Brassicaceae (formerly Cruciferae)
As stated in my previous post, one of my favorite plant families to introduce people to who are new to the concept of foraging. There are over 3,000 species of mustard plant, and all parts are edible for humans (certain mustard plants can be toxic for certain animals, however). As long as you correctly identify your plant in question as being a member of the mustard family, you can eat it. You don't need to know what specific mustard it is. You don't have to worry about toxic lookalikes. The only caveat is this: make sure you're seeing what's actually there; and not only seeing what you want to see. So, let's dive in!
How to identify a mustard plant (it's easy!)
If you're just starting out, I encourage you to begin by examining plants which are in flower. As of this writing (9th, June), that should include everywhere in the northern hemisphere.
So look for a plant who is flowering, and whose flowers appear to be in a radial, spiral-like pattern. This growth pattern is called a "raceme". Mustard flowers can sometimes be very small, and they may not all be in bloom when you find one. Still, this raceme pattern will be present upon examination.
Look closely at an individual flower. How many petals does it have? Four is the number you seek.
Now, examine the underside of that flower, right where it meets the stem. If you look closely, you will find little leaf-like structures. These are called "Sepals". When identifying flowers, we always begin from the outermost part, and work our way in. Four is also the number of sepals you are looking for.
4 sepals. 4 petals.
Next, we will move further towards the center of our flower. You will see several thin structures sticking up. These are the "stamen" (as well as the "pistil" at the very center). Look closely at the stamen (you may find a magnifying glass helpful initially); there should be 6 stamen, plus the pistil in the very center. If you look very closely at the stamen, and if it is indeed a mustard, you will discover that 2 of the 6 stamen are shorter than the other 4. This is a key identifying feature for this family.
(Continued in pins below...)
5 years agolithic_core_pinnable
4 sepals. 4 petals. 6 stamen (4 long, 2 short). If you have found a plant whose flowers have this characteristic, congratulations! That's a mustard. You can now, if you wish, pop a leaf or flower into your mouth, and see if you like the flavor. Mustards vary widely in taste, so don't judge all by one or two. All parts are edible to humans at all stages of their life cycle. If your flower has fewer of one of the parts described (sepals, petals, stamen, pistil) - there is a chance it could still be a mustard. Plants can become damaged afterall, it may have lost a petal or a sepal. You can examine another flower on the same plant. If there are *more* of any part of the flower than the number given, it's not a mustard. Move on for now. If you find yourself examining another flower on the same plant because there were less than the given numbers, I will remind you of the caveat: be certain you're seeing what's really there, and not seeing what you want to see. In general, I honestly don't recommend recounting. If you've accounted for all parts, and the number is not correct, you should probably move on. If you become determined in your head that, "No, this *must* be a mustard", and feverishly count the parts again, or count the parts on another flower, you're playing a potentially dangerous game. One in which one can easily begin twisting facts to suit theories, rather than theories to suit facts. Move on. There are many flowers in the fields. I plan to post more about different plant families, but if this is something you really want to sink your teeth into, I strongly recommend the book "Botany in a Day", by @thomasjelpel . He does a fantastic job teaching this information, and makes it very digestible. Happy foraging!
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