The Hunter Gatherer Society: Foraging, Primitive Fishing, and Camping – Blending Traditional Skills with Modern Living

Hunter Gatherer Society: Foraging, Primitive Fishing, Wild Food Recipes & Outdoor Living Skills

Welcome to The Hunter Gatherer Society, your guide to modern foraging, primitive fishing, and outdoor living. Whether you’re identifying wild edible plants, testing outdoor gear in rugged terrain, or fermenting ingredients gathered from the forest, this is where you’ll learn to reconnect with nature through hands-on experience and seasonal wisdom. Explore beginner-friendly foraging guides, gear reviews, and wild food recipes created for real life. From learning the basics of plant identification to discovering new ways to cook what you forage, The Hunter Gatherer Society is about building confidence outdoors. We blend traditional knowledge with modern adventure to inspire a more grounded, self-reliant way of living.

Hen of the woods mushroom (Grifola frondosa) growing in a large gray-brown rosette at the base of a tree

Hen of the Woods Identification Guide: Edibility, Lookalikes, Harvesting & Uses

Hen of the woods is one of those mushrooms that can make you stop in the middle of a fall walk and stare. At first glance, a large cluster looks almost like a pile of gray and brown leaves gathered around the base of a tree. Get closer, though, and the structure becomes much more interesting. Dozens of small, overlapping caps rise from one thick, branching base. Each cap looks like a little fan, spoon, or feather. Together, they form the ruffled shape that gives hen of the woods its name. The scientific name is Grifola frondosa. You may also know it as maitake, especially when you see cultivated versions in grocery stores or restaurants. For foragers, hen of the[…]

Common chickweed (Stellaria media) with green leaves and small white flowers

Chickweed Identification Guide: Edibility, Lookalikes, Harvesting & Uses

September 24, 2026 rpolipnick Foraging, Foraging Wild Edible Plants and Mushrooms

Common chickweed (Stellaria media) is easy to walk past. It creeps through gardens, lawns, paths, field edges, and other disturbed ground, often forming soft green mats during cool weather. For foragers, that little patch of green is worth a closer look. Chickweed is a tender edible plant with a mild flavor. The young leaves, stems, and flowers can be eaten raw or lightly cooked. Better yet, the plant gives us several useful identification features that are easy to check in the field. You still need to identify it carefully. Scarlet pimpernel can grow in similar places and has somewhat similar leaves. Low-growing spurges can also become tangled in a chickweed patch. Both deserve attention before anything goes into your basket.[…]

Wild onion plants showing green leaves, white bulbs, and roots for identification

Wild Onion Identification Guide: Edibility, Uses, Harvesting, and Complete Field Guide

September 17, 2026 rpolipnick Foraging, Foraging Wild Edible Plants and Mushrooms, Wild Edible Plants Foraging and Identification Guides

Wild onions are one of the easiest wild foods to overlook. Their narrow green leaves often blend into grass, lawns, field edges, and open woods. However, crush a leaf and the smell usually gives the plant away. A true wild onion should release a clear onion, garlic, or chive-like scent. Several species in the genus Allium are commonly called wild onion or wild garlic. Depending on where you live, you may find common wild onion (Allium canadense), field garlic (Allium vineale), nodding onion (Allium cernuum), or another regional Allium species. Many of these plants are edible. In fact, the leaves, flowers, and bulbs can often be used much like cultivated onions, garlic, or chives. There is an important safety concern,[…]

Lion’s mane mushroom growing on a hardwood tree with long white hanging teeth

Lion’s Mane Mushroom Identification Guide: Edibility, Lookalikes, Harvesting, and Complete Field Guide

September 10, 2026 rpolipnick Foraging, Foraging Wild Edible Plants and Mushrooms

Lion’s mane (Hericium erinaceus) is one of the most distinctive wild edible mushrooms you can find. Instead of a traditional cap and gills, a fresh lion’s mane looks like a white shaggy ball growing directly from wood, covered with long, soft teeth that hang downward like tiny icicles. For beginning mushroom foragers, that unusual structure is useful. Once mature enough to show its characteristic long teeth, lion’s mane has relatively few convincing lookalikes. The species most likely to be confused with it are other members of the genus Hericium, including comb tooth and bear’s head tooth mushrooms. Fortunately, these close relatives are also generally regarded as edible when young and fresh. That does not mean you should identify lion’s mane[…]

Common purslane identification showing fleshy green leaves, reddish stems, and yellow flowers

Purslane Identification Guide: Edibility, Uses, Harvesting, and Complete Field Guide

September 3, 2026 rpolipnick Foraging, Foraging Wild Edible Plants and Mushrooms, Wild Edible Plants Foraging and Identification Guides

Common purslane (Portulaca oleracea) is one of those wild edible plants that can be hiding in plain sight. It grows low to the ground in gardens, disturbed soil, sidewalk cracks, farm fields, and other sunny places, where its thick leaves and reddish succulent stems are often dismissed as weeds. For foragers, purslane is much more interesting. The tender leaves and stems are edible raw or cooked, with a pleasantly tart, slightly salty flavor and a crisp, succulent texture. Purslane also has a long history as a food plant and is still eaten in many parts of the world. It can be an excellent beginner wild edible, but there is one particularly important identification lesson: learn to distinguish purslane from prostrate[…]