Wild Chamomile

Wild Chamomile

I had had a seemingly unsuccessful day of foraging at my usual spot which is normally always bountiful but today with my bare legs and sneakers all it gave me were bramble cuts and scrapes and too much contact with poison ivy. To make matters worse the underdeveloped Autumn Olive berries and green pea-sized concord grapes were a tease and every ripe blackberry was guarded by shinny leaves of three. Foraging is not always a pleasant experience. It was when I was headed back to the car feeling itchy, irritated, and cheated that I got a call from Slack who was planning to go the the skate park. Round two.

The park was made up of a collection of fenced-in areas-track, playground, basketball court, and skate park. Slack rolled into his coliseum of cement ledges as I inconspicuously (or so I hope) ducked into my palace of palatable plants. I emerged from the woods and saw that most people were sitting in camp chairs and watching the basket ball game so I snagged a mammoth of a stag horn sumac berry bunch to make "sumade"later on. The berry clusters are coated in ruby red acidic hairs that taste sour and are packed with vitamin C. A great substitute for lemonade when the berries are soaked in cold water. On my way around the outskirts of the fenced-in areas I saw that a good portion of the field was covered with some type of white flower. At closer observation I recognized the small daisy-like flowers with yellow dome centers from my field guide and knew that I had discovered Wild Chamomile! I was giddy and all dignity went out the window as I squatted down, pulled out my cotton sack, and started cutting away clumps and stuffing them in my bag. All while little families made their way around the track on bikes, scooters, and in tow of dogs. And to think that I almost gave up for the day!

Chamomile can be mistaken for Pineapple weed and vice versa but both are edible and can be dried and used for tea. Both take up residence in dry/sandy soil forming mats of low growing multi-branched stems with feathered leaves and clusters of tiny yellow flowers that form little domes. Wild Chamomile has cleft white petals that encircle the little beehive centers and gives off a sweet/piney sent when bruised. Pineapple Weed lacks petals and smells exactly like pineapple when crushed.

Pineapple Weed (left) v.s. Wild Chamomile (right)

There is something wild and edible to be found anywhere you go no matter how unnatural the setting might be. It is almost more exciting to discover these plants in public areas because you know that most observers see weeds while you see food.

Wild Chamomile

Wild Chamomile Drying