fit less ↑

Grifola frondosa is a polypore mushroom that grows in clusters at the base of trees, particularly oaks. The mushroom is commonly known among English speakers as hen-of-the-woods, ram's head and sheep's head. It is typically found in late summer to early autumn. In the United States' supplement market, as well as in Asian grocery stores, the mushroom is known by its Japanese name maitake (舞茸, "dancing mushroom"). Throughout Italian American communit less ↑

Auricularia is a genus of jelly fungi in the family Auriculariaceae. Preliminary phylogenetic studies suggest the Exidiaceae is closely related to Auriculariaceae - the two share many morphological traits. Fruitbody either resupinate or pileate and then either ear-to shell-shaped or forming narrow, imbricate brackets, flabby elastic or tough gelatinous; hymenial surface smooth, wrinkled or veined, often purplish. Basidia cylindrical, with 1-3 transeverse septa. Spores narrowly ellip less ↑

Coprinellus micaceus is a common species of fungus in the family Psathyrellaceae with a cosmopolitan distribution. The fruit bodies of the saprobe typically grow in clusters on or near rotting hardwood tree stumps or underground tree roots. Depending on their stage of development, the tawny-brown mushroom caps may range in shape from oval to bell-shaped to convex, and reach diameters up to 3 cm (1.2 in). The caps, marked with fine radial grooves that extend nearly to the... less ↑

Pleurocybella porrigens is a species of fungus in the Marasmiaceae family. The species is widespread in temperate forests of the Northern Hemisphere. P. porrigens, known as the angel wing, is a white-rot wood-decay fungus on conifer wood, particularly hemlock (genus Tsuga). The flesh is thin and fragile compared to the oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ssp.). less ↑

Hericium erinaceus (also called lion's mane mushroom, monkey head mushroom, bearded tooth mushroom, satyr's beard, bearded hedgehog mushroom, pom pom mushroom, or bearded tooth fungus) is an edible and medicinal mushroom belonging to the tooth fungus group. Native to North America, Europe and Asia it can be identified by its long spines (greater than 1 cm length), its appearance on hardwoods and its tendency to grow a single clump of less ↑

Boletus edulis (English: penny bun, cep, porcino or porcini) is a basidiomycete fungus, and the type species of the genus Boletus. Widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere across Europe, Asia, and North America, it does not occur naturally in the Southern Hemisphere, although it has been introduced to southern Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. Several closely related European mushrooms formerly thought to be varieties or forms of B. edulis h less ↑

Apioperdon pyriforme commonly known as the pear-shaped puffball or stump puffball, is a saprobic fungus present throughout much of the world. Emerging in autumn, this puffball is common and abundant on decaying logs of both deciduous and coniferous wood. It is considered a choice edible when still immature and the inner flesh is white. It is often called Lycoperdon pyriforme, but was transferred to Apioperdon in 2017 based on phylogenetic an less ↑

Coprinus comatus, the shaggy ink cap, lawyer's wig, or shaggy mane, is a common fungus often seen growing on lawns, along gravel roads and waste areas. The young fruit bodies first appear as white cylinders emerging from the ground, then the bell-shaped caps open out. The caps are white, and covered with scales—this is the origin of the common names of the fungus. The gills beneath the cap are white, then pink, then turn black and... less ↑

Laetiporus sulphureus is a species of bracket fungus (fungi that grow on trees) found in Europe and North America. Its common names are crab-of-the-woods, sulphur polypore, sulphur shelf, and chicken-of-the-woods. Its fruit bodies grow as striking golden-yellow shelf-like structures on tree trunks and branches. Old fruitbodies fade to pale beige or pale grey. The undersurface of the fruit body is made up of tubelike pores rather than gills. less ↑

Inonotus obliquus, commonly known as chaga mushroom (a Latinisation of the Russian term 'чага'), is a fungus in the family Hymenochaetaceae. It is parasitic on birch and other trees. The sterile conk is irregularly formed and has the appearance of burnt charcoal. It is not the fruiting body of the fungus, but a sclerotium or mass of mycelium, mostly black because of the presence of massive amounts of melanin. The fertile fruiting body can be found... less ↑

Guepinia is a genus of fungus in the Auriculariales order. It is a monotypic genus, containing the single species Guepinia helvelloides, commonly known as the apricot jelly. The fungus produces salmon-pink, ear-shaped, gelatinous fruit bodies that grow solitarily or in small tufted groups on soil, usually associated with buried rotting wood. The fruit bodies are 4–10 cm (1.6–3.9 in) tall and up to 17 cm (6.7 in) wide; the stalks are not well-differentiated from less ↑

Sarcoscypha coccinea, commonly known as the scarlet elf cup, scarlet elf cap, or the scarlet cup, is a species of fungus in the family Sarcoscyphaceae of the order Pezizales. The fungus, widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere, has been found in Africa, Asia, Europe, North and South America, and Australia. The type species of the genus Sarcoscypha, S. coccinea has been known by many names since its first appearance in the scientific literatur less ↑

Fistulina hepatica (beefsteak fungus, also known as beefsteak polypore, ox tongue, or tongue mushroom) is an unusual bracket fungus classified in the Agaricales, that is commonly seen in Britain, but can be found in North America, Australia, North Africa, Southern Africa and the rest of Europe. As its name suggests, it looks remarkably similar to a slab of raw meat. It has been used as a meat substitute in the past, and can still be found less ↑

Robinia pseudoacacia, commonly known in its native territory as black locust, is a medium-sized deciduous tree native to the southeastern United States, but it has been widely planted and naturalized elsewhere in temperate North America, Europe, Southern Africa and Asia and is considered an invasive species in some areas. Another common name is false acacia, a literal translation of the specific name (pseudo meaning fake or false and acacia referring to t less ↑

Asclepias syriaca, commonly called common milkweed, butterfly flower, silkweed, silky swallow-wort, and Virginia silkweed, is a species of flowering plant. It is in the genus Asclepias, the milkweeds. This species is native to southern Canada and of much of the conterminous eastern U.S., east of the Rocky Mountains, excluding the drier parts of the prairies. It grows in sandy soils and other kinds of soils in sunny areas. It was one of the e less ↑

Tragopogon pratensis (common names Jack-go-to-bed-at-noon, meadow salsify, showy goat's-beard or meadow goat's-beard) is a biennial plant in the Asteraceae family, distributed across Europe and North America, commonly growing in fields (hence its name) and on roadsides. It is found in North America from southern Ontario to Massachusetts; most of England; on the eastern and southern edges of Scotland; and central Ireland but not the coastal edges. less ↑

Heracleum maximum, cow parsnip (also known as Indian celery, Indian rhubarb or pushki) is the only member of the genus Heracleum native to North America. Its classification has caused some difficulty, with recent authoritative sources referring to it variously as Heracleum maximum or Heracleum lanatum, or as either a subspecies, H. sphondylium subsp. montanum, or a variety, H. sphondylium var. lanatum, of t less ↑

Morchella americana is a species of fungus in the Morchellaceae family native to North America. Described as new to science in 2012, it is common east of the Rocky Mountains in a range stretching from Ontario south to Texas, Arkansas and South Carolina. In western North America, the species typically is found under hardwood trees in river bottoms, or with apple trees or ornamental ashes in urban settings. The specific epithet americana refers to its occurrence... less ↑

Morchella angusticeps is a species of fungus in the Morchellaceae family native to eastern North America. Described by Charles Horton Peck in 1879, the name M. angusticeps was clarified in 2012 prior to which this species may have been referred to as either M. angusticeps or M. elata. M. angusticeps is one of the black morels, and is found in eastern North America, where it occurs in association with various hardwoods in the spring. less ↑

The parsnip (Pastinaca sativa) is a root vegetable closely related to the carrot and parsley. It is a biennial plant usually grown as an annual. Its long, tuberous root has cream-colored skin and flesh; and left in the ground to mature, it becomes sweeter in flavor after winter frosts. In its first growing season, the plant has a rosette of pinnate, mid-green leaves. If unharvested, it produces its flowering stem, topped by an umbel of small... less ↑

Vicia americana is a species of legume in the vetch genus known by the common names American vetch and purple vetch. It includes a subspecies known as mat vetch. It is a climbing perennial forb that grows from both taproot and rhizome. The leaves are each made up of oblong leaflets and have tendrils for climbing. It bears showy pea-like flowers in shades of lavender and fuchsia. The fruit is a hairless pod about 3 centimeters... less ↑

Floerkea is a monotypic genus of plants in the meadowfoam family containing the sole species Floerkea proserpinacoides, which is known by the common names false mermaid, false mermaidweed, and floerkea. This tiny wildflower is native to many parts of North America, where it is found in moist areas such as shady forests. It is a fleshy annual herb which grows short stems which may lie flat on the ground, tangle into a clump, or grow somewhat... less ↑

Nelumbo lutea is a species of flowering plant in the family Nelumbonaceae. Common names include American lotus, yellow lotus, water-chinquapin, and volée. It is native to North America. The Linnaean binomial Nelumbo lutea (Willd.) is the currently recognized name for this species, which has been classified under the former names Nelumbium luteum and Nelumbo pentapetala, among others. less ↑

Allium tricoccum (commonly known as ramp, ramps, spring onion, ramson, wild leek, wood leek, and wild garlic) is a North American species of wild onion widespread across eastern Canada and the eastern United States. Many of the English names are also used for other Allium species, particularly the similar Allium ursinum which is native to Europe and Asia. less ↑

Allium canadense, also known as Canada onion, Canadian garlic, wild garlic, meadow garlic and wild onion is a perennial plant native to eastern North America from Texas to Florida to New Brunswick to Montana. The species is also cultivated in other regions as an ornamental and as a garden culinary herb. The plant is also reportedly naturalized in Cuba. less ↑

Psoralea esculenta, common name prairie turnip, is an herbaceous perennial plant native to prairies and dry woodlands of central North America, which bears a starchy tuberous root edible as a root vegetable. The plant is also known as Pediomelum esculentum. English names for the plant include tipsin, teepsenee, breadroot, breadroot scurf pea, large Indian breadroot and pomme blanche. The prairie turnip was a staple food less ↑

An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (Malus domestica). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus Malus. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, Malus sieversii, is still found today. Apples have been grown for thousands of years in Asia and Europe and were brought to North America by European colonists. Apples have religious and mythological significance in many cultures less ↑

Sisymbrium loeselii is a species of flowering plant in the mustard family known by several common names, including small tumbleweed mustard, false London-rocket, and tall hedge mustard. It is native to Eurasia, and it is known on other continents as an introduced species and in some areas a common roadside weed. It is an annual herb producing a hairy, erect stem which can exceed a meter in height. The leaf blades are divided into triangular, lance-shaped,... less ↑

Acer rubrum, the red maple, also known as swamp, water or soft maple, is one of the most common and widespread deciduous trees of eastern and central North America. The U.S. Forest service recognizes it as the most abundant native tree in eastern North America. The red maple ranges from southeastern Manitoba around the Lake of the Woods on the border with Ontario and Minnesota, east to Newfoundland, south to Florida, and southwest to eastern Texas.... less ↑

Acer saccharum, the sugar maple or rock maple, is a species of maple native to the hardwood forests of eastern Canada, from Nova Scotia west through Quebec and southern Ontario to southeastern Manitoba around Lake of the Woods, and the northern parts of the Central and Eastern United States, from Minnesota eastward to the highlands of the eastern states. Sugar maple is best known for its bright fall foliage and for being the primary source of... less ↑

Acer × freemanii, Freeman maple or Freeman's maple, is a naturally occurring hybrid of maple that is the result of a cross between Acer rubrum (red maple) and Acer saccharinum (silver maple). The species is named for Oliver M. Freeman of the U.S. National Arboretum who hybridized A. rubrum with A. saccharinum in 1933. Wild specimens are found in eastern North America where the parent species overlap. The fall foliage is a striking orange-red less ↑

Acer floridanum (syn. Acer saccharum subsp. floridanum (Chapm.) Desmarais, Acer barbatum auct. non Michx.), commonly known as the Florida maple and occasionally as the southern sugar maple or hammock maple, is a tree that occurs in mesic and usually calcareous woodlands of the Atlantic and Gulf coastal plain in the United States, from southeastern Virginia in the north, south to central Florida, and west to Oklahoma and Texas. less ↑

Vaccinium pallidum is a species of flowering plant in the heath family known by the common names hillside blueberry, Blue Ridge blueberry, late lowbush blueberry, and early lowbush blueberry. It is native to central Canada (Ontario) and the central and eastern United States (from Maine west to Wisconsin and south as far as Georgia and Louisiana) plus the Ozarks of Missouri, Arkansas, southeastern Kansas and eastern Oklahoma. less ↑

Astragalus crassicarpus, known as ground plum or buffalo plum, is a perennial species of flowering plant in the legume family, Fabaceae, native to North America. It was described in 1813. The fruit is edible and was used by Native Americans as food and horse medicine. It is a host of afranius duskywing larvae. It is also known as groundplum milkvetch and pomme de prairie. less ↑

Monarda fistulosa, the wild bergamot or bee balm, is a wildflower in the mint family (Lamiaceae) widespread and abundant as a native plant in much of North America. This plant, with showy summer-blooming pink to lavender flowers, is often used as a honey plant, medicinal plant, and garden ornamental. The species is quite variable, and several subspecies or varieties have been recognized within it. less ↑

Pycnanthemum virginianum, the Virginia or common mountain-mint, is a plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae. It is a herbaceous plant with narrow, opposite, simple leaves, on wiry, green stems. The flowers are white with purplish spotting, borne in summer. Like most plants in the genus, the foliage has a strong mint fragrance when crushed or disturbed. It is native to the eastern United States and eastern Canada. less ↑