The Seams & the Story

The mixed mesophytic forest that blankets Appalachia’s hills is the most biodiverse in North America. Over eighty woody species inhabit the central Appalachian forest. Throughout the growing season it is abundant with a variety of herbs, game species and edible plants and fungi. For generations, Appalachians have foraged and hunted to supplement their dinner tables, medicine cabinets and, through commercial sale, their income. Certain foods, like ramps, a type of wild leek, have become integral to Appalachian cultural traditions: each April, many communities gather for an annual ramp dinner.

The central Appalachians are a multi-layered region. Absentee landholders and coal companies control the thick bituminous coal seams beneath the surface while the forest has traditionally been treated as shared land. For years, a forager would be ill-advised to take from someone elses’ mushroom or ginseng patch, but had the freedom to roam the mountains and find patches of their own. With the increase of strip mining over the past thirty years, the surface has become increasingly gated and guarded. Foraging traditions and Appalachia’s many valuable species are being compromised by the quest for cheap energy.

What follows is a list of edibles and herbs native to the central Appalachian forest. It is heavily drawn from Tending the Commons: Folklife and Landscape in Southern West Virginia, Mary Hufford’s excellent study of West Virginia’s Coal River Valley.

Note: This article is meant as a cultural piece, and I do not suggest you go foraging on what you read in it alone. It’s important to know what plants are too endangered to harvest and how to properly identify them. If you do forage, do your research on what you are looking for and make sure you do so sustainably.

Edible Plants, Nuts & Mushrooms:

Berries: Strawberries, mulberries, blackberries, raspberries, huckleberries, elderberries, currants, groundberries, gooseberries, wineberries, blueberries

Fiddlehead fern: The unfurled fronds of a young fern, eaten as a vegetable. Not all fiddleheads are edible!

Pawpaw (Asimina): Pawpaw trees bear the largest edible fruit indigenous to North America. The fruit is reputed to be extremely delicious, with the flavor of a banana and texture of a mango.

Persimmon (Diospyros ebenacea): The fruit of a number of trees in the ebony wood family. In the United States, persimmons are often over-ripened and then used in pies and puddings.

Ramps (Allium triccocum): Ramps, part of the allium family, have a strong garlicky odor and flavor. Each April, Appalachian communities have ramp festivals, where eating these wild leeks (often in beans or eggs) is the center of the festivities. In Appalachia, they have a folkloric association with the coming of spring.

Sassafras (Lauraceae family): Has been used in the creation of fragrances, for aromatherapy and for the production of root beer.

Chanterelles (Cantharellus cibarius): These delicate, funnel-shaped mushrooms crop up in Appalachian forests during the summer months.

Chicken-of-the-Woods (Laeitporus): These mushrooms grow in large “shelves” on the trunks of trees, most commonly on the wounds of oak, cherrywood, sweet chestnut and willow. They can be prepared as a substitute for chicken.

Morels (Morchella): These highly prized mushrooms, colloquially called “molly moochers,” are hunted for consumption and profit each spring. They grow in conjunction with certain trees, including ash, popular, dead or dying elms, tulip trees and old apple trees. They are often served simply, sauteed in butter, salt and pepper.

Nuts: Hickory, Beech, Chestnut, Walnut, Hazelnut, Chinquapin

Medicinal Plants & Herbs:

Black Cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa): A strong medicinal herb used to treat menstrual cramps, the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and the physical and mental changes associated with menopause.

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria candensis): Used to treat bronchitis, asthma, croup and laryngitis.

Ginseng (Panax quinquefolius): ‘Senging is perhaps the most common foraging activity in the Appalachian mountains. The ginseng root is sold and used as an adaptogen, aphrodisiac and stimulant. Despites its popularity, many wildcrafters believe that no one should be harvesting ginseng, because it is endangered.

Jewel weed (Impatiens): Applied externally as a home remedy to treat bee stings, insect bites, poison ivy and stinging nettle rashes.

Nettle (Urtica dioica): Nettle is used for a variety of ailments, including as a detoxifying tonic, topically on inflamed joints, for eczema and, brewed in to tea, for stomach pains and hemorrhage.

Virginia Snakeroot (Aristolachia serpentaria): Traditionally used to treat snake bites, and appears to bind and deactivate the Phospholipase A2 of certain snake venoms.

Yellowroot (Xanthorhiza simplicissima): Traditionally used for ulcers and skin ailments, yellowroot is toxic in large doses.

Thanks to friends who attend the Chestnut School of Herbal Medicine in Leceister, North Carolina for looking this over and giving me feedback.