WILD FOOD SCHOOL - Course Schedule, 2008

If you don't see a date or time that suits, please get in touch and maybe something can be arranged - even if you are only passing through Lostwithiel and just have an hour or two to spare. On the other hand you might want to get a personalised hands-on session to help you with a charity survival week, or even undertake an Instructor's course which takes place over the seasons. The 'Reading the Landscape' which is designed to help foragers be more productive in their hunt for edible wild greens is available upon request.

Don't feel afraid to ask as anyone with an interest in 'the edible wild' will always be welcome. Deciding on your 'skills level' can be found below. Remember, also, that distance-learning courses are available if you cannot make it down to Cornwall. To book on a course, or for more details, please e-mail or call 01208 873788.

If places on a course have not been booked then the time may be re-allocated; so get in touch if you have a specific date you'd like to visit.

 

WHICH COURSE IS FOR YOU?

 
INTRODUCTORY SESSIONS: Designed for folks curious about wild foods, but who have little or no experience and wish to know more. Very much the first foot on the ladder in exploring the edible wild. These are half day sessions. Cost: £35pp. [Includes complementary Wild Food 'Takeaway' CD-ROM]

STARTER DAY: These follow on from the Introductory courses and combine both an introduction to various edible wild plants and then cooking some foraged items. Full day sessions. Cost: £80pp. [Includes complementary Wild Food 'Takeaway' CD-ROM]

INTERMEDIATE: Designed for anyone who has a reasonable basic knowledge of a few common edible wild greens but wants to extend their knowledge of more plants and cooking with them. Full day sessions. Cost: £90pp. [Includes complementary Wild Food 'Takeaway' CD-ROM]

ADVANCED: Aimed at folks who know a good number of edible wild plants and who may wish to explore more unusual plants and their cooking and food potential. For example, preparing and using acorns, handling some of the toxic plants, or exploring the full potential of foraged greens such as the bulrush... Potentially experimenting on the edge. Full day sessions. Cost: £90pp. [Includes complementary Wild Food 'Takeaway' CD-ROM]

WEEKEND COURSES: Immersive sessions that adapt to the skills or interest levels of participants, so that everyone participating gets the best out of their time. Cost: £175pp. [Includes complementary Wild Food 'Takeaway' CD-ROM]

WEEK COURSES: Monday to Friday courses running once a month from March through September; aimed at folks with some knowledge of foraging and providing a longer time to absorb information in much greater detail [anywhere between 40 to 90+ plants depending on the season and seasonal changes]. PoA

WFS ACORNS COURSE
WFS will be running several Acorn day courses ahead of the main acorn harvest period [generally in October-November] where you can learn how to safely prepare acorns for human food, and try your hand at some acorn-based recipes. Cost £125 pp. [includes a free copy of The Essential Acorn, Hazelnut, Chestnut &c Cookbook]

WFS URBAN FORAGING DAYS
What would you do if someone switched off your local supermarket? Would you be able to identify something to eat among the weeds in your garden, local park or open space?

A number of WFS courses on Urban Foraging are planned for 2008, and will concentrate on the most likely edible wild plant species to be found in Britain's urban and metropolitan areas. Although urban areas can be hard hunting grounds, naturally growing wild food does exist if you know where to look and what to look for. In the Urban Foraging course you will cover around 30+ plants, plus a few more of the 160 or more edible wild plants available in the wider countryside, and be able to try a few out for yourself. Full day sessions. Cost: £85pp.

READING THE LANDSCAPE: Foraging is frequently left to luck. In survival situations with limited resources then leaving things to chance is not productive and possibly dangerous. The specialist one-day RTL courses are about minimizing the 'chance' factor; providing the forager with a methodology for looking at a terrain and deciding quite precisely where to look for edible greens [at least in northern temperate climes]. Full day sessions available by arrangement.

INSTRUCTOR'S COURSE: None of the courses above are designed for people who wish to teach others about wild foods and its disciplines. A newly designed course requiring 2 weekend [or other available 2-day slots] down in Cornwall, allows participants to observe different terrains and plants over different seasons during the year. More details on request.

 

July 2008

Sat.

Sun.

Mon.

Tues.

Wed.

Thurs.

Fri.

1

2

3

4

Intermediate / Advanced

5

Starter Day

6

Starter Day

7

8

9

10

11

Intro. morning

12

Intermediate / Advanced

13

Starter Day

14

WEEK COURSE

15

WEEK COURSE

16

WEEK COURSE

17

WEEK COURSE

18

WEEK COURSE

19

Weekend course

20

Weekend course

21

Urban Foraging

22

23

24

25

Intro. morning

26

Starter Day

27

Starter Day

28

Intro. morning

29

30

31


August 2008

Sat.

Sun.

Mon.

Tues.

Wed.

Thurs.

Fri.

1

Starter Day

2

Weekend course

3

Weekend course

4

Starter Day

5

6

7

8

Intro. morning

9

Starter Day

10

Starter Day

11

Intro. morning

12

13

14

15

Intermediate / Advanced

16

Starter day

17

Starter day

18

Acorns Course

19

20

21

22

Starter day

23

Weekend course

24

Weekend course

25 *

Starter day

26

Urban Foraging

27

28

29

30

31

 

September 2008

Sat.

Sun.

Mon.

Tues.

Wed.

Thurs.

Fri.

1

2

3

4

5

Starter Day

6

Weekend course

7

Weekend course

8

Acorns Course

9

10

11

12

13

Instructor course

14

Instructor course

15

16

17

18

19

Starter Day

20

Starter Day

21

Starter Day

22

Intro. morning

23

24

25

26

27

Starter Day

28

Starter Day

29

Starter Day

30

 

October 2008

Sat.

Sun.

Mon.

Tues.

Wed.

Thurs.

Fri.

1

2

3

4

Starter Day

5

Starter Day

6

Acorns Course

7

8

9

10

11

Starter Day

12

Starter Day

14

14

15

16

17

18

Instructor or W/E course

19

Instructor or W/E course

20

Starter Day

21

22

23

24

25

Weekend Course

26

Weekend Course

27

28

29

30

31

 

November 2008

Sat.

Sun.

Mon.

Tues.

Wed.

Thurs.

Fri.

1

Starter Day

2

Starter Day

3

Intermediate / Advanced

4

5

6

7

8

Intermediate / Advanced

9

Intermediate / Advanced

10

Starter Day

11

12

13

14

15

Starter Day

16

Starter Day

17

Intermediate / Advanced

18

19

20

21

22

Starter Day

23

Starter Day

24

25

26

27

28

29

30


 

December 2008

Sat.

Sun.

Mon.

Tues.

Wed.

Thurs.

Fri.

1

2

3

4

5

6

Intermediate / Advanced

7

Intermediate / Advanced

8

Starter Day

9

10

11

12

13

Starter Day

14

Starter Day

15

Intermediate / Advanced

16

17

18

19

20

Intermediate / Advanced

21

Intermediate / Advanced

22

Starter Day

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

 

Precise content of all courses will vary because of the seasons and what is available to forage or harvest at the time. However, courses can also be varied to match the food preferences of participants; whether it is for more practical survival skills, to learn how to turn edible wild plants into more traditional dishes, or for exploring ethnobotanical interests. The very nature of the edible wild foods also demands flexibility and so experimentation on full day, weekend and week courses is encouraged.

Day, and particularly Weekend and Week courses, include field trips in hilly country so adequate footwear and level of fitness are essential.

To book on a course, or for more details, please e-mail or call 01208 873788.

 
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