We live in inherently dysregulating times. Genocides, global warming and the quickening of late stage capitalism deeply impact our spirits and nervous systems, individually and collectively. This class offers a space to tap into one our oldest and deepest relationships. Our plant kin offer a space of remembrance, support and friendship. They also connect with our bodies medicinally, offering calm and comfort in moments of distress. This class will explore how remembering our interconnection to all beings allows us to access our grief and also offers the medicine to keep going. We will explore what it means to be in reciprocal relationship with our plant kin, tell stories, hold space, and engage in embodied practice.

Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging for a mushroom hunt in the field! Students will meet at a regional park in the Twin Cities metro area for a group hike with the hope of finding and identifying mushrooms. The class will cover topics such as best foraging practices, culinary uses, and cultural history.

Did you know that many of the fruits you buy at the store can be picked right in your own neighborhood? Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging as we learn about common wild fruits that grow in urban areas, including wild plums, raspberries, cherries, and aronia. Wild plums should (hopefully!) be ripe and ready to harvest. We will also discuss other common wild edibles found along the way.

Urban foraging is gaining popularity across metropolitan areas. Learn how to do it safely and sustainably with Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging. Plants we will probably encounter include gooseberry, mulberry, burdock, plantain, and many others! We will discuss identification, harvest, and preparation of each plant. Please note that we won’t be harvesting anything, but we will have lots to look at and learn!

Presented by Maria W. of Four Season Foraging in partnership with the Minnesota Rovers.

Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging for a full day of foraging! Take a trip out to the countryside for an in-depth exploration of wild plants and mushrooms. We will discuss laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species. Plants and mushrooms that we may find include sochan, wild cherries, chanterelles, and chicken of the woods! If we’re lucky, we may even get to harvest some mushrooms or fruits. (We won’t be able to collect greens, flowers, or roots, but we can learn about them!)

You don’t need to trek into the wilderness to harvest wild edibles—there are options right here in the city! Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging to explore the urban environment in search of wild foods. The class will focus on easy-to-identify seasonal flowers and fruits, starting right on ASI’s campus. Participants will also discuss other wild edibles found along the way and the cultural heritage of foraging in Sweden and other Scandinavian countries. A similar workshop takes place in October with a focus on other seasonal plants.

Wild edibles grow all around us, you just have to know what to look for! Bring your basket and join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging as we hike around the forests, fields, and wetlands of Wargo in search of wild edibles. We’ll discuss identification, sustainable harvesting methods, and preparation. This class will be held rain or shine, so please dress for the weather.

Take a trip out to the countryside for some forest foraging! Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging to learn about wild harvesting of plants and mushrooms in rural areas. We will discuss laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species. Plants and mushrooms that we may find include milkweed, stinging nettle, chanterelles, chicken of the woods, and more! If we’re lucky, we may even get to harvest some mushrooms. There will also be some opportunities to sustainably pick greens and flowers.

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to travel to rural areas to forage! The urban environment contains a diverse (and delectable!) array of wild edibles. Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging as we learn about common wild fruits and herbs that grow in urban areas, including mulberries, raspberries, yarrow, and wild bergamot. If we’re lucky, we may get to harvest some fruit together! We will also discuss other wild edibles found along the way.

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to travel to rural areas to forage! The urban environment contains a diverse (and delectable!) array of wild edibles. Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging as we learn about common wild fruits and herbs that grow in urban areas, including mulberries, raspberries, yarrow, and wild bergamot. If we’re lucky, we may get to harvest some fruit together! We will also discuss other wild edibles found along the way.

Gather together on the longest day of the year with Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging to learn about summer foraging of medicinal plants. Several species are traditionally thought to reach their peak in midsummer, including yarrow, wild bergamot, and mugwort. We will discuss identification, edibility, and medicinal uses of these species, and talk about other wild edibles we encounter in the field.

Join Maria (Four Season Foraging), Tanner (Tanner Barnharst) and Haleigh (Wide Eyed Outside) for Nature Gays in the Woods during Pride Month! This event welcomes and centers people who identify as LGBTQIA+, plus their friends and family members.

Tuesday, June 17th from 6:30pm to 8:30pm at Battle Creek Regional Park in Maplewood, MN

We'll enjoy wandering around the park informally, learning about edible plants, mushrooms, lichens, animal tracks and more!

Take a trip out to the countryside for some forest foraging! Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging to learn about wild harvesting of plants and mushrooms in rural areas. We will discuss laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species. Plants and mushrooms that we may find include wood nettle, virginia waterleaf, oysters, chicken of the woods, and more! If we’re lucky, we may even get to harvest some mushrooms! (We won’t be able to collect greens and roots, but we can learn about them.)

Summer offers many tasty opportunities for the growing forager! Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging in this introductory class about common wild edibles. We will start inside for a slideshow presentation, then move outdoors to explore wild edible plants of the early summer landscape. Together we will learn about laws and ethics around foraging, as well as identification, harvest, and preparation of edible species. Please dress for the weather (rain or shine!) and be prepared to walk around a mile. Plants we will probably encounter include garlic mustard, burdock, dandelion, plantain, and many others! You will leave with a newfound appreciation for the wild plants that grow all around us plus a greater sense of confidence in foraging your own food!

A surprising number of the plants that grow all around us and are scorned as “weeds” have awesome healing properties! Furthermore, some of the beautiful flowers that are favored for landscaping are also healthful herbs. Join Four Season Foraging and Maria Wesserle as we learn edible and medicinal traits of common herbs, and how to identify them. Some plants we will cover include dandelion, linden, yarrow, and wild bergamot. Please note that we will not be harvesting any herbs, but we will have lots to discuss about them!

It’s unnecessary to trek into the wilderness to harvest wild edibles—there are options right here in the city! Join Maria of Four Season Foraging to explore the urban environment in search of wild foods, starting right on ASI’s Minneapolis campus.

The class will focus on easy-to-identify roots and greens, with a focus on plants on ASI’s campus. Depending on what’s in season, the class may venture into the neighborhood. Participants will also discuss a variety of wild edibles found along the way and the cultural heritage of foraging in Sweden and other Scandinavian countries.

Join Ariel and Maria for a day of foraging fun at the Avon Hills Folk School! The workshop will start with two slideshow presentations: one covering introductory information about wild mushroom foraging, and the other about wild edible plants we may find in the area.

Afterwards, we will hit the trails to apply our newfound knowledge to the surrounding landscape. Mushrooms and plants we may encounter include nettle, violets, fiddlehead ferns, morels, oysters, and pheasant backs! Bring your own bags or baskets, as we can sustainably pick any edible mushrooms or plants we come across!

Join the Morel Madness!

​Embark on an unforgettable adventure into the heart of Minnesota's Big Woods to hunt for the elusive Morel mushroom! Guided by expert foragers and culinary legends, this event offers a unique opportunity to connect with nature, learn new skills, and support a worthy cause.

May is morel month in Minnesota! Learn all about this highly prized and elusive mushroom with Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging. The first tip is free: take time off work and go out on a weekday to beat the crowds! Though finding mushrooms is never guaranteed, we will spend a large portion of the workshop learning about and looking for morels—and hopefully harvesting some! Other plants and mushrooms we may encounter include wood nettle, Virginia waterleaf, oysters, pheasant back, and more. (We won’t be able to harvest greens and roots, but we can learn about them!)

Wild edibles grow all around us, you just have to know what to look for. Bring your basket and join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging as we hike around the forests, fields, and wetlands of Wargo in search of wild foods. The focus will be on spring greens and roots, though we’ll also cover any mushrooms we find. We’ll discuss identification, sustainable harvesting methods and preparation. Students will have the opportunity to pick prolific plants and—if we get lucky—harvest mushrooms. Possible species include nettle, burdock, morels, and oysters.

The spring foraging season is almost here in Minnesota! Attend this introductory course by Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging to get prepared and feel more confident in your foraging practice. We will discuss general foraging guidelines, helpful tools and resources, and of course talk about wild edibles! Maria will cover some common and easy-to-identify plants and mushrooms of spring and summer, and there will be a question and answer session at the end.

They say that April showers bring May flowers… What they don’t tell you is how many of those flowers are tasty wild edibles! Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging as we explore the spring landscape and learn about wild edible and medicinal plants. We will probably encounter garlic mustard, burdock, dandelion, plantain, and many others! We will discuss identification, harvest, and preparation of each plant.

They say that April showers bring May flowers… What they don’t tell you is how many of those flowers are tasty wild edibles! Join Maria Wesserle and Four Season Foraging as we explore the spring landscape and learn about wild edible and medicinal plants. We will probably encounter garlic mustard, burdock, dandelion, plantain, and many others! We will discuss identification, harvest, and preparation of each plant.

From spruce tips to black walnuts and wild plums to basswood leaves, trees offer incredible sources of food for urban foragers! Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging to learn tips on identifying tasty trees that probably grow right in your neighborhood. We will also discuss harvesting and preparation methods, including timing your harvests to the seasonal calendar. Please note that we won’t be picking wild edibles during class, but there will be a variety of tree species to look at and learn from.

Interested in foraging but don’t know where to start? Get an introduction in this virtual class led by Maria of Four Season Foraging. Participants will go over general foraging guidelines, helpful tools and resources, and, of course, talk about types of wild edible plants you might encounter. Maria will focus on some common and easy-to-identify plants and mushrooms from the Upper Midwest as good introductory foraging options. Still, many of these species might also show up in other regions of North America. The common principles, resources, and ethical guidance are applicable throughout the US.

Many people treat poisonous plants with fear and revulsion, but with a slight shift in perspective you can learn to appreciate their power and beauty. Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging as we learn about noteworthy poisonous plants (and a few mushrooms!) of the Upper Midwest. The focus will be on Minnesota species, though most folks living in the eastern and central regions of the US and Canada will benefit from this knowledge. We will discuss identification and toxicity, and go over edible species that are considered “look-alikes.” Covered species will include poison hemlock, water hemlock, poison ivy, destroying angel, deadly galerina, and more.

Come join the Wright County Master Gardeners for Spring Days—a fun-filled and educational gardening day! Kicking off this exciting event will be a keynote presentation, followed by three jam-packed informational sessions. There’s something for everyone!

Easy Foraging: Common Wild Edibles of Minnesota

If you’re interested in foraging wild foods but don’t know where to start, look no further! Join Maria Wesserle of Four Season Foraging for an introductory lesson discussing common mushrooms, fruits, and greens. You will leave with basic knowledge of how to identify, harvest, and prepare several wild edibles on your own, impressing your friends and family with new tasty foods!

Ready to dive into identifying, processing, and even tasting evergreens this winter? Maria will share information about some of the evergreens commonly available in the upper Midwest, how to identify, harvest, or source, and prepare them in this hands-on version of her popular lecture. Maria will lead the class in preparing white pine, white cedar, and juniper, and students will go home with a sample of juniper butter. The classroom is sure to smell great, and students will have lots of time to get all their questions answered.