May 1, 2027 @ 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
£37.00
Discover the food growing wild all around you and awaken the ancient knowledge of the hedgerow.
Long before supermarkets and garden centres, people knew their local landscape intimately. They knew which young spring leaves could be eaten, which plants could flavour a meal, which herbs had traditional medicinal uses, and where to find an abundance of food growing completely wild.
Much of that knowledge has been forgotten, but the plants are still here.
Join us for a half-day guided spring foraging adventure through the beautiful woods, meadows, parkland and hedgerows of the National Trust’s Erddig estate. Together, we’ll go on a wild food treasure hunt, discovering some of the very best edible plants that spring has to offer.
You may be surprised by just how much food is hiding in plain sight.
We’ll introduce you to a variety of seasonal wild plants, showing you how to identify them confidently, what parts can be eaten and how they can be used in everyday cooking. Along the way, you’ll also hear about traditional uses, folklore and some of the medicinal properties associated with our native plants.
Foraging isn’t about surviving on bitter weeds or eating strange plants as a last resort. Once you know what you’re looking for, the hedgerows can provide fresh greens, herbs, flavours, teas and ingredients that can transform the way you see the countryside.
The aim of the walk is to give you the confidence to begin recognising these plants for yourself, so that future walks through your local woods and hedgerows become opportunities to gather ingredients, reconnect with the seasons and rediscover a skill our ancestors once took for granted.
Edible wild plants are often viewed with suspicion and thought to be bitter or tasteless, only to be eaten as a last resort. But to the forager, our woodlands and hedgerows are full of tasty and filling wild food opportunities.
You’ll be taking a half day ramble along the hedgerows on the hunt for “food for free” all set against the backdrop of mixed ancient woodlands, parkland and open meadows of the National Trust’s Erddig estate & gardens, with over 400 acres of wild space to explore. Don’t forget to bring your own basket or bag to grab some wild edibles to take home.
- Hunt for some of spring’s best wild edible plants
- Learn how to identify wild foods safely and confidently
- Discover simple ways to use your finds in the kitchen
- Explore traditional medicinal uses and plant folklore
- Taste a seasonal wild herbal tea
- Learn how to forage responsibly and sustainably
- Understand the law surrounding wild food and your rights as a forager
- Begin building the knowledge to forage independently on your own local patch
Set against more than 400 acres of woodland, meadow and historic parkland at Erddig, this is a relaxed and practical introduction to the wonderful world of wild food.
Bring a basket or bag if you would like to gather a few wild ingredients to take home — and come prepared to look at the hedgerows in a completely new way.
Once you learn to recognise food growing wild, an ordinary walk in the countryside never feels quite the same again.
Your Tutor: Lea Kendall
Lea is Co-Founder of Woodland Classroom, Founder of Rooted In Nature, and the creator of Your Wild Food Year, an online foraging course designed to help people build confidence in identifying and using seasonal wild foods throughout the year.
She is also a qualified Counsellor and Life Coach, Woodland Activity Leader and Mindfulness in the Woods practitioner, with a long-standing passion for helping people reconnect with nature in practical and meaningful ways.
For Lea, foraging is about much more than simply identifying edible plants. It is about rediscovering knowledge that was once part of everyday life, learning to recognise the abundance growing around us and developing a deeper connection with the seasons and the local landscape.
Through her courses, workshops and outdoor sessions, Lea loves helping people gain the confidence to use wild plants in their own cooking and everyday lives, while also exploring their traditional uses, folklore and connection to wellbeing.
Her approach is relaxed, practical and welcoming, with the aim of making foraging feel accessible rather than intimidating, and helping people realise just how much wild food is hiding in plain sight.
Skills you will learn
Over the course of the programme you will learn a range of skills, including…
Book now
This walk costs £37 per person and is open to adult learners aged 16 years and over. Children are welcome to attend if accompanied by an adult, though bear in mind that the course content is not aimed at children – get in touch to find out more. You can read our Event Terms & Conditions here.
