Living off the land

[sl1966]

How many of you hunt to supplement your food stuffs? What do you hunt and how much does it save you in the long run?<div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Steve</div>

 

[vonu]

One might consider being a hunter-gatherer rather than just a hunter.<div>ofthefield.com sells some interesting and useful products.</div>

 

[sl1966]

There will be gathering; mostly at the supermarkets though. There's so much more that I could say about the gathering but will save it for the blog (when the time comes).<div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Steve</div>

 

[cyndi]

<FONT size=3>I hunt herbs, fungus, roots, seeds&nbsp;and greens.&nbsp; Not so much, here in the desert, but when I lived in New England.&nbsp; I plan on&nbsp;supplementing my diet&nbsp;when I return to a place where such things grow.</FONT><br><FONT size=3></FONT>&nbsp;<br><FONT size=3>I have done a little bit, here.&nbsp; mesquite beans&nbsp;and joshua pods.&nbsp; It's not as satisfying or enjoyable in the desert.&nbsp; Everything&nbsp;is pointy and sharp.</FONT>&nbsp;<br>

 

[Dust of the Sun]

Could anybody recommend a Wild Foods/Edible foraging type guidebook?? I know there are quite a few but some just don't have the illustrations on a level to quiet my fear of eating something poisonous?? Is there like a top 10 or top 5 weeds that grow in the wild and are pretty much everywhere that are edible and easy to identify?? Or are wild edibles REALLY very geographically specific as i would guess?? An old farmer friend turned me onto pokeweed for salad...wasn't that great, but if you're hungry and money is short.....I've seen some experts do walks thru the woods identifying edibles as a paid seminar...good business idea if you have the expertise!!, I just haven't been there to take advantage...maybe a dvd would be better with the color film footage?? Any suggestions?? <br>

 

[dragonflyinthesky]

Thanks for the idea Dust, about videos that is.&nbsp;&nbsp; I just went to youtube and typed in "wild edibles indentifying" and came up with a lot of hits.&nbsp;<br><br><A href="http://www.dragonflyinthesky.com" target=_blank>www.dragonflyinthesky.com</A><br>

 

[sl1966]

That really is a matter of geography.What region(s) did you want to know about?<div><br></div><div>Steve</div><div><br></div>

 

[Guest]

<font face="Arial">POKEWEED? REALLY?!?!<br>I suspect you're either misidentifying the plant or your farmer buddy is extremely knowledgeable and knows only to use <span style="text-decoration: underline;">only</span> certain parts of <span style="text-decoration: underline;">only</span> newly sprouted, <span style="text-decoration: underline;">very young</span> plants, and how to <span style="text-decoration: underline;">properly prepare them</span> so that they are safe to ingest.<br><b style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">POKEWEED IS VERY POISONOUS, AS ARE THE BERRIES, AND&nbsp; IT CAN KILL YOU.</b></font><br><a target="_blank" href="http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/poison/Phytoam.htm">http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/poison/Phytoam.htm</a><br><br><span style="font-family: Arial;">Edible plants (aside from certain edible weeds</span>) <span style="font-family: Arial;">are specific to geographical locations. So is wildlife<br>Do your own research on the internet - there are plenty of web sites.<br>Buy yourself an illustrated field guide for your location - book stores have many of them.<br>Take a wilderness survival class.<br>Take an herbalist class.<br>Learn how to "test" potential plants for edibility.<br>NEVER eat anything you cannot positively identify.<br></span><br><br><br>

 

[vonu]

Could anybody recommend a Wild Foods/Edible foraging type guidebook?? &nbsp;<br>

<div><br></div><div>Check out ofthefield.com</div>

 

[Dust of the Sun]

Hey 4x4, yep, what you shared is EXACTLY why I am hesitant to jump into foraging for edibles...you really need to KNOW what you are eating...and as I remember the old farmer did JUST take leaves and said to forget the rest...my memory is hazy on exactly what he said...hence my asking for an expert, instructional guide, dvd or YouTube videos...I obviously didn't die so he musta gathered the proper parts!!!! Your reply to my post may be the most important post on this thread...you must know FOR SURE. Thx for the clarification 4x4. <br>

 

[sl1966]

I didn't have local plant life in mind when I said living off the land (at least not anytime soon), but I do see how that does encompass it. I was thinking more of the local&nbsp;southwestern desert&nbsp;wildlife. I've had hare rabbit, and quail before and was wondering if anyone makes it a habit of hunting them regularly.<div><br></div><div>Steve</div><div>&nbsp;</div>

 

[vonu]

I didn't have local plant life in mind when I said living off the land (at least not anytime soon), but I do see how that does encompass it. I was thinking more of the local&nbsp;southwestern desert&nbsp;wildlife. I've had hare rabbit, and quail before and was wondering if anyone makes it a habit of hunting them regularly.<div><br></div><div>Steve</div><div>&nbsp;</div>

<div><br></div><div>They probably wouldn't admit to it if they do so on federal land.</div><div>One could probably feed oneself with nothing more than a half dozen well-placed snares.</div>

 

[sl1966]

I know hare &amp; rabbit hunting is allowed year round (CA &amp; TX) with most of it taking place on federal and private land. There is a season for Quail though; although I'd rather just shell out $4 for a whole chicken instead of going to all that trouble.<div><br></div><div><br></div>

 

[vonu]

There is a season for Quail though; although I'd rather just shell out $4 for a whole chicken instead of going to all that trouble.<div><br></div><div><br></div>

<div>Not to mention the protection it would provide from Dick Cheney's shotgun</div><div><br></div>

 

[sl1966]

<img border="0" align="absmiddle" src="https://vanlivingforum.com/images/boards/smilies/rofl.gif">&nbsp;No doubt!&nbsp;<br><br>The other game I've read about that's season free like hare are javelinas. For anyone unfamiliar with them. They look like smaller versions of wild boar, but are actually related to hippos. I've never tasted one before and am curious to know if anyone else has?

 

[dragonflyinthesky]

Steve, you hunt and kill a Javelina, I'll clean and cook it for us. I ain't gettin' nowhere near a live one <IMG border=0 align=absMiddle src="https://vanlivingforum.com/images/boards/smilies/eek.gif">&nbsp;&nbsp; I've run up on them before, they seem oblivious, poor eyesight maybe, then resort to fight or flight once they realize someone is near.&nbsp; Hey another idea, just go for 3 or 4 rangy stringy&nbsp;jackrabbits, they should be harmless enough. Wait, remember the killer rabbit scene in Monty Python? What if its based on fact? <BR>Diane<BR><BR><BR>

 

[sl1966]

Deal, but I really don't mind doing cleaning or cooking also. There's&nbsp;something very zen about doing stuff like that for me.&nbsp;<div><br></div><div>Javelinas can be pretty mean and territorial if they're hungry or have a litter around. I tend to keep my distance from them as is. Jackrabbits are another story. My beagle loves wearing them down in a chase and does a great job at it.</div>

 

[lampliter]

Here's what I use; for hunting when necessary--slingshot, modified to shoot arrows, arrow rest can be flipped down to shoot regular ammo.<br>For foraging I have these cards with many edible plants(picture on front, description on back) they also list poisioness plants.<br><br><br>

 

[vonu]

Here's what I use; for hunting when necessary--slingshot, modified to shoot arrows, arrow rest can be flipped down to shoot regular ammo.<br>For foraging I have these cards with many edible plants(picture on front, description on back) they also list poisioness plants.<br><br><br>

<div><br></div><div>What is the arrow rest made of?</div><div>A friend of mine has all of the steel cable and crimps to make snares from deer down to field mice.</div>

 

[dragonflyinthesky]

<P><b>Thanks for the pic lampliter.&nbsp; I bet I can find cards at Gander Mountain.&nbsp; How close does prey (like Thumper the bunny rabbit, not Bambi) have to be?&nbsp; The slingshot looks real interesting.&nbsp; I honestly didn't know they were more than a toy.&nbsp; I will do more research on them.</b></P>