As berries ripen, mushrooms appear and nuts start to fall from the trees, autumn is a wonderful time to go foraging in Gloucestershire.
SoGlos rounds up seven wild food experiences on offer in the county, offering expert guidance, cookery tips and plentiful bounties!
Foraging in the Cotswolds
With wild hedgerows, wide open fields and ancient woodlands, the Cotswolds offers many wonderful places to go foraging for wild food.
Rob Gould, also known as The Cotswold Forager, provides expert guidance on his half-day foraging courses at a secret location in the Cotswold countryside, where he shares his expertise on identifying wild edibles, along with safety and laws around harvesting wild food.
Foraging in the Forest of Dean
Hedgerows and Hagstones invites wild food enthusiasts to see what they can find within the private woodlands of the Huntley Estate in the Forest of Dean.
From learning how to identify wild foods, how tell them apart from poisonous lookalikes, and where to find them, to sampling products made with foraged ingredients like soup, jam, pesto and cordial, and getting recipe inspiration for your own finds, foraging courses are available during October and November.
Foraging at Daylesford in Kingham
Daylesford Cookery School runs a full-day Wild & Foraged course that gives participants the chance to harvest wild food and cook delicious dishes with their finds, with everything from rabbit and venison, to wild herbs, nettles and mushrooms on the menu.
Start the morning exploring the estate and gathering ingredients on a guided foraging walk, before heading back to the kitchen where Daylesford's chefs provide expert guidance during an afternoon of practical cookery, with plenty of dishes to sample along the way.
Foraging at Harts Barn Cookery School in Longhope
Join The Cotswold Forager Rob Gould for a full-day foraging class at Harts Barn Cookery School in Longhope.
After harvesting ingredients from the grounds around the school, he shows wild food fans how to make a foraged feast with what they find, from teas and syrups, bread and pasta, a savoury main course, to something sweet to finish on.
Foraging at The Bathurst Estate in Cirencester
Wild Food UK offers foraging courses within the grounds of Cirencester's beautiful Grade I-listed Bathurst Estate.
Meeting at the Tunnel House Inn, participants learn the foraging code before going out to forage for fungi with an expert instructor, with some wild refreshments like elderflower fizz or wild garlic and hogweed soup along the way, before sitting down to a seasonal meal with handmade treats prepared by your instructor, and a main dish made from the ingredients collected on the morning's walk.
Foraging at Cerney House Gardens
Cerney House's Victorian walled garden is a wonderful spot for a summer foraging session, with a mix of edible ornamental plants and ancient woodlands to explore.
Hedgerows and Hagstones offers a three and a half hour guided session to get to know the edible plants from the poisonous ones, with admission to the gardens included, so you can explore at your leisure before or after your guided walk.
Foraging at Notgrove near Bourton-on-the-Water
The rolling hills and mature trees at Notgrove near Bourton-on-the-Water are home to an array of wild foods and fungi, with Wild Food UK hosting courses to forage for them in November.
Starting at the Nuttery Cafe, participants can head off on a two-and-a-half-hour guided walk with an expert guide to collect ingredients, then enjoy a meal made with the wild foods you find along the way.
