Archive • The Chicago Forager • Buttondown

Issue #18: Mulberries again

June 14, 2026

The sidewalks are staining again. Mulberries — the forage that made half of you reply last summer to say "wait, I have one of those trees in my alley." You...

Issue #17: Morel weather

May 17, 2026

Soil temps just crossed 50°F and we got two warm rains. You know what that means. Drop what you're doing — this issue is short on purpose. What I'm reading...

Issue #16: Ramps, trout lily, and a new spot

April 12, 2026

Ramp season, year two of this newsletter. Same ethic, new spot, and a spring ephemeral I want you to learn to walk past. What I'm reading Ramps: leaf-only,...

Issue #15: Field garlic returns

March 15, 2026

Full circle. The field garlic is back up through the thawing lawns, exactly where this newsletter started fourteen months ago. If you joined recently —...

Issue #14: Planning the spring forage

February 15, 2026

Still frozen, but this is the issue where the planning forager beats the wandering one. Spring comes fast and stupid in Chicago — one warm week and the ramps...

Issue #13: Cold-weather bark, buds, and rose hips

January 18, 2026

Deep winter. The "nothing grows" season — except it does, if you stop looking for green and start looking at bark, buds, and last year's fruit still clinging...

Issue #12: A year of foraging Chicago

December 14, 2025

One year. Roughly 800 of you now, which is wild to me — I started this for the dozen people who kept texting me "what's that plant." Thank you for being...

Issue #11: The ethics issue

November 16, 2025

No mushrooms this issue. The season's winding down and I want to talk about the thing that actually keeps this hobby alive: not taking too much. What I'm...

Issue #10: Hen of the woods, acorns, and wild persimmons

October 12, 2025

Peak autumn abundance. Three finds this issue, because October doesn't do anything by halves. What I'm reading Hen of the woods (maitake) — the gray, ruffled...

Issue #9: Pawpaw week

September 14, 2025

It's the week I wait for all year. Pawpaws — the largest fruit native to North America, custard-textured, tasting like banana crossed with mango — are...

Issue #8: Chicken of the woods and elderflower cordial

August 17, 2025

Two very different finds this fortnight: a mushroom you can see from your car, and a flower you should have caught two months ago (note for next year). What...

Issue #7: Chanterelles after the July rain

July 13, 2025

Three days of rain and then heat — the exact recipe. Chanterelles are fruiting in the oak woods, golden and apricot-smelling, and this is the issue where I...

Issue #6: Mulberry sidewalks and black raspberry canes

June 15, 2025

The sidewalks on the northwest side have gone purple-black and slippery. Mulberry season is the most democratic forage in Chicago — the trees are everywhere,...

Issue #5: Morels, garlic mustard pesto, and a map

May 11, 2025

Morel season. The most-asked, least-answered question in my inbox is "where," and the honest reply is "near dying elms, after a warm rain, when the soil hits...

Issue #4: Ramp season opens at Caldwell Woods

April 13, 2025

It's here. The text thread with my foraging friends has gone from quiet to unhinged because the ramps are up. What I'm reading Ramps, and how not to destroy...

Issue #3: Chickweed, dead-nettle, and the first green things

March 16, 2025

The snow's gone and the lawns are doing that thing where they're suddenly, aggressively green at the edges. That's not grass. That's dinner. What I'm reading...

Issue #2: Maple sap season comes early

February 16, 2025

The freeze-thaw swings finally showed up, which means one thing: the sap is running. Maple season in northern Illinois is short and it's started early this...

Issue #1: Field garlic, frozen creeks, and why I started this

January 12, 2025

Welcome to The Chicago Forager. I'm Jenna — I've spent a decade learning which sidewalks, alleys, and forest preserves in this city quietly feed people, and...