When I write about foraging, I'm grateful for easily expressed axioms about gathering related plants:
All herbs with opposite leaves, square stems and a minty scent are edible.
All plants that look like onions or garlic and smell like onions or garlic are edible.
Most white berries are toxic.
All pine trees have edible parts.
Some plant groups defy such axioms, however. Most legume plants, for instance, are poisonous in whole or part, so it's crucial to identify a legume down to species before eating it. The same is true of the carrot family (Apiaceae aka Umbelliferae), host to parsley, carrot and parsnip as well as deadly plants like poison hemlock and water hemlock. (Right: Legume Flowers by wide eyed lib)
The most confusing group of all may be the nightshade genus (Solanum). Join me as I discuss some of its lesser-known edibles, dispelling a few myths along the way.
Covered: black & bittersweet nightshade
As always, if you're new to foraging and want to give it a try, please read the first diary in the FFF series for some important information.
The Solanum genus gives us the tomato (S. lycopersicum), eggplant (S. melongena) and potato (S. tuberosum), all of which have edible parts (mostly tubers or fruits) and poisonous parts (mostly leaves and stems). Even the eminently edible tubers of potato plants grown poisonous sprouts from their eyes and develop toxic alkaloids when grown exposed to light, which is why people are advised to cut out potato eyes and any parts that are green. One of the most poisonous plants in the Western hemisphere, deadly nightshade, belongs to the same family (Solanaceae) as these edible plants, although it's in a different genus (Atropa). (Left: S. Nigrum Leaves by wide eyed lib)
The Solanaceae plants native to Europe are mostly poisonous and those that aren't poisonous were generally believed to be. Deadly nightshade was used (ill-advisedly) by Roman women to dilate their eyes, which gave rise to its other common name, belladonna ("beautiful woman"). The black berries of deadly nightshade cause vivid hallucinations and delirium in those foolish enough to eat them. According to wikipedia, as few as 2 berries can kill a child and as few as 10 berries can kill an adult. A single leaf is deadly for just about everyone. Although its leaves and fruits somewhat resemble those of the edible plants discussed below, the flowers are bell-shaped and green with purple-brown tips, and the fruits have 5 large sepals that extend past the edges of the berries, making the berries look as though they're being cradled by green starfish. In any case, deadly nightshade is not generally found in North America.
When Europeans first arrived on these shores, they were understandably wary of plants that resembled those they knew or believed were toxic. The fact that many natives used nightshade plants as a large part of their diets didn't have much impact on this assessment. Although samples of some nightshades (including tomatoes and potatoes) were brought to Europe in the 15th Century, they were mostly grown as curiosities by horticulturalists and avid gardeners. It wasn't until the 18th Century that they became more commonly used for food in Europe, and even then they were distained by all but the poorest Europeans. Eggplants, native to Southeast Asia, suffered a similar fate. (Left: S. Nigrum Flower by wide eyed lib)
Meanwhile, botanists across the pond had been trying to sort out North American plants. When they came across S. americanum and S. ptychanthum, both generally known as black nightshade, they did not distinguish between these plants and S. nigrum, native to Europe. Europeans have nearly always considered S. nigrum poisonous, and still do to a certain extent. To make matters even more confusing, deadly nightshade is also referred to by some as black nightshade, and many alleged cases of poisoning by S. nigrum were almost certainly caused by deadly nightshade.
Many popular field guides have continued this erronous assault on S. nigrum, S. americanum and S. pychanthum. According to an excerpt from Samuel Thayer's upcoming book Nature's Garden:
Peterson's field guide (1977) lists it as "poisonous"; accompanied by a skull and crossbones. Elias and Dykeman (1982) lump it with other nightshades as poisonous. Henderson (2000, p. 189) nebulously suggests an unspecified danger: "Although some nightshades actually bear edible fruit, none of them are worth the risk." Tull (1987, p. 186) says, "I consider the whole plant potentially deadly and leave it alone." (Here she misleadingly cites Heiser [1969], but in that source Heiser tells us that he made and ate a black nightshade pie!)
Let's get a couple of things straight. Some parts of S. nigrum, S. americanum and S. pthychanthum (notably the raw leaves and perhaps the unripe berries) contain high enough quantities of solanine, atropine, and other alkaline toxins to cause sickness or even death. But the fully ripe berries of these 3 species are not poisonous. Millions of people in India and Africa (not to mention parts of the Midwest U.S.) have eaten the ripe berries of S. nigrum for centuries without incident, and numerous studies have failed to find significant quantities of alkaloids in the ripe berries of any of these 3 species.
It's equally important to remember that many species in this genus are poisonous, including the very common bittersweet nightshade which is distinguished by being a climbing vine and having leaves with two lobes at the base, purple flowers with yellow centers and fruit that is bright red and somewhat translucent when ripe. (In fact, bittersweet nightshade and the 3 black nightshades are considered invasive in some parts of their North American range.) If you have any doubts at all about your ability to distinguish between various wild members of the nightshade family, please forage other, more easily distinguishable plants. Black nightshades are not particularly good plants for beginners to tackle. (Right: S. Nigrum Berries by wide eyed lib)
However, for those with a bit more experience, black nightshade berries are well worth seeking out in gardens, fields, waste places and sunny areas with disturbed soil in all U.S. states and southern Canadian provinces. The three species mentioned here have simple, alternate leaves that vary from oval to diamond to lance-shaped, even within a single species. They have smooth or toothed margins, generally weak and frequently branching stems and range in height from less than a foot to more than 4 feet. In late Spring to early Summer they develop clusters of flowers with 5 white petals that bend back and a yellow center that points forward. The flowers are long lasting and can often be found on the plant alongside both ripe and unripe berries. The berries develop shortly after the first flowers drop off, are green and sometimes have spots. They ripen in a staggered fashion from late Summer through first frost, turning fully black when mature. They're almost perfectly round and can range from shiny to matte.
There's still a great deal of confusion among the different species. The best sources I've read suggest that S. nigrum is found just about everywhere, S. Americanum is found mostly in the south and S. ptychanthum is found mostly in the north. S. nigrum is distinguished by dull berries that are generally larger. The berries' stalks are slightly spread out along their stem. S. Americanum's berries have white spots when unripe, the ripe berries are shiny and the berry stalks generally meet at a single point on the stem. Finally, S. ptychanthum closely resembles S. Americanum except that very young plants have a red tinge to the underside of their leaves. (Right: Poisonous Bittersweet Nightshade Flowers by wide eyed lib)
Black nightshade berries taste like small, sweeter tomatoes. Because of toxicity issues, it's important to harvest only completely black berries with no green streaks. Each berry contains many small seeds that are just a bit bitter. Unlike tomatoes, which are generally (but not exclusively) used in savory dishes, black nightshade berries are generally used in sweet dishes like pies and jellies, though they will require more sugar than most other fruits. Any fresh currant recipe could easily be co-opted for black nightshade berries because both kinds of berries straddle the divide between savory and sweet. They're also delicious in pancakes, muffins and scones. If you have the patience to remove the seeds, the resulting mush is quite a bit sweeter.
The young leaves and stems are also edible if boiled in 2 changes of water for 15 minutes each. Worldwide the greens are eaten more often than the berries, especially among poorer tropical peoples. They are somewhat bitter but highly nutritious, containing substantial amounts of protein as well as various amino acids, minerals, and vitamins. (Left: Poisonous Bittersweet Nightshade Leaves by wide eyed lib. On the right you can also see some unripe berries.)
As for medicinal uses, here's what the ever useful Plants for a Future website has to say about S. nigrum:
The whole plant is antiperiodic, antiphlogistic, diaphoretic, diuretic, emollient, febrifuge, narcotic, purgative and sedative. It is harvested in the autumn when both flowers and fruit are upon the plant, and is dried for later use. Use with caution, see notes above on toxicity. The leaves, stems and roots are used externally as a poultice, wash etc in the treatment of cancerous sores, boils, leucoderma and wounds. Extracts of the plant are analgesic, antispasmodic, anti-inflammatory and vasodilator. The plant has been used in the manufacture of locally analgesic ointments and the juice of the fruit has been used as an analgesic for toothaches. Ed. note: See original for citations.
For additional information, both Samuel Thayer and Green Deane Jordan have written terrific articles on black nightshade, although there are a few points on which they disagree.
Even if you don't eat it yourself, I hope the next time you hear someone malign black nightshade, you'll at least try to set the record straight.
See you next Sunday!
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If you're interested in foraging and missed the earlier diaries in the series, you can click here for the previous 22 installments. As always, please feel free to post photos in the comments and I'll do my best to help identify what you've found. (And if you find any errors, let me know.)
Here are some helpful foraging resources:
"Wildman" Steve Brill's site covers many edibles and includes nice drawings.
"Green" Deane Jordan's site is quite comprehensive and has color photos and stories about many plants.
Green Deane's foraging how-to clips on youtube each cover a single plant in reassuring detail.
Linda Runyon's site features only a few plants but has great deals on her dvd, wild cards and books (check out the package deals in particular).
Steve Brill's book, Identifying and Harvesting Edible and Medicinal Plants in Wild (and Not So Wild) Places is my primary foraging guide. (Read reviews here, but if you're feeling generous, please buy from Steve's website.)
Linda Runyon's book The Essential Wild Food Survival Guide contains especially detailed information about nutritional content and how to store and preserve wild foods.
Samuel Thayer’s book The Forager's Harvest is perhaps the finest resource out there for the 32 plants covered. The color photos and detailed harvest and preparation information are top-notch.
Steve Brill also offers guided foraging tours in NYC-area parks. Details and contact info are on his website.
Don Wiss’s website is a treasure trove featuring hundreds of photos of common northeastern edibles.
Finally, the USDA plants database is a great place to look up info on all sorts of plants.
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