I figure instead of a bunch of new threads we can put our mystery plants in this thread. And in the future maybe you can find out what your mystery plant is by looking here!
I’ll start with this tree. When it was starting to bud, before any leaves, I thought it was a tulip poplar with the big flowers. But it is not! Now that it’s leafing out.
Aesculus glabra, Buckeye
Grows along creeks in the mountains of West Virginia, around this time of year. It only grows where there is water. Foragers call it “watercress” or “wild lettuce” but it is different from other plants that are called those same names.
It is eaten as a lettuce. The texture is a little thicker than grocery store lettuce. Flavor has a hint more bitterness than grocery lettuce, but mild as wild plants go.
That’s so funny because it doesn’t look the same as the buckeye tree at my dad’s house! I’ll have to look at it when I’m there next. Maybe they’re different types.
