Mother’s Day Tea at Roaring River to highlight wild herbs
May 8, 2019
Vinnie Roberts
On Sunday, May 12, Roaring River State Park will host its annual Mother’s Day Wild Tea. The event will start at 11 a.m. and is scheduled to end at 12:30 p.m. at the CCC picnic shelter, located near Highway F. This event is free to the public.
According to Kelly Koch, interpretive resource specialist for Roaring River State Park, in previous years, the event met in a tent near the Chinquapin Nature Center on the park grounds. This year, the location was changed to the CCC shelter in order to give it a more naturalistic, outdoorsy atmosphere.
“It’s a new location this year,” said Koch. “I think the atmosphere will be better than the tent we usually have at the nature center.”
During the event, park employees will be making and handing out warm herbal teas, cool beverages and finger foods, all made from wild plants and flowers that grow in Missouri. Park employees will also educate attendees on the process by which the food was made, as well as how to identify these edible plants in the wild.
Attendees will first make their own tea bags out of local herbs. Herbs available are said to include mint, echinacea and dandelion to name a few.
During this time, attendees will be educated on the wild roots and herbs that grow in Missouri and how previous generations used them for survival. According to Koch, the education portion of the event is the most important component. “I think it’s important to teach people about these wild edibles, because it’s some of the knowledge that our grandparents and great-grandparents had and utilized out of necessity.
“With the world that we have now, we’re losing some of that knowledge, so it’s kind of fun to look back on what people used historically so that people can know what’s out there.”
Cold drinks will also be served at the event. The main attraction of this portion of the morning will be root beer, made from Koch’s own recipe using locally grown sassafras roots.
Finger foods made from local wild plants will also be served throughout the event. Details on some of the foods are to be announced since their ingredients will be picked from the wild in the days before the event, but Koch stated that there will be a type of spinach puff made from wild nettle leaves.
“Most of the foods will already be prepared,” said Koch. “It’s an opportunity to sit and enjoy the wild food that grows around here.”
For more information on this event and future park events, contact a park naturalist at the Ozark Chinquapin Nature Center at (417) 847-3742.
Vinnie Roberts
On Sunday, May 12, Roaring River State Park will host its annual Mother’s Day Wild Tea. The event will start at 11 a.m. and is scheduled to end at 12:30 p.m. at the CCC picnic shelter, located near Highway F. This event is free to the public.
According to Kelly Koch, interpretive resource specialist for Roaring River State Park, in previous years, the event met in a tent near the Chinquapin Nature Center on the park grounds. This year, the location was changed to the CCC shelter in order to give it a more naturalistic, outdoorsy atmosphere.
“It’s a new location this year,” said Koch. “I think the atmosphere will be better than the tent we usually have at the nature center.”
During the event, park employees will be making and handing out warm herbal teas, cool beverages and finger foods, all made from wild plants and flowers that grow in Missouri. Park employees will also educate attendees on the process by which the food was made, as well as how to identify these edible plants in the wild.
Attendees will first make their own tea bags out of local herbs. Herbs available are said to include mint, echinacea and dandelion to name a few.
During this time, attendees will be educated on the wild roots and herbs that grow in Missouri and how previous generations used them for survival. According to Koch, the education portion of the event is the most important component. “I think it’s important to teach people about these wild edibles, because it’s some of the knowledge that our grandparents and great-grandparents had and utilized out of necessity.
“With the world that we have now, we’re losing some of that knowledge, so it’s kind of fun to look back on what people used historically so that people can know what’s out there.”
Cold drinks will also be served at the event. The main attraction of this portion of the morning will be root beer, made from Koch’s own recipe using locally grown sassafras roots.
Finger foods made from local wild plants will also be served throughout the event. Details on some of the foods are to be announced since their ingredients will be picked from the wild in the days before the event, but Koch stated that there will be a type of spinach puff made from wild nettle leaves.
“Most of the foods will already be prepared,” said Koch. “It’s an opportunity to sit and enjoy the wild food that grows around here.”
For more information on this event and future park events, contact a park naturalist at the Ozark Chinquapin Nature Center at (417) 847-3742.
