Merry Beltane to you! I hope that you manage a dip in the spring dew or a nibble on some Hawthorn, at some point today.

Yesterday, I led a Mediamatic workshop about how to forage Japanese knotweed for food, drink and some home remedies. I would like to share my JKW shrub recipe with you here.

A shrub is an old fashioned drink, either alcoholic or not, containing some degree of vinegar. The following shrub recipe makes a refreshing non-alcoholic drink composed of a herb syrup and a herb infused vinegar, the herb being Japanese knotweed. There are endless ways to make a shrub but they should all be somewhat fruity and somewhat acidic.

Japanese knotweed (JKW) is not a fruit, it is a remarkable invasive medicinal and edible perennial weed which looks a little like bamboo and belongs to the Buckwheat plant family. Being a close relative of rhubarb it can be used in foods with that flavour in mind.

Infuse the vinegar:
Infuse a jar full of clean chopped JKW leaves and stems in apple cider vinegar for a couple of weeks.
Strain and bottle.

Make the syrup:
Simmer a cup of sugar, a cup of water and a couple of cups of clean chopped knotweed leaves and stems for about 20 minutes.
Cool, strain, bottle.

Make the shrub:
The exact ratio will depend upon the sweetness of your syrup and the sourness of your vinegar but as a rough guide try 3 parts JKW syrup to 1 part JKW vinegar. Add a splash of water. Too sweet, add a dash more vinegar. Too sour, add a dash more syrup.

I will not get into the details of JKW foraging today. Suffice to say, I enjoy carefully foraging it and I love making food, drink and medicine from it. Japanese knotweed is an incredible immigrant which has so much to offer.

Do let me know if you try it and of other things that you like to make with Japanese knotweed.

Health Insurance Update
Since I last posted here, I have been working hard to become fully registered with BATC, a Dutch association for nature based complementary therapists. All has gone smoothly so I am happy to report that full or partial costs of my private natural healthcare consultations (not my walks, workshops and talks) are now covered by health insurance (aanvullende zorgverzekering) for many people here in The Netherlands.
Details on my other website – Mugwort and Marigold

Walks and Apprenticeship
My next public herb foraging walks are advertised on the events page and meetup.

The latest apprenticeship group begins today so the next opportunity for people to join my Urban Herbology apprenticeship course will be 21st June 2023. A small group will be able to join at that time. If you would like to apply to join please see this page for information.

Monday 22nd April (Bank Holiday)
Amstel Station to Park Frankendael Walk
14.00 – 16.00

This Easter Monday walk will take you on a free-food journey from Amstel Station through delicious residential streets to the foraging gardens (that I run) in Park Frankendael. Learn how to ethically forage the delicious treats which grow around us in Amsterdam!

If you would like to join this walk, please sign up via the MeetUp.com listing.

Here are a few images from the recent 7 Day UH Foraging Challenge and also taken on the walks I’ve led this month. March has been beautiful and fresh plants are everywhere! If you would like to challenge me to a few days – a week – a month – whatever – of finding tasty urban plants to forage in the town or city where you live, let me know! I did this for 365 days, several years ago. There is always something to forage in cities, why not give it a try! Let me know through the comments / contact form if you would like to. Instagram was a good place to hold and #urbanherbology #7daychallenge the photos. So if you use Instagram it’s even easier.

I went to the orchards today to dig some of the wild garlic out of the paths. It is so successful in this area that it clogs some sections of the wood chip path. These are going to shady tree pits and to my school foraging group.

The River of Herbs orchards gardening group meets every Monday morning, behind Huize Frankendael, address: Middenweg 72, Amsterdam 1097 BS. Do join them any time, especially if you’d like to get involved and help out.

In this short video, I’m plucking out flower buds on their stems, from the path edging wild garlic. This prevents it getting out of control next season.

And in this one, outs just to show the difference a bit of wild garlic recall can make to the paths. There should be a clear path right up the the gauze leaf bin…

Last but not least, two lovely orchard regulars…

I am working on the Urban Herbology courses at the moment. As well as creating a lot more content and member forums, I am adding podcasts and videos to the units of study. I am having a lot of fun with it!

Here is a short podcast made today, in Park Frankendael. I had a 10 minute wander in one of the Orchards and found some tasty treats.

To book a place on my next walk or workshop, see my events page.

It’s time to slowly come out of hibernation and soak up the sensations of early spring. Walking around town today, the smell of rising sap was palpable! Bulbs are up, the weather is mild and I feel happier to pluck. Imbolc is upon us.

I find this a very exciting time if year. Nature is always full of promise but faith is needed as this time of the year. How will those plants rise above the cold ground and swell? How will those bugs find the energy to buzz around us again?

From Imbolc until midsummer, nature seems to gradually build up to a frenzy of activity and productivity. This time allows us to see how plants look as they rise out of the soil. We can see the first true leaves of cleavers, the cold tolerant blades of wild garlic and the irresistible (non edible) dancing snowdrops.

I’m soaking up every ray of sunshine this Imbolc, the bright moonbeams of the blue moon and most of all the sights and sounds of emerging plants.

What is delighting you this Imbolc?

The shortest day is just behind us and the weather in Amsterdam is mild, dark and misty.  I’m looking forward to longer, brighter days.
It’s pleasant to reflect on life and be able to forage at this muddy time of year.  I’m foraging a little when the urge strikes me but not much. The plants really need a rest and I do too.

Mosses, liverworts and lichens are catching my attention these days, far more than anything else. Some are edible (in theory) and many have a multitude of uses. For me, they represent calm; deep, earthy, cool, calm  I’m enjoying looking at them a lot. Sometimes through a magnifying lens, or through a camera but mostly just by getting up close, tuning into these ancient simple plants, looking closely at how they do things and smelling the air around them. And don’t they just smell great!

I’ve developed such a love of these green beings that I am planning space for them in my garden, rather than herbs.  I’ve also been making moss gardens in old bonsai pots. My next workshop will be about kokedame (moss balls with plants growing in them). It’s a quietening phase.

Here’s a lichen, with wonderful spore trumpets, growing crustily on an old cherry tree in Frankendael. Such a pretty life form. I could study it all day!

If you also share this love of small green simple plants, I’d be delighted to hear how you celebrate them.