Resources

Where to find weeds
The safest place to find edible weeds is in your own back yard. At least you know they haven’t been sprayed with any poison.
However if you don’t have a back yard or don’t have weeds, here are some tips to finding good weedy harvest sites.

Check the weather and dress accordingly. Regular walks around your area to look for spots. Look out for poisons, dogs or other pollution. Also hazards such as snakes. Take a small ID guide with you to start recognising your finds.

Like most plants weed need water, minerals and sun. Look for untouched, neglected wild spaces. Empty or unmown blocks, former dump sites, gullies, watercourses, fields and paddocks, roadsides, and track edges. Look carefully at the site and what is growing there, does it look healthy and lush?

Check for signs of Chemicals
Pesticide, herbicide, petrochemical or fertiliser. What is or was the land used for? Could be in remediation for chemicals, mining, or a petrol station. Even council planting beds and Landcare sites are full of herbicide residue.
If recently sprayed the plants will be wilting, browning, or stunted. Recent spraying will show red or blue dye in targeted plants.

Water Quality
If there is an obvious water source there, where is it coming from? Is it clean? Is it runoff from stormwater or agriculture? Healthy rivers or ponds will show signs of animal (birds, fish, insects and water bugs) and plant life. If you see no signs of life – get out of there.

Identification
‘Get your eye in’ and watch out for Look-alikes eg Hemlock. It’s a good idea to learn one at a time until you know it well. I learnt by pulling them out, saying their name and studying them while bush regenerating.
Once you do this a drive anywhere will be fruitful but slightly dangerous.
Use a wide range of ID guide: Weeds; Herbals; Weed ID apps;

Identifying what you have?
Do you know its common name? – This is a starting point only as more than one plant can have the same name. Also don’t rely on just one image only when searching on the internet. Each photo will give you more information.

What is its scientific name? Once you find its scientific name you can google search for country of origin and uses in that country.

Look at the plant description – All of the visual features must add up. It is not enough to have the same flower type or leaf formation

Time of day is important. Early morning is best for greens. To collect your harvest, take along a knife or scissors, and a couple of vessels for your finds. Choose something you can comfortably carry for example: Basket, bucket, Clip lock bag, paper bag or produce net bag.

Collect only young, healthy parts. Take what only you need (what are you collecting for?). Taking along jars, containers can help over collection.

Remember you are dealing with ‘weeds’ and extra seeds/cuttings in the compost or green bin will only spread them further. Don’t create a bigger problem.

Care for site
If you are wanting to come back for more, don’t decimate the spot.
Use sharp scissors or a knife to cut leaves, a knife to get roots/tubers out.

Be discrete
Unless you want everyone to go there or the place changed, keep your spot secret. Also, not everyone is open to harvesting weeds, some will even poison areas if they know people are collecting from there.

Research and further learning
Books – Herbals, weed ID from Australia and other countries, gardening books and biosecurity.
An excellent reference book is:
‘An illustrated botanical guide to the weeds of Australia’ – B.A. Auld and R.W. Medd.

Web / FB communities – edible weeds, others in community from around the world or where the plant originates from, use the common names from the country of origin to search for recipes.
ID – Weeds Australia – www.weeds.org.au
Weed society of Victoria – www.wsvic.org.au

What to do with your harvest
Don’t delay – Keep it fresh in water or preserve, freeze or dry.