Harvest season is almost upon us so I thought it would be a great time to talk about how to wild harvest ethically! It is important to ethically harvest to ensure the plants that we are creating medicine from have the resources and the numbers to sustain their growth. If you plan to harvest from our sensitive habitat, follow sustainable harvesting practices so that these botanicals are here for generations to come - be a good plant steward!
Here are some general rules I use for ethically harvesting for my medicines:
Year of growth: Look at the plant stand, does it look prolific and healthy? Depending on the conditions it may be a boom or bust year for a plant, if a plant stand is not thriving that year I will not harvest, period. For example, in 2023 it was exceptionally dry and hot early in the summer, as a result the Rose season was very short-lived. Many pollinator species rely on these wild roses so I decided not to harvest rose to encourage plant and pollinator growth. This is easier as you harvest year after year and you get a better grasp on the plants growth habits and requirements. So if you don’t know a plant well, follow it over the growing season without harvesting from it, and then come back the next year and compare them. This will help you accurately identify the plant, as well as ensure you are only taking what the plant is able to give.
Buds/Lichens: Buds are the new growth for the year, as such they are extremely vital for the plants successive year of growth. Lichens are very slow growing organisms that require specific conditions in order to thrive. Due to these being VERY sensitive to external pressures I only harvest buds and lichens from the forest floor. The best time to collect these is to wait for a large windstorm, after the windstorm has passed it knocks many lichens and branches to the ground making it easy picking. This practice ensures that buds remain on the tree, and on strong limbs, as well as a thriving lichen environment where they grow as epiphytes.
Fungi: Fungi have varied growth habits, some can be quite woody while others are jelly-like. In general, I recommend trying not to disturb the mycelium and only taking a small amount of the total stand, so that the spores from the fruiting body can spread for the next generation of fungi. For example, if you are harvesting Chanterelles mushrooms I prefer to cut the mushroom at the base instead of ripping it out of the ground. This preserves the mycelium as the remaining fruiting body will just decompose without opening the mycelium to air-borne pathogens.
Flowers: Flowers create food for pollinators, bud up to create fruits and seeds to build the next generation, then are eaten by animals to be distributed across the land. This makes flowers very important for our own food supply as well as for all the creatures around us. For this reason we must be very specific when harvesting flowers. When harvesting Rose petals I will only take 2 petals from the 5 petal flowers, this leaves enough petals for pollinators to land on to collect the pollen and nectar to then turn into a fruit for the next animals. As well, I will not harvest from every flower, in general I would only harvest 10% of the total stand of flowers in this way so that I know come next year I will be able to get a good harvest.
Herbs/Shrubs: With herbs and shrubs consider how prolific of a grower it is. If it is a slow growing plant, harvest minimally. Many herbaceous (non-woody) plants tend to be fast growers and spread quite well, these I will harvest more heavily as I know they will proliferate for the next year, Fireweed is an example. Whereas, woodier plants tend to grow slower and spread less readily so I will usually harvest a small amount and only use it for specific formulations.
Invasive/Noxious Weeds: If it is invasive or considered a noxious weed, harvest as you please! Many herbs fall into this category, the benefit is that they are commonly available and you are supporting native plant life by harvesting from them! A few common herbs that fall into this category are St. John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum), Wild Chamomile (Matricaria discoidea) and Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale). For more plants considered noxious weeds in BC use this resource (1).
Roots/Rhizomes: I don’t recommend harvesting roots unless it is considered a noxious weed for a few reasons. In order to harvest the roots or rhizomes you have to either kill or do significant damage to the plant - meaning it will at best have disturbed growth next year. Secondly, it tends to be much more difficult to properly dry and store roots meaning that you may have gone through all the work to harvest the root, dry, and store only to find out when you go to use it that it’s mouldy. Finally, there are so many alternatives for plants that there is no need to harvest roots. For example, Goldenseal is found in Eastern Canada into the Appalachians and is considered endangered and extremely vulnerable, but people are still using wild-crafted Goldenseal! It is not necessary as there are alternatives that are not critically endangered and grow rapidly.
Clean up after yourselves (and others) - I cannot emphasize any stronger how frustrating it is to go into the deep forest to harvest, and find garbage. If you plan to enjoy nature, and reap the rewards from her offerings, you need to clean up after yourselves. I now bring a garbage bag with me anytime I go in the forest because complaining about it won’t make the waste disappear. To preserve these critical environments we need to ensure that we lose the mentality of ‘it’s not my problem’ and change our mindset to ‘how can I help’. The plants and animals can’t speak for themselves so we need to be proactive in preserving the beauty that we live in and are a part of.
These are just some very general rules I use to wild harvest, not everyone agrees with them 100%, but I believe we should err on the side of caution to encourage biodiverse environments. Of course, some plants will have unique harvesting techniques to promote growth, for example with St. John’s Wort I harvest only the flowers so that the plants continue to produce new flowers which supports pollinators (and my harvesting goals!) as opposed to chopping the whole plant down, but these are rules you learn as you go.
If you are considering harvesting this year I recommend starting with a book. There are great resources available in the public library but if you have the ability I recommend buying a book written by an indigenous author from your ecozone. For people located in Western Canada, Strong Nations bookstore in Nanaimo has an amazing selection of books and flash-cards, many of which I reference when harvesting. I recommend buying books from Indigenous authors for two reasons. First, when a people evolves with plants and develops a long-standing relationship, they have learned over the years how to best harvest the plant for medicine and vitality of the plant stand. Second, all information about native plants was given by the Indigenous peoples of this land, they were typically not financially reimbursed for this knowledge, and in-fact the information was taken and profited off of by colonists. Supporting Indigenous authors and medicine-makers returns some of the profit back to the people who discovered it. As a 3rd-generation Canadian, who loves the land I live on and am grateful to those who have been exceptional plant stewards, I feel it is important to promote this message.
What plants are you harvesting this year? Let me know in the comments if there is a botanical you would like me to do a deep dive on!
Resources
Invasive Plant List BC
Strong Nations Bookstore
Comments