How to Determine if a Plant is Edible

Knowing how to determine if a plant is edible can save your life one day. Long before civilization, our ancestors quickly spotted what plant was edible and avoided the rest. Even with organized farming and produce selling, we could still learn how to spot edible plants in the wild. If you find yourself without food and away from help, this knowledge can help you survive.

Instructions

    • 1

      Learn what types of plants are native to the area you will be spending time in. There is not substitute for knowing what plants you will encounter and which ones are safe to ingest.

    • 2

      Do not attempt to conduct any kind of test where you place part of the plant on your body or your lip. This will work in some instances, but there are plants that will not cause a reaction for more than 24 hours.

    • 3

      Avoid any plant that secrets an acrid substance or opaque sap. Keep plants with milky sap or spines away from your mouth. Avoid grain with pink, purple or black spurs.

    • 4

      Know that different sets of edible plants are available in other parts of the world. Recognize these as temperate zone edible plants: Blackberries, blueberries, Dandelion, strawberries, water lilies and water lotus. Look for these in the tropical zone: Bamboo, bananas, Cashew nut, papaya and sugarcane.

    • 5

      Eat green sea weed after you use step four's test. Many types of seaweed are edible. Know that dates from date palms, acacia and agave are examples of desert edible plants.