All in-person courses will be in the Greater Richmond Area.
Wild Edible Plant Courses
Kids 13 and up welcome to register with an adult attendee.
Come learn wild edible plants available in Central Virginia from an experienced forager, Alison Meehan, who supplements her diet and improves her health with wild plants throughout the year.
These courses are designed to provide enough information for you and your family to begin feasting safely on free, wild food on your own!
Forest Hill Park in Richmond, VA Wild Edible Plant Walks:
Come prepared to learn about 30 wild edible plants found right here in Central Virginia!
This is a per-requisite for the Wild Plant Harvesting and Preparation Course (below).
Courses
Homeschooler’s Introduction to Foraging – March 22, 2024
– Wednesday March 22, 2023, 11 – 1 p.m. – Sign Up!
Location: Chesterfield , VA
– Saturday Nov. 18, 2023, 10 – 1 p.m. – Sign Up!
Location: Glen Allen, VA
– Tuesday October 24, 2023, 10 – 12 p.m. – Sign Up!
– Saturday October 21, 2023, 10 – 12 p.m. – Sign Up!
Level 2 Foraging: Wild Mushrooms
2023 Date to be Announced!!!
Level 3 Foraging: Medicinal Plants and Mushrooms Course
Make your own home apothecary kit to bring home and I’ll be providing all of the materials!
Cost: $125 (The cost reflects the supplies needed, such as honey, vodka, jars, etc.)
Level 4 Foraging: Foraging and Feasting
Come out to our country property just 1 mile from Short Pump Mall to harvest wild edibles and prepare a delicious meal.
We will cover a handful of plants we did not cover in our Foraging Level 1 Course plus review some of the plants we did go over. Then, the students will harvest the edible plants they’ve learned and we’ll prepare a meal together based on what everyone is interested in. In previous courses, we’ve made frittatas, muffins, tea, salads, and pesto!
- Glen Allen, VA – Saturday, January 28, 2023 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Glen Allen, VA – Saturday, March 11, 2023 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Cost: $125 (The cost reflects the time it takes to forage and prepare ahead of time and the food provided.)
Foraging and Nature Retreats
Retreats:
Relax, recharge, and make lasting friends at these retreats!
Do you ever wish you could be a kid again and just go to summer camp? Well, look no further!
Camp out overnight at a scenic location in Montpelier, Virginia by a stream about 30 minutes from Richmond. There’s a regular, indoor bathroom and we’ll prepare a foraged feast together!
You’ll have the chance to slow down, have fun, learn new skills, and connect with nature and each other in this two night retreat.
Here are a few of the topics we’ll be covering as well
- Bird Language
- How to Move Silently through the Woods
- How to Find and See Wild Animals Up Close
- Fire Starting
- Cooking over a Fire
- Foraging
- Sit Spot
- Evening Drum Stalk
- Storytelling
- Animal Tracking
- Nature Poetry
Instructors: Alison and David Meehan
As Seen on PBS!
Alison is the Founder of Tracks and Roots. She has her Bachelor’s of Science degree in Environmental Policy and Planning from Virginia Tech and has been an avid naturalist, wilderness survivalist, and tracker for 20 years. She is passionate about all things nature and especially bringing people of all ages and backgrounds closer to their ancestry, themselves, and the natural world.
She has attended Coyote Tracks, The Tracker School, the Mid-Atlantic Primitive Skills Group, the Firefly Gathering, the Earth Connection School, the Wilderness Awareness School, the Living Earth School as well as attended a few dozen wildlife college courses and ran a college club, the Nature Awareness and Tracking Stuff club. Most of her knowledge of nature awareness and survival has been passed down directly to her from two mentors, Mike Blackwell and Bill Sydor, who took her under their wing as a young adult.
To dive deeper into the world of herbal healing, Alison is also a student of the Chestnut School of Herbal Remedies, a world-renowned herbal medicine school, and has attended in-person classes by its founder, Juliet Blanketspoor.
She lives with her husband and three kids in Short Pump, Virginia and loves getting them outside year-round, in all weather conditions.
David Meehan
David is the co-dreamer, editor, teacher, and back-up manager of Tracks and Roots. He has his Bachelor’s of Science degree in Crop and Soil Environmental Science and has completed 2 years of graduate level ecology courses. He is an avid gardener, a hobby naturalist, and a wild edible plant expert. A trained martial artist and hobby war historian, he worked for the U.S. Army for 7 years as a military police officer. He resides in Short Pump, Virginia with his wife and three kids.
Lauren Bishop
Lauren Bishop grew up camping and hiking throughout Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. She is a Virginia Master Naturalist, Riverine Chapter, as well as an herbal apprentice. Her herbal studies include The School of Evolutionary Herbalism, The Herbal Academy, and herbal workshops with Chestnut School of Herbs, Living Earth School, and Henricus. Lauren worked as an art studio teacher for over a decade in Baltimore and Richmond before pursuing herbal medicine. She holds a BFA from Savannah College of Art and Design and a MAAEd from Boston University. Her hobbies include hiking, gardening, open water, and renaturalizing her property with native plants authentic to the indigenous people and space.
Reviews
“Alison was knowledgeable and engaging. She showed us several edible and medicinal plants. She had lots of activities for the students including making a salve – fire starting and making acorn flour. It was a great hands on program.” – Alysia
“What a meaningful and FUN experience—Allison was so knowledgeable and both students and adults learned so much, from how to make homemade salves to foraging for wild plants such as plantain, yarrow, violet, and spice bush. We will be repeat attendees, for sure! Thanks.” – Sarah
“Thank you so much for teaching my son and I about the edible plants! We appreciate your knowledge about which plants are edible and which are poisonous, as well as which ones have look-a-likes. You are enjoyable to be around and easy to learn from!” – Jennifer and Cody
“I recently attended the ‘Wild edible plant course and was blown away by Alison’s and David’s knowledge. It was everything I was hoping for, and then more! I look forward to future courses!” – Tayler
“Thank you for doing this! We really enjoyed it. The kids are searching our yard collecting edibles.” – Sabrina
“I really enjoyed the class yesterday – it was informative and fun! I plan on going to Deep Run and attempting to identify some plants and trees!” – Liz
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