Poppy Wildman leads the Wild and Wonder nature and well being classes.

A Nottingham nature and wellbeing expert is teaching first-time foragers how to find the best plants during the colder months at Rushcliffe Country Park.

Wild mushrooms, succulent fruits and spring-green weeds are all the main foraging finds when exploring Nottingham’s natural menu.

With less plants blooming in the snowy seasons, foraging abundance is low but not non-existence according to forest therapy practitioner Poppy Wildman.

Jelly ear mushrooms grow on dead elder wood.

She said: “I think we associate foraging with the summertime or springtime.

“Coming to the workshop or doing some research into what you can forage in the winter can challenge that perception because, actually, there is quite a lot.

She added: “There’s so much in parks, people’s gardens and any green space – you’ll be surprised what you can find.”

Top tips for winter foraging:

  • If you are uncertain about the identification, do not eat.
  • Avoid eating anything not in abundance to leave enough for wildlife.
  • Only try small bites beforehand, in order to asses any allergies.
  • Don’t forage any endangered plant species.

Poppy added: “Even urban foraging is fun, just seeing what you can find on the sides of pavements.”

Birds, deer and squirrels are some of Nottingham’s habitants that rely on wild food that can be forage.

Some popular wild plants and fungi to forage include wood avens, velvet shanks, jelly ear mushrooms, cleavers, rose hips, dead nettles, dandelion leaves and roots.

The group identifying a velvet shank mushroom.

These plants are safe to eat raw, or can be cooked and made into teas for a high intake of vitamins.

Primary school teacher Hannah Baker, who also attended the session, said that foraging can also help people reconnect with nature and foster an instinctive way of living.

Hannah Baker, one of the winter foraging attendees.

She said: “I taught nine and 10 year old city centre kids who wanted their phones and to go round on e-scooters, behaving like teenagers.

“Then you would put them in forest school and they would come alive with pretend playing, imagination and excitement.

She added: “You could see they enjoyed learning through nature and how we used to live.”

“It’s a different side of childhood that I think a lot of them forget because they’re trying to be like what they see on Tik Tok and Instagram.”

Hannah Baker

“It’s a different side of childhood that I think a lot of them forget, because they’re trying to be like what they see on TikTok and Instagram.”

To join the next winter foraging class message Wild and Wonder health & wellness website on facebook.com