Students Learn About Local Edible Plants

Students got the chance to explore edible wild greens at the latest Maverick Kitchen event Tuesday, April 4.   

Leading the workshop was Morgan Chivers, a Maker literacies librarian for Experiential Learning and a Texas Master Naturalist.   

The Master Naturalist program educates people about the beneficial management of natural areas and how to encourage native ecology within their communities in Texas.    

Morgan brought in two types of edible greens, spike lettuce and henbit, which he harvested from his yard. Both are considered to be invasive species since they are not native to Texas and tend to out-compete native species in the available habitat.  

He shared that these two types of plants still have redeeming qualities and with proper preparation, they can be made ready to eat within a few minutes.

Morgan's recipe involved creating a wrap using these local plants. The wrap's filler was made up of several items that included powdered peanut butter, cottage cheese, yogurt and assorted spices.   

Morgan stressed to students that it is important to view these plants as a "resource and not just a pest." Having that mindset opens the doors to deeper connections with the world around us and to trying new foods.

Before forging for edible plants, Morgan told students to be sure they have correctly identified the plant and get permission from property owners.   

Also, they need to be aware that some locations may have been treated with pesticides or otherwise contaminated with toxic products and could pose a health hazard to a person.  

To help identify edible plants found in nature as people forage, Morgan suggested researching using the resources on ForagingTexas.com as well as a free app: iNaturalist. When a photo is uploaded of a plant, animal, insect or fungus, the app works to identify it with the help of AI-informed suggestions and transparent user feedback.  

Marilynn Tran, a pre-nursing major, stated that eating plants found in the wild is "not typically what I eat, but it is a new way of trying things and was not bad."  

For upcoming UTA Libraries events, go to https://libraries.uta.edu or follow the libraries' social media pages on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.