This Week's Woodland Grocery Specials

Want to learn more about winter foraging? Join us for our New Year's Day Plant Walk.

 Juniper pollen cones have both a pollen flavor and an evergreen flavor. They are a great seasoning for game and will add a wonderful flavor and aroma to a roast. They are also good in starchy, savory dishes. Try throwing a few into your holiday stuffing or rice recipe.   It's cold outside. What better time to bake? And if your going to bake, why not bake with wild yeasts? Wild yeasts can be found on bramble stems year round. With a bit of patience, anyone can capture and tame their own pet sourdough starter. Harvest the yeast by breaking off a piece of bramble stem and putting it in a bowl containing flour and water for a day or so. Then feed and maintain them, just like you would any pet microbe.   Witch hazel bark is a good astringent and antiseptic. The bark is best harvested when the plant is dormant, in the late fall through early spring. It can be used to make poultices, washes, and tinctures and applied topically for acne, hives, scrapes, and other skin irritations.    White pine needles are very high in Vitamin C. White pine tea is a great way to help support your immune system over the holiday season and into the coldest days of winter. White pine and mint is always a refreshing combination. But for a nice soothing winter tea, try white pine needles combined with orange peel, cinnamon, rose hips, and clove.   If you clear away the snow, or find a spot where it melts on it's own, you can actually find many different plants that are green and harvestable. In addition to garlic mustard, several other members of the mustard family also remain green over winter, and will even grow during the brief winter thaws.