I would say that most people foraging wild plants in western societies aren’t doing it to sustain themselves. It is usually has to do with learning more about their surroundings, to revive old knowledge or for fun. And as long as you double check, play close attention to detail and most importantly don’t blindly follow an app you should be completely fine with this. (Well, foraging plants from the Apiaceae (the carrot family) is not really a good idea due to the close resemblance of most of its members.)
Been using one of these apps to try to identify the many wild plants in my native pastures. Mostly just out of curiosity and conservation. Likewise it helped identify some trees and shrubs the previous owner planted around the yard.
They are far from perfect but are a good starting point as you get lots of pictures to compare to your mystery tree, you finish the job yourself.
I don’t know who is using these things. If you’ve got a phone and a signal then you’ve got a shop. Go to it and buy the things you need.
I forage and hunt for food. It lets me get things I can’t get at the grocery store and it’s free.
I use them. It helps me identify “weeds” so I can know if they’re good for pollinators or have to be removed immediately for invasiveness.
Example: I often keep a couple milkweed plants growing for monarch butterflies.
I would say that most people foraging wild plants in western societies aren’t doing it to sustain themselves. It is usually has to do with learning more about their surroundings, to revive old knowledge or for fun. And as long as you double check, play close attention to detail and most importantly don’t blindly follow an app you should be completely fine with this. (Well, foraging plants from the Apiaceae (the carrot family) is not really a good idea due to the close resemblance of most of its members.)
It’s for beginners. My son uses it to learn about plants in our yard.
It might be wrong, but that’s the next step of parenting.
Been using one of these apps to try to identify the many wild plants in my native pastures. Mostly just out of curiosity and conservation. Likewise it helped identify some trees and shrubs the previous owner planted around the yard.
They are far from perfect but are a good starting point as you get lots of pictures to compare to your mystery tree, you finish the job yourself.