Wildcrafters are people who harvest plants and fungi from their natural environments, rather than cultivating them. Some plants do not do well under cultivation, forcing people to harvest them in the wild, while others are simply readily available in the wild in some regions, leading people to harvest them in situ rather than attempting to grow these plants. The practice of gathering wild materials is known as wildcrafting, and in some regions wildcrafters are subject to an assortment of laws which are designed to keep wildcrafting safe and ecologically friendly.
Many wildcrafters enjoy working in nature, and they consider themselves to be stewards of nature, caring for it while they benefit from it. A number of wildcrafters subscribe to a code of ethics which includes respect for endangered species and cleaning up after themselves. If possible, only parts of a plant are harvested, rather than the entire plant, ensuring that the plant will continue to thrive, and in the event that an entire plant does need to be harvested, a wildcrafter will plant a new one or leave seeds behind.
Herbs are commonly collected by wildcrafters, who may sell them fresh, dry them, or distill them into essential oils. Some wildcrafters are also herbalists, offering a variety of herbal treatments to their clients including tisanes and infusions, and they may create specialized herb blends as needed. Many of these herbs are rare and they do not do well in gardens, so wildcrafters are needed to harvest these wild plants.
Fungi are another common choice of harvest for wildcrafters, who may sell the mushrooms to mushroom buyers or directly to restaurants and other food companies. Others may dry mushrooms and sell them packaged this way, or offer their products at farmers' markets and other community markets which encourage people to connect with the individuals who produce and harvest their food. In addition to harvesting food mushrooms, wildcrafters can also collect fungi for dyeing, and some may distill their own dyes for textiles.
Becoming a wildcrafter takes time, as people need to learn to identify and harvest plants. Especially when plants are being collected for food, it is extremely important to know what you are doing, and to handle the plants in such a way that they will retain their desirable properties on the path between wildcrafter and end consumer. Many wildcrafters learn through apprenticeship, working with experienced wildcrafters who also pass down knowledge about running an ecologically friendly wildcrafting business.
