The Uses of Wild Plants

Using and Growing the Wild Plants of the United States and Canada

Frank Tozer

A must-have for foragers, botanists, herbalists, gardeners, permaculturists, and anyone who wants to learn more about wild plants, this insightful guide provides interesting and valuable uses for more than 1200 species in 500 genera of wild plants found throughout North America and beyond.

The Uses of Wild Plants provides a survey of how plants have been used for food, drink, medicine, fuel, clothing, intoxicants, and more throughout history. Each listing includes a detailed description and drawing to aid in identifying these valuable plants in your garden and in the wild.

Greenthumbs will learn cultivation techniques for the most significant of these plants, and their uses in the garden. Tozer foresees a future where plants are an integral part of an ecologically sustainable society. They will provide renewable sources of energy, fertilizer, chemicals, building materials, and more, and will give us the means to clean our waterways and groundwater, desalinate soil, recover valuable nutrients from waste, and maybe even help to slow global warming.

About the Author

Frank Tozer has been using and growing wild plants for more than 35 years. Born and raised in Britain, he has lived and traveled extensively in the United States for the past 25 years. His international background gives him a very comprehensive perspective on the diverse uses of the plants of two continents. He lives in the Santa Cruz mountains with his wife and three children, in a home he built himself. He spends much of his time in his two and a half acre garden, where he tends (at last count) more than 250 species of edible and useful plants.