Watch: Veggies in the wild, you just need to know where to look

• Foraging tour guides are taught weekly
• Some garden variety plants became wild
• Restaurants buy wild produce.

Scott Moran’s bag is filled with wild mustard, feral garlic, and a horseradish.

No, he hasn’t just made a trip to the grocery store. Rather, he simply went outside. And not to some remote part of the province, these natural edible greens are within Kelowna city limits with downtown buildings in sight.

“I think people have a preconceived notion that you only get good things from farm vegetables, and this is completely wrong,” Moran said. “You will not find anything with more nutrients and flavour than what we get growing around town in our weeds.”

Moran is a professional forager and took Kelowna10 under his wing to highlight what you can and can’t eat when out and about.

He asked us to keep the specific areas he scours discreet, but was willing to admit to filling a bag with Lamb’s Quarter, which is like arugula, in the Lower Mission.

What he finds is not all for him. He often sells it to restaurants to use as a garnish or in salads. The juicy leaf is edible, fresh and has a light, almost sweet taste.

A highlight of the urban endeavor, watching Moran undertake an exhaustive effort to dig up a large horseradish root system near a creek.

The unmistakable smell filled the air as he shovelled the five-pound beast from the earth.

He’ll probably be able to sell it for $100 and likely to a kitchen serving oysters as they pair well.

Between harvesting, exploring new areas, and teaching groups, the world of foraging is a full-time job for Moran during spring and summer. In the fall, he travels to the Kootenays to harvest mushrooms.

Knowing what you can safely pick up and throw in your mouth is key, as there are several plants that can make people sick, he said.

Beyond that, sustainably harvesting the crops is also key and something he teaches during his guides.

Moran grew up picking mushrooms with his family and has over a decade of experience identifying wild plants.

Some of the plants he collects are the wild cousins of what’s in the produce aisle. Others, like the asparagus and horseradish, are common garden varieties that seed in natural areas and thrived in our climate.

What draws him and many higher end restaurants around Kelowna to wild products is the flavour.

“It’s kind of like if you were to give a painter some brand-new colours to work with,” Moran said. “Also, we’re getting the wild food in April, May, and June, when there isn’t a lot of selection from the farms.”

April is violet growing season. Restaurants enjoy using it in liqueurs, plus desserts and pastries.

Another benefit of wild plants is oftentimes they’re more nutritious than what grows on commercial farms. The way certain produce has been bred, it loses some nutrients and is affected by fertilizer.

When Moran isn’t selling his finds to fine dining establishments, he sells at the Kelowna farmer’s market on Saturdays.