If wild berry foragers followed vague advice such as "berries of red and you'll soon be dead" or "berries of blue will do harm to you" imagine how many of nature's delicacies would be passed by! On the other hand, for anyone who has thought twice before popping that delicious-looking morsel into their mouth, the reality of poisonous berries growing in the wild is reason enough to be berry aware.

With a basketful of information presented on a two-sided, lightweight, waterproof and pocket-sized pamphlet, A Field Guide to Edible Fruits and Berries of the Pacific Northwest is the perfect resource for wild fruit- and berry-lovers of all ages, whether on a short walk in the woods or a backcountry hiking trip. In addition to more commonly identified specimens such as strawberries, blueberries and blackberries, explore the delicious possibilities of evergreen huckleberries, cloudberries and crowberries, and learn how to tell the edible lingonberry from the poisonous baneberry.

Each entry is illustrated with a colour photograph and accompanied by a brief description and seasonal availability to help identify more than forty kinds of fruits and berries found in the wild, along with information on how best to prepare and preserve the edible ones.

Richard J. Hebda is Curator of Botany and Earth History at the Royal BC Museum. He is also a professor of Biology and Earth Science at the University of Victoria. His studies include vegetation and climate history of British Columbia, ethnobotany of BC First Nations, climate change and its impacts, restoration of natural systems and processes, flora of alpine ecosystems and
botany of grasses.

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