Wytham’s food fest wilderness

Keats put it best with his description of autumn as: “Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness”.

Yes, we are now entering that magical period when Mother Nature offers up such an abundance of maturing produce that you don’t know which to harvest first.

But one thing is for sure: this is certainly the time to venture forth and forage for foods.

It was ironic then, that when Manse Ahmad of Wilderness Pioneers welcomed us to Wytham Woods for a charity morning’s foraging, he began by informing everyone that without written permission from the landowner, foraging (even blackberrying) is illegal.

However, we were in the company of woodsman and Conservator of Wytham woods, Nigel Fisher, who had the authority to allow us to take part in this foraging session to raise funds for the Wytham’s All Saints church roof repairs.

It was also to provide the basics for our lunch at the White Hart and proved a jolly party. Our walk through the woods searching for wild, edible ingredients took more than two hours, but nothing was hurried – we took our time.

With golden autumn leaves fluttering to the earth like confetti as we walked, Wytham Woods was magical.

This area of ancient semi-natural woodland to the west of Oxford was bequeathed to Oxford University in 1942 by the Ffennel family. On accepting this gift the University agreed to maintain their natural beauty and have stuck proudly to the agreement.

Manse’s aim in conducting forage events is to encourage us all to spend leisure time tuning into nature.

There are three different deer in the woods, fallow, roe and muntjac. Nigel Fisher had culled a muntjac several days prior to the foraging event to enable the chef to prepare and cook it for our lunch.

With more than two million wild deer in the UK, they are beginning to threaten biodiversity, particularly as winters are getting warmer, and vegetation that may have died back in the winter now offers lush pastures for them. Regular culls therefore are a necessity.

The deer was smoked and served with rosehip and blackberry sauce by chef Dave Pannell and his brigade at the White Hart.

Squirrel and rabbit, whose numbers also need to be kept under control, were also served at lunch, with a tasty hazelnut and dandelion salad.

Our walk had therefore begun by looking for the many wild herbs that could be used to flavour the meal. Nettles, which are still flourishing at the moment, and burdock roots were used for the soup, served with homemade bread to which chopped hazelnuts had been added. A great combination that proved a worthy addition to our feast, especially as nettles are now considered a super food.

Dandelions, which are one of the most profuse of British weeds are great salad greens, though it is best to select young growth (the older leaves tend to taste rather bitter).

We were all surprised to discover Manse picking a large bunch of ground elder, which gardeners consider one of the most persistent of weeds that spreads quickly and is difficult to pull up. It can be can be cooked up like spinach or added to a salad. Ground elder is also known as Ale hoof as it was used to clarify beer during the medieval period.

Hairy bittercress, which is common throughout the British Isles makes for an excellent addition to salads too.

Then there’s Silverweed, so named as the underside of its leaves have a slightly silver tinge. It’s the roots of this plant that can be eaten and enjoyed, either boiled, baked or raw.

Rose hips, the fruit of the wild rose, were cooked with blackberries to make the sauce for the venison. They are the fruit of the wild rose, and have been used as a food source for centuries.

Hawthorn berries, considered one of the most abundant autumn fruits offers provide Vitamin C too, and as we made our way to the White Hart it was apparent everyone in the party had reached the point Manse was aiming for – being at peace with nature. If you are interested in gaining woodcraft skills check out his site, wildernesspioneers.co.uk – you won’t be disappointed.