Cassandra Mieslik

Mary, there seems to be a general agreement that Spikneard can be used a lot of ways, I've found most berries are an excellent anti-inflamatory and can be made into wine or vinegar, how strong the wine is depends on how you make it. Vinegar is an easy way to use berries, so is steeping them in vodka, and adding a sryup to finish it.

After 40 plus years of eating wild plants, I still think some of them taste 'terrible'. I do realize that people who eat a SAD diet have a difficult time adjusting to the taste of wild foods, what you grow up with taste good to you. Plus the chemicals that are added to factory food causes a craving for them, both in people and pet food.
As for wild mushrooms, I do little gathering of them, it's too easy make a mistake. I would go 'rooming' with my grandmother for them and depended on her telling me the rights ones to eat, but she has been gone since the 70's.

Checked on your site reference, good pictures. Thanks . I did look into more of my references, my mistake, they do list a red-purple berry for Aralia R. Also I noted a reply that "edible" has to do with each person's taste, some berries that are listed as edible taste terrible! I agree with that, has happened to me lots of time when I've picked different berries from wild plants.

The information about this plant is somewhat incorrect from the forager. A. Racemosa does not set berries. A. hispida does. All are in the Ginseng family, all are listed as using the root & leaves in the form of a infusion (tea) for many medicinal conditions.
references: Peterson 's Edible Wild Plants and P. Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants