I'll start with expanded explanations from my most recent tweets, and then a few plants I found on a walk around the block this afternoon.

I've been noticing a lot of wild garlic setting bulbs. Look for a garlic like bulb 1-2 foot up on a stalk. Both the top bud and the root can be used. Unsure what you found is garlic? Scratch and sniff.

Nothing else around here looks, smells and tastes like it except wild onion, which are also safe. Earlier in the year the spring green wild garlic leaves can be used in place of cloves. Milder, sweeter, and wilt when cooked - they are a great spring green. Again, the taste test (or crush and smell) will confirm they are garlic. The photo is of one variety, there are many and they can be a little larger or smaller. The top photo is of the root, the bottom photo is of the bulbs that form on stalks 1-2 feet high.

***** I was gifted with a lot of Borage, Borago officinalis. Not sure what to do with all of it, but drying will work if nothing else comes to mind. It makes a nice infusion (strong tea). The skin likes borage compresses or infusion to promote healing and softening. Some people have found it helpful in reducing the inflammation of psoriasis or eczema, as well as arthritis. It can also soothe coughs and sore throats. I've read about borage being used for melancholy and sadness. I haven't noticed that benefit, but it is worth trying! Sometimes plants that are highly nutritious can have that affect. Borage oil is high in essential fatty acids, and oil made from the plant is sold as a dietary supplement. Many people like it in salads, be sure to cut or tear it into small pieces, I find it a bit fuzzy.

***** The goldenrod, Solidago, is about ready for infusions. The vivid flowering tops can be steeped & enjoyed. The lovely flowers steeped for 20-30 minutes can be soothing for coughs, colds, and some report it has helped pollen allergies. In a previous post I wrote about goldenrod being mistaken for the allergies caused by Ragweed. How nice to know goldenrod can help allergies rather than cause them! You can dry the flowering tops and store for later use. In this heat, it shouldn't take more than a day to two!

***** I ran across some Mallow plants in full fruit. The fruit, leaves, and roots of the mallow are soothing both inside and out. The little "cheeses" which are the fruit formed after flowering are a fun addition to a salad. The green plant on the left is the mallow, the photo directly below that is a few of the fruits harvested and held in my hand. Use as is. The texture is solid, and the inside pleasantly slippery. Which is a better word to use then slimy...

***** This last bottom photo is of wood sorrel, Oxalis montana. This is a natural favorite of most children. They all seem to know instinctively that it is safe to eat! The leaves add a lemony zip to salads, and the flowers are also edible and a pretty addition. It is high in oxalic acid, so you can consume too much. Too much or too frequent use and it could interfere with calcium absorption. I once had a student who had been told to juice it every day and drink it. I had to disagree with that advice. That seemed like way too much oxalic acid intake. But a few leaves in a salad or in a sandwich? Wonderful. If it doesn't taste lemony, with delicate light leaves, you have the wrong plant.

Linda Diane Feldt is a local Herbalist and Holistic Health Practitioner. Her free classes on Herbal Wisdom will begin again in the fall. The September 24 class is on Nourishing and Medicinal Plants, sponsored by The People's Food Co-op.

Photos by Linda Diane Feldt Top to bottom: wild garlic roots, wild garlic top bulbs, goldenrod, goldenrod, mallow, mallow fruit, wood sorrel