Each day I twitter about wild foods, herbs and medicine. I rewrite those tweets for those who prefer a more conversational style, and post them for annarbor.com and our readers. I can then also include photos, which help so much in identifying wild foods. I've taken more than a couple months off from sharing my tweets, so I have some catching up to do. Join me after the jump for observations about garlic mustard, nettles, acorns again, and more. I'll post the items you've missed over the next few weeks, 20-30 at a time.

***** I uncovered garlic mustard from packed snow. It had a little less vibrancy, still tasted great, although it had lost some intensity. But it is alive, even with these very cold temperatures. I'm beginning to think this could be a green available year round. Having more people learn to enjoy its taste could really help to also wipe out this pervasive that lives on and on. - Jan. 11

***** Late this afternoon a friend spotted a dead great blue heron in a stream at Mary Beth Doyle Park. They are always around on foraging trips on the river. The sight of its wings folded over the submerged body made me very sad. They are such majestic wonderful birds, and I love to hear their strange cry. - Jan. 10

***** My foraging friend found that many of his stored acorns had gone bad, so he is distributing them back into the woods. Some squirrel is going to find these nuts and be really really happy. Or deer, or just about any creature. High fat in winter - good thing.

I came downstairs in the morning and there are acorn hulls on my stairs and living room rug. Squirrels? No, my dog is finding dropped acorns and eating them. She is as weird as me. - Jan. 10

***** Wild foods have a profoundly low carbon footprint. No fertilizers, no pesticides, no transportation costs. Most preparation is slow and low tech. - Jan. 9

***** The berries in my oatmeal this a.m. are mulberries, picked 7-9-09. In ‘09 the mulberries lasted an amazing 2 months. I ate some every day. My normal breakfast is thick cut atmeal with ground flax seed, frozen berries, homemade raw milk, goat yogurt, honey from my bees, almonds, raisins, and cinnamon. It is the healthiest breakfast I can conceive of. - Jan 9

***** The new year is a good time to look over the stored food and plan to consume it. I had forgotten 2 gallons of homemade apple cider in the outdoor freezer. It’s time. My new favorite way to prepare cider - grind cinnamon, allspice, cloves, cardamom, nutmeg and add to the hot drink machine - which heats & blends it, then serves at a perfect temperature. I am usually not into buying any extra appliances, but the Cocoa Latte Machine (made by Back to Basics) is a favorite now and in daily use. It heats infusions, cider, creates the hot chocolate I've been searching for since a visit to Rome, and froths milk, all at the perfect temperature.

I made up a thermos of reheated ginger tea with my own honey and took it on a walk in County Farm Park, it was divine. Ginger is neither local nor wild (although we do have a species of ginger locally that makes a milder tea) but it is great for those winter walks. Or winter colds. I take about 2 inches of the fresh organic root (easy to find with the produce at the Co-op or Arbor Farms or Whole Foods). Chop that up into small pieces so that there is lots of surface area exposed, add to 1 quart of water, simmer 20 minutes with a lid on, strain, drink or refrigerate for later. Anti-inflammatory, helps move coughs and colds out of your system, great for relieving sinus congestion. And served with a bit of honey on a winter walk, it is the perfect drink!

***** Another winter walk, and afterward I warmed up some nettle tea infusion. I am growing them in Chelsea next to a lake. They like water and high nitrogen soils. Nettle season is early May. But I have lots in the freezer to enjoy all winter. I buy the dried leaves from the People's Food Co-op, and steep them in a jar with a lid 3-8 hours. Very rich, and high in protein, iron and calcium. Most of the nettles I pick I cook or blanch and freeze. My favorite wild patch has been taken over by garlic mustard, which is tasty but not nearly as nutritionally rich as nettles are. - Jan. 7

***** I am offering a free class on herbs for cancer and heart disease Jan 28 sponsored by PFC. The class is held at Crazy Wisdom Bookstore, 7-8:30. You can drop by, although pre-registration is preferred. Register at the Co-op. - Jan 6

***** Lots of red honeysuckle berries in the woods right now. DON’T eat them. The only edible variety is Lonicera caerulea, and it has a blue berry. That is a cultivated honeysuckle, not likely to be found growing wild. The honeysuckle nectar dripping from the flowers is a treat midsummer. But the berries are mildly poisonous. The black berries you will see in winter are often buckthorn. They are also toxic. Good resource here http://bit.ly/6DaVdm to learn more. I generally don't taste or eat berries I don't know. They are often toxic, which is the same as mildly poisonous, which is the same as it is likely you will later regret eating them. - Jan. 5

***** Gingko nuts are a food I have not yet tried. Where is a female Gingko tree in A2? I think I found one on the Old West Side once? We have lots of male Gingkos around. They don't stink. - Jan 5

***** Long walk in woods, spotted more rotting crabapples, but the Vitamin C flavor was there and it had a nice initial taste. Nibbled, not eaten. They were rotting, not yet rotten. - Jan 4

Linda Diane Feldt is a local holistic health practitioner, herbalist, writer, and teacher. You can follow her daily wildcrafting observations on twitter.com/wildcrafting or contact her through her Web site holisticwisdom.org

Please note: I wrote about a specific product because I like it. No one asked me to or in any way encouraged me.