Finders Keepers: Tennessee Experts Talk Foraging for Food and Health

In partnership with: Tennessee Department of Agriculture

Growing up as an only child whose parents lived through two world wars and the Great Depression, Ila Hatter learned survival skills at an early age.

“My parents taught me everything they knew about survival. Foraging was part of our lifestyle,” Hatter says. “One of my earliest memories is standing on the hood of our car picking wild grapes and then helping my mother make jelly
from them.”

See more: A Beginner’s Guide to Mushroom Foraging, According to Forest-Loving Chefs

Foraging for Food & Farmacy

Today, Hatter teaches a course called Foraging for Food & Farmacy in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to share her knowledge. She lives on the North Carolina side of the Smokies, but as an instructor for the University of Tennessee’s Smoky Mountain Field School, she teaches the foraging course in Gatlinburg twice a year – typically in June and August.

Participants learn to identify plants and trees Native Americans and early settlers used for food, medicine, dye and crafts. They also search the forests and fields for mushrooms, berries, herbs and nuts, and sample wild foods that Hatter prepares. Foraged meals can include nutrient-dense watercress and cream cheese sandwiches, rose petal jam, cooked violet greens and Cherokee chestnut bread.

“Foraging isn’t something I ever thought I’d be teaching,” says Hatter, who spent 27 years working as a graphic artist. “In recent years, I’ve seen a resurgence in interest in foraging. Some of it has to do with the shortage of supplies during the pandemic when people couldn’t get certain things. People are also interested in sourcing local foods.”

Mushrooms, Ginseng and More

Like Hatter, Chris Eaton of Hermitage grew up exploring the woods for wild edibles. He owns land in Cheatham County and likes to forage there.

“My family has looked for ginseng for generations,” Eaton says. “Around 1900, my great-great-grandfather dug and sold ginseng as a young kid to make his way from Jackson County to work in Nashville.”

Ginseng is a plant whose root has been used medicinally around the world for centuries.

“Some things in the woods are quite valuable,” Eaton says. “Two of the higher dollar things you can find in Tennessee are ginseng and goldenseal. A pound of dry root can be $600 to $1,200, depending on the quality of the root. Ginseng is a species in decline, partially because it takes five to seven years to mature. The bulk of it is sold to Asian countries.”

Eaton’s favorite thing to forage is mushrooms, which have culinary and medicinal uses.

“There are so many kinds of mushrooms. Some taste really good, and some are very good for your health,” Eaton says. “Turkey tail is common around here. You don’t want to just go and eat it, but scientifically, it has shown cancer-killing properties. Lion’s mane grows here too, and that’s extraordinarily good for your brain and tastes like seafood.”

Classic morel mushrooms have an earthy, nutty flavor.

“Morels are so delicious,” he says. “And chanterelle mushrooms are a culinary delight. I like mixing them into eggs.”

Foraging Do’s and Don’ts

While foraging can be a rewarding way to source your own food, it can also be dangerous if you don’t follow proper protocols. Some local flora are toxic, and others are protected species that are only legal to collect during certain seasons.

Hatter encourages people to consider three things when foraging: identification, location and multiplication.

“Start with proper identification – being absolutely positive about what you are going to ingest or put on your skin. Second, make sure it’s in an area that is not polluted and hasn’t been sprayed with toxins. And third, multiplication – make sure there is a good colony of it so you don’t take everything and there is some left to reproduce,” she says. “Native Americans never ran out of resources because they took just what they needed and left the rest. Our Western civilization has forgotten that, and we’ve lost things as a result.”

A good rule is if you cannot identify a fruit, plant or mushroom, don’t eat it. Even with experience, Eaton triple-checks everything he finds in the field. He recommends mushroom hunters follow the Tennessee Mushroom Identification Facebook page, where foragers share photos of recent finds and help determine which mushrooms are edible.

“With mushrooms, I check them in the field and check them again once I’m home,” he says. “After rinsing them, I look at them again. I’m 110% sure of what I’m eating before I feed it to my family.”

Finders Keepers

You must also follow state and local laws. The Tennessee Valley Authority allows you to gather reasonable quantities for non-commercial use on public lands, but state and national parks typically have their own rules and permitting procedures.

Hatter and Eaton agree their favorite part of foraging is simply being outdoors in nature.

“Most people are indoors on computers so much now,” Hatter says. “Getting outside is a healthy thing to do. It’s fulfilling for me to help people learn about the treasures of the forest. When you know something’s name, it becomes a friend.”

Foraging 101

When foraging, practice safe picking to ensure you don’t get sick.

1. The Right Spot

When foraging, don’t collect in questionable areas including near dog parks, along busy roadways or near areas sprayed with pesticides.

2. Foraging Friends

Keep yourself safe from toxic plants and other possible dangers by foraging with a group rather than alone. Having support is also helpful in accurately evaluating the plants during foraging.

3. Are You Sure?

You can’t be too sure when foraging. Take a reference book of local flora on the trail to check against the plants you find. Always bring them back to the house for a wash and a second examination before use.