Photo of the Playshop group by Eric Christianson
The weekend started with a rutted road marked by a “Hostel in The Forest” sign, partially consumed by the forest itself. Despite pulling off a well travelled road, the sandy, rutted driveway we crept along made the ensuing adventure apparent. It was the first time work trade traveler Gus and I had visited the Hostel. For Marc, it was yet another place he calls home.
We brought along with us a bountiful harvest of dandelion (Taraxacum officinale, roots and leaves), bee balm (Monarda didyma), and Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota) harvested from a garden Marc has helped with for about 15 years. While at the Hostel, Marc and Mycol Stevens shared their abundant knowledge on plants and mushrooms. Our meals were infused with foraged foods, from Queen Anne’s Lace hummus to dandelion, lady’s thumbprint (Polyganum sp.), and dayflower (Commelina sp.) pesto. We also found and pickled some Florida Betony (Stachys floridana) rhizomes, a member of the mint family (Lamiaceae) with large rhizomes.
On Saturday night, Marc and Mycol curated a mead circle, sharing a variety of lovely home-brewed meads and beers that incorporated the abundance around us with the alcoholic alchemy that occurs when yeast mingle with sugar from honey or mash. Participants rounded off the selection of offerings by adding a few of their own brews to the mix.
We wrapped up the weekend on Sunday with a plant walk along the shores of Jekyll Island. Some of the choice plants sampled there were Yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria, one of two native North American plants that contain caffeine), Southern Wax Myrtle (Myrica cerifera, leaves similar to Bay leaf), and marsh samphire (Salicornia sp., a succulent with a deliciously savory flavor).
The weekend provided a great variety of plants, people, food, and drink. Everyone went home with a new and renewed appreciation for the world around them, and a few more tools for interacting with that world!
-By Hayden Stebbins