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The Forager Handbook (Hardcover)

by Miles Irving (Author)
3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
RRP: £30.00
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Customers buy this book with Food for Free (Collins GEM) by Richard Mabey

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 416 pages
  • Publisher: Ebury Press (2 July 2009)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0091913632
  • ISBN-13: 978-0091913632
  • Product Dimensions: 24.8 x 19.4 x 3.4 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 19,476 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Product Description

At any time, in any place, food is there for the taking - if only we knew how and where to look. Miles Irving makes his living out of foraging - in this unique, authentic guide, he reveals the how, why, what and where of this lost art, a way of life that is becoming increasingly popular as more and more of us pursue an eco-friendly and sustainable lifestyle. This ground-breaking handbook tells you how to recognize the rich possibilities that surround us, whether in the city or countryside. From waste ground to woodland, from cliff top to coast land, plants flourish year in, year out. Spring is when wild garlic flourishes in shady woodlands; summer is the time for marsh samphire in the salt-marshes; autumn heralds an abundance of fruits and nuts; . Many of these plants - nettles, dandelions, fat hen, sorrel - grow so profusely they are considered a nuisance. Yet they offer fantastic food possibilities and are rich in nutrients. Assiduously researched, packed with information and enlivened with anecdotes and more than 330 photographs, "The Forager Handbook" is a milestone publication marking the way forward for the future of British food. And for each plant family, Miles gives ideas for using foraged ingredients in the kitchen. With recipes from some of the most exciting chefs working in Britain today, including Sam and Sam Clark, Mark Hix and Richard Corrigan, and coverage of techniques like drying, pickling and making cordials, this book will take readers on a voyage of discovery. Foraging was something our ancestors did instinctively - this book truly connects us with our past and our future. Discover a secret world of edible possibilities - all freely available.

About the Author

Miles Irving has been seeking out and selling foraged produce for over 10 years. Among the top British restauranteurs who sell the fruit, vegetables and herbs Miles delivers to their doors are Jamie Oliver, Richard Corrigan, Mark Hix, Sam and Sam Clark. Miles lives near Canterbury and has his own company, Forager.

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The Forager Handbook
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Customer Reviews

12 Reviews
5 star:
 (3)
4 star:
 (4)
3 star:
 (3)
2 star:
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1 star:
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Average Customer Review
3.6 out of 5 stars (12 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Forage on........., 30 Jun 2009
By M. Bright (Wales) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This book is another essential for the foragers library. The book covers a much wider range of plants than other similar books. It is more of a referance book than a handbook, its a bit large to be lugging around in your rucksack. The only dissapointing aspect for me is the photographic illustrations of the plants are in black and white and there are not many photographs of the plants when they are in flower, which is the easiest time to differentiate between similar specimens. Definately a good ref book for the library but you will need a decent field guide as well to enable you to confidently identify some of the plants.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A definitive book on foraging British wild plants, 10 Sep 2009
By H. Griggs Hardie "Herbal Heather" (Scotland) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Having used my 1973 worn-out, unillustrated copy of Mabey's Food For Free for years, I was delighted to find that Miles Irving has written this grand, encyclopedic book on foraging for British wild plants.

The book is clearly divided into logical sections beginning with a comprehensive introduction to foraging itself, including: foraging basics, geography, botany basics, processing and preparing plants, potential hazards, the seasons, and what you will find in various ecological environments around Britain. The detail offered here is something I have not found in other similar books on foraging.

The main body of the book consists of monographs of hundreds of plants, divided into basic taxonomic groups. The flowering plants take up the bulk of the book and are arranged by their families in English alphabetic order (Barberry, Carrot, Daisy) with the botanical Latin underneath. Irving also includes sections on ferns, conifers, seaweeds and algae, and several excellent appendices with resources and further reading. Many of the monographs include recipes that Irving uses or has collected from friends and associates over the years. Most monographs also include a photo (many close up) of the plant being discussed. I have spent hours delving into the various monographs, and I often bring home foraged plants to sit and read about their traditional and modern uses.

I disagree with other critics here on Amazon who suggest that the book is too heavy and the photo quality not good enough for field identification. This book was never meant to be an excursion flora, there are plenty of those on the market. This book was meant to give an in-depth knowledge of foraging and how British wild plants can be used in the home and kitchen. It's a foraging course, a herbal, a cookbook, and a horticultural guide to wild plants all rolled up into one information-packed book. I recommend it to my students when I teach a course, and I highly recommend it as a must-have for anyone who is interested in wild-crafting plants in the UK.

H. Griggs Hardie MNIMH MCPP
Medical Herbalist
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19 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars foraging for people sitting on the sofa, 10 July 2009
By emma who reads a lot (London) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)      
This is a good and interesting book but the format makes it totally unsuitable for its purpose. A foraging book needs to be portable, and this is a big hefty hardback the size of a luxurious cookbook. I don't imagine this is down to Miles Irving, I suspect the publisher has made this decision based on how they want the book to sell. It is also disastrous that the photos are not more usable. How is anyone supposed to make really good identifications of food plants without better illustrations? One would need to carry a flower identification book too, again, adding to the weight of a bag.

Of course I suppose the argument could be that you are being introduced to the idea of foraging, then are going out to look for a few plants that are in season. I still think that beginners need more help knowing they are picking the right thing - it's bad enough doing field botany with a hand lens and an authoritative flora, let alone with black and white pics like this. You could do much better picking up a copy of Food For Free which was reissued two years ago and which is in full colour.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Forager Handbook
Very well written with fairly good format making it easy to find recipes, recognise dangerous species and locate the right habitat etc for a large variety of the most common... Read more
Published 9 days ago by Marmski

4.0 out of 5 stars Not a beginner's guide - perhaps
Irving's book is incredibly in depth, inspiring, beautiful and a joy to read.
I think it's essential for anyone interested in foraging and cooking - and I've very... Read more
Published 1 month ago by City forager

2.0 out of 5 stars Sadly not as god as it could have been.
As several others have said this book was promising but a bit of a let down. It really needs accurate colour pictures for correct identification and it is not field portable. Read more
Published 4 months ago by LtCol Malin

3.0 out of 5 stars Still left foraging for more
When I received this book, the size of the volume was pleasing to see as it suggested a very comprehensive book was awaiting. Read more
Published 5 months ago by A. B. Morris

3.0 out of 5 stars The Forager Handbook
I'm sure it will prove to be a useful book, though far too large to take when walking and "foraging". Read more
Published 5 months ago by G. Braund

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Quite The New 'Food For Free'...
Whilst this is a very good reference book, I feel it's let down a little by the black & white photos (which are great in themselves but just not good enough for identification)... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Mikey P

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential & Encyclopedic
The beast that is bourgeois faddism is a chimera with a tendril in many pies. The exponential growth in ecological awareness of recent years has produced the usual glut of... Read more
Published 6 months ago by R. ALLEN

1.0 out of 5 stars the forager
The book was a real disappointment. All illustration in black and white, and would not help with identification. The distribution could have been better cover with a map. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Mrs. E. A. Miller

5.0 out of 5 stars i wish my life was more like this book
from the feel of the cover to the simple and concise layout inside this book has been made to impart information and pleasure. Read more
Published 6 months ago by C. ab Iago

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