‘Forage and Feast’ set to showcase the fruits of the urban forest

Elder
2 June 2017

The urban scavenging hunt will take place on Sunday 11 June at Chorlton Water Park and will show people how to create fantastic feasts out of naturally-found ingredients.

Run by leading Greater Manchester environmental charity City of Trees the event kicks off a 5 week campaign which will be showcasing how to use foraged flowers and fruit to make items like sloe gin and elderflower cordial.

At the free event participants will be shown how, even in the most urban of spaces, items like blackberries and lavender can be foraged to make amazing edible creations.

The event is part of City of Trees’ Heritage Trees project which aims to celebrate and record our local tree heritage - the trees, woodlands, hedgerows and orchards which are part of the fabric of our towns and cities.

Beth Kelsall, City of Trees, explains “The aim of the Heritage Trees project is to celebrate Greater Manchester’s green space and the amazing trees, woods and wildlife within it. With around 80% of people living in urban environments it’s increasingly important to establish a connection with the natural world and show people the fantastic resources right on their doorstep”.

The event will be led by Dave Winnard from Discover the Wild, a friendly forager who is passionate about getting people to interact with the natural world in urban environments.

Dave Winnard comments; "Foraging is a great way to connect with nature. By going out and looking at the wealth of plants and fungi we have in Greater Manchester, people can get hands on with them and even create some delicious jams, cordials, preserves and meals from some of the species they come across".

He adds; "We will be showing people which species are edible and which are to be avoided as well as how to harvest wild food safely and sustainably." At the event participants will be given a recipe card showing them how to create delicious delights from what they found that day. Each week a new recipe will be launched, all showing how to turn naturally found items into tasty treats.

A new recipe will be sent out via email each week from 11 June.

Anyone can sign up to receive their free weekly recipe at www.cityoftrees.org.uk/forage.