Beginners Guide To Herb/Wild Flower Identification

I was at a herb workshop back in December 2007 and one of the ladies attending with me, asked about books that were easy to carry around with you, to help identify herbs whilst out and about. There are a few good ones that I'll list below. It's also a good idea to take along a note book and write down where you see the herb growing, time of year etc, just in case you're not sure if it is a young nettle shoot or something else. I use my camera as a 'notebook' if I come across a plant I don't know or I'm not sure about, I take photos of the leaves, stems, flowers and any other bits that may help identify the plant as well as an over view and when I get back use my larger books to identify the plant.

It also helps to make a note of height and width etc and any unusual things about the plant. An easy way to identify new plants is to first know what to expect, so discover what does grow locally by checking the Postcode Plant Database run by the National History Museum. By entering the first part of your postcode you will generate a list of all the local flora in your area. From there you can look the plants up and make notes of the edible ones, and document a way of identifying them before you go out. Make sure you take note of the growing season. No point in going looking for hawthorn blossom in September! Local medicinal herbalists and local council experts often arrange wild flower walks so they're worth attending. Medicinal herbalists tend to do herb walks during Herbal Medicine Awareness Week, so keep an eye out.

As well as wild flower/herb/plant books, I also use Botanical Society of the British Isles Flora Search index and the British Wild Flowers websites. You can use the links above to find pictures that you can print off to help you identify specific herbs. Varying habitats and locations will also pay dividends as different herbs grow in different conditions.

I should stress if you're not 100% certain what a plant is, you should never pick it and use it medicinally, so many plants look like other plants you could be wrong. There's also the legal and ecological aspect of wildcrafting (see the guide below). Anyway as not all herbs actually have that title, and some of them are listed in wild flower books despite having medicinal properties, I've listed a few wild flower and herb field guides that I think would be useful to the beginner. The marks out of 10 are my own personal guide as to how useful I've found them. There are other really wonderful and useful books for identifying wildflowers and herbs, but not all of them are portable, so I've kept this list to the ones that can easily be carried around.

Collins Nature Guide - Wild Flowers of Britain and Northern Europe ISBN 0-26-167403-X This is a good little guide that shows colour photos and not illustrations, it also shows groups of plants on a page so you can see others in the same family. 7/10

Herbs and Healing Plants of Britain & Europe. ISBN 0-26-167405-6 Another useful guide that shows colour photos making it easier to identify things. 7/10

Food for Free (Collins Natural History) ISBN 0-00-219865-7 This book by Richard Mabey helps identify common wild plants and herbs such as meadowsweet, elderberry, wood sorrel. It also has seaweed, trees and fungi in it, an all round good guide with some nice recipes in for using the wild bounty once found, but its hard to identify some of the plants from the illustrations. 5/10

Herbs of Britain and Europe (Michelin Green Guides) ISBN 1-85974-928-3 Basic book, it costs just £2.50 and will help you identify some things such as borage, comfrey and garlic mustard, the illustrations are not always to scale and it does have things you're not likely to find on a trip to the canal or local hedegrow. 3/10

Easy Way to Wild Flower Recognition (Larousse easy way guides) This book is by John Kilbracken and is doesn't have an ISBN number as it was published in 1985. I got mine via Ebay so you may be able to find it there or through Amazon. Despite having illustration drawings this book is excellent in that it takes you step by step to identifying the plant it starts by asking what colour are the flowers, you then move to the number it tells you to with plants with flowers of that colour, it then asks what the leaves look like, what are the flowers shaped like, what size, each page eliminates what the plant isn't until you get to what it is! A brilliant beginners book and taught me an awful lot whilst out in the field. 10/10

Wildcrafting Guidelines

The term wildcrafting denotes a high degree of ecological awareness and a deep respect for the living Earth that sustains all life forms. We have a duty as custodians of nature to ensure that the same plants and habitats will be enjoyed by future generations.

• Before gathering any wild plant, check that it is not threatened, endangered or protected. If in doubt, contact the statutory plant conservation agency in your locality/country – the address and phone number should be available from your public library or your local Tourist Information Office.

• Be careful not to trespass when picking plants and never take material from a nature reserve or protected site.

• Gather modest quantities (no more than you need) and only from places where the plant is growing in abundance. A stand of plants must never be harvested in its entirety.

• In Britain and many other countries it is illegal to uproot any wild plant without permission from the landowner, irrespective of whether it is a protected species. Once permission has been granted to dig up a common plant, do so in moderation and do not leave holes in the ground. These should be filled and levelled with the disturbed soil from where the plants were uprooted.

• Never gather plants that have been exposed to traffic fumes, factory emissions, agricultural chemicals, or any other form of pollution.

• Never introduce an alien species into the wild. There are many cases of alien plants that have naturalised in a locality, but due to their rampant growth have stifled native species.

• Collecting wild flower/herb seeds for private gardening must also be done sparingly and only common species should be gathered. Always leave behind plenty of seed for the birds and for the plant to self-seed.

• Always tidy up after harvesting to ensure the area appears undisturbed by your activities.

• Wildcrafting is also about mindfulness, about never taking anything for granted and remembering always to give thanks.