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Oct. 20, 2005 Farmers spend millions of dollars every year trying to eradicate weeds that are more nutritious than the crops they grow. This isn't just whimsical wishful thinking by some back-to-nature dreamer. Euell Gibbons actually instigated a study at Penn State University of the food values of various common weeds and wild plants, and the results are in his book, Stalking the Healthful Herbs. A chart in this book compares the food values of plants like lamb's-quarters, dandelion, purslane, wild violets, and poke shoots, with common garden vegetables such as cabbage, lettuce, celery, and spinach. In almost every case the wild plants leave the tame plants in the dust. Euell Gibbons tells us, however, that this is not the reason for his passionate hobby of wild food gathering. Rather, there is a joy in being close to nature. It is why camping, hiking, fishing, and hunting remain popular, and for Euell Gibbons, foraging for wild foods was no different. But even if one is not interested in botany or procuring a side dish of cattail shoot salad, they would surely appreciate his folksy prose. Mr. Gibbons was not a health food nut. More often than not, the recipes in his books call for liberal use of cream or bacon grease to jazz up the taste of wild greens. It was all about the gathering of plants that he did not have to raise in a garden or pay for in a store, and the friendly way he writes makes us want to join him. He captivates our attention like a favorite grandparent might fascinate a child in an obscure, ancient hobby or antique. Just picture this mulberry-picking episode from his childhood that he remembers in his book, Stalking the Wild Asparagus: "There was one tree in which I competed for this luscious fruit with a dozen or more little Negro children, who knew a good berry when they tasted it. There was another tree on a village street where I acquired the nickname 'Toes' because of my skill in climbing about the fruit-laden tree with the almost prehensile toes and feet of a barefoot boy. One of the minor tragedies of my boyhood, which seems ludicrous now, occurred when I threw a rock into the top of a mulberry, then rushed under the tree to get some of the dislodged fruit before the other children beat me to it, and was struck in the head by the same stone I had thrown." Stalking the Wild Asparagus is Mr. Gibbons's first book. It's a wonderful collection about the most familiar of wild food plants (and animals)--acorns, blueberries, persimmons, wild mustard, bluegills, and turtles; just to name a few. Each chapter includes useful details on finding, processing, and cooking; all accompanied by his down home commentary. Euell Gibbons grew up during the depression (saved his family from starvation during lean times with his hobby), and I loved the way he chastised a wire service reporter who wrote a humorous article that made fun of a "depression salad." In his chapter on purslane Mr. Gibbons calls this reporter an ignoramous, and he lamented the arrogant attitude--one he thought led to the unpopularity of Americans worldwide. The fare in Stalking the Blue Eyed Scallop includes shellfish (lots and lots of clams), sea side plants, sea weed, and fish normally considered as trash. Mr. Gibbons recounts how he never caught an eel when eel fishing, but he always caught them when casting for game fish. The recipes inspire one to go out and accidentally snag this unusual fish which "tastes like chicken." I've often wondered whether a primitive animal like a clam knows if it's alive or not. After reading Stalking the Blue Eyed Scallop I have more respect for a clam's intelligence. Mr. Gibbons relates how one species can rapidly burrow horizontally under the sand to avoid being captured by clam diggers. Stalking the Healthful Herbs completes the trilogy of his field guides. This book covers many of the lesser known herbs plus a few of the well known ones--like wild horseradish and wild carrot--that he left out of his first two books. Most of the information is about the purported uses these plants have as medicines, and the commentary is supplemented by more of his homespun wisdom and humor. Consider this excerpt when discussing a plant that Hippocrates said was good for the humblebone: "I know I could easily learn what part of the anatomy was meant by the term 'humblebone,' but I refuse to do so. I prefer that my humblebone be without precise location or definition, so that it can be assigned to any place or function my imagination dictates." Stalking the Faraway Places was written after Mr. Gibbons became a celebrity. He writes about living off the bounty of the American southwest and the rocky mountains with a film crew from National Geographic; and gathering and preparing a wild dinner for Canadien television He fantasized living a self-sufficient life on an island off Maine; and tells of scrumptious dinners made from the wilds near the Sea of Cortez; but my favorite is an account of a television appearance he made in San Francisco. He found a median strip in the middle of the city that had been planted with olive trees, but otherwise had been allowed to grow wild. There were ten kinds of edible plants, and he even made olive oil to serve with it. While they were filming, an inner city child of about ten joined him and told him he often came out and augmented his meager supper with edible plants that grew in vacant lots. My wife is disabled so I'm unable to ramble in the woods like Mr. Gibbons did. Instead, his work has inspired me to grow weeds. I've got day lillies, chicory, and lamb's-quarters. Next spring I'm planting evening primrose and violets. Get back to nature and eat some weeds. ------------ About the author Mark Gelbart: My book, Talk Radio, is a black comedy about a radio talk show host who gets kidnapped and psychologically tortured by a loser. www.mark-gelbart.com Email: agelbart@aol.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
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