Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Your gift keeps resources like this database thriving!

DONATE TODAY

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
1 rating

Saturday - September 24, 2005

From: Bend, OR
Region: Northwest
Topic: Edible Plants
Title: Native edible plants
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

Hello, I would like some resources for identifying native edible plants in Central Oregon. Good clear images will be very helpful in links or books. We do alot of hiking and would like to know what we could eat in emergency situations, as well as supplementing our diet when we camp. I am enjoying searching your site. Thanks.

ANSWER:

Here are three recent titles that should prove very useful for Central Oregon:

1. Gregory L. Tilford. 1997. Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West. Mountain Press Publishing.
2. Thomas Elias and Peter Dykeman. 1990. Edible Wild Plants. Sterling Publishing.
3. Betty Derig and Margaret Fuller. 2001. Wild Berries of the West. Mountain Press Publishing.

You can read reviews of these and several more titles on the Wild Food Adventures web page.

Here is another list in case you are going hiking along the Oregon coast or other wetter areas of the Northwest.

1. Terry Domico. 1982. Wild Harvest: Edible Plants of the Pacific Northwest. Hancock House Publishing.
2. Carol R. Biggs. Wild Edible & Medicinal Plants: Alaska, Canada & Pacific Northwest Rainforest. Alaska Nature Connection.

You can also find more books in the Native Plant Bibliography on the Wildflower Center web page.
 

More Edible Plants Questions

Need source for garlic to plant in garden in Fort Worth, TX.
September 30, 2011 - Where can I get or purchase a native Texas garlic to plant in my garden?
view the full question and answer

Getting rid of invasive Florida betony from Myrtle Beach SC
April 28, 2012 - How can I get rid of Florida Betony from my lawn and flower beds/ garden area. Garden area was thoroughly dug up and hand picked of all tubules last year at least a foot deep. They are much worse now....
view the full question and answer

Gardening books for Austin and Central Texas
June 09, 2008 - Hi, I'm looking for a book for my wife. She is a beginning gardener here in Austin. Do you know of an ideal book or two that covers vegetable gardening and gardening in general in Austin/Central Tex...
view the full question and answer

Is it safe to eat vegetables grown in the same bed as foxgloves?
August 12, 2012 - I have foxglove in my flower beds and have planted tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and cantaloupe in the flower bed and now I am concerned about the shared root system. Also, my tomatoes are touching the...
view the full question and answer

Will a chile pequin survive winters in Garden City, Kansas
March 24, 2010 - Dear Mr. Smarty Pants, I am trying to determine if a chile pequin (Capsicum annuum) can survive Kansas winters. My sister lives in Killeen, TX, and has a couple of these bushes in her yard. She broug...
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.