The 4-hour walking tour begins at 11:45 AM on Sunday March 18 at 72nd St. & Central Park West. The suggested donation is $20/adult, $10/child under 12. Please call (914) 835-2153 at least 24 hours in advance to reserve a place.On Sunday, March 18, at Central Park West and West 72nd St., America's go-to guy for foraging, "Wildman" Steve Brill, will continue with his 30th season of his world-famous foraging tours.
The 2012 foraging season shifts into high gear with this most popular of parks for foragers. Because of its varied habitats and the combination of wild and cultivated, native and exotic plants, Central Park is a great place to forage, even in late winter and early spring.
The PURPOSE of this hands-on program is to learn about the environment and get back in touch with nature. By studying foraging and nature, we enjoy our renewable resources and reaffirm our commitment to preserving and rebuilding our ecological riches.
These are some of the plants we'll be looking for:
Cold-weather shoots and greens abound in Central Park. We'll be finding large stands of field garlic, with mild-flavored onion-like bulbs, and tender young leaves that you use like chives, just south of Belvedere Castle.
The first leaves of curly (yellow) dock may appear near the West 79th St. overpass and the bridle path, and the first sweet and sharp daylily shoots will be popping up along the embankment of the reservoir—a treat for all.
Also known as yellow dock, the lemony flavored, long, wavy-edged leaves, rich in vitamin A and iron, make an excellent addition to salads and soups. And the root has been used to detoxify the liver.
There should be chickweed across from the Delacourte Theatre, and we'll find new, young garlic mustard greens, with their horseradish-flavored taproots, just south of Belvedere Castle.
Sassafras, the original source of root beer, will be growing just south of the garlic mustard, and the seeds of the Kentucky coffee tree—for making caffeine-free coffee—may be littering the ground not too far south of the garlic mustard.
Sheltered by a huge, sun-warmed rock in the Ramble (the park's central forested region), the first rhubarb-like shoots of Japanese knotweed may be making their debut for the year.
There will also be beautiful early-season flowers to observe, including those of the hazelnut, witch hazel, common spicebush, and carnelian cherry.
With a little luck and lots of rain, we may even find such cold-weather gourmet wild mushrooms as the enoki and the oyster mushroom.
For "Wildman's" 2012 tour calendar and additional info, visit http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com
Contact: "Wildman" Steve Brill, (914) 835-2153 wildman@wildmanstevebrill.com, http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com
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