"DURANGO, Colo. — A green plant along the Animas River Trail caught Catherine Grillos’ attention. She bent down, pulled several leaves from the ground and held them up excitedly.
“Ha, there’s burdock over here,” Grillos said. “These are going to make the best pesto.”
Grillos, a forager and chef, sees ingredients where many people see weeds. She gathers plants around Durango and turns them into drinks, salads, crackers, ice cream and pesto.
A 2018 field guide by self-sufficiency author Caleb Warnock catalogs 437 edible wild plants across the Rocky Mountain West, including berries, roots, nuts, greens, flowers and seeds. The guide covers eight states, including Colorado and New Mexico.
At Rotary Park, Grillos pointed out plantain, clover and dandelions growing within a few feet of one another.
“Just where I’m sitting now, all this food is available,” she said. “And it’s free.”
Rotary Park is part of Durango’s Organically Managed Parks Program. The city maintains the park using organic fertilizers and herbicides instead of synthetic chemicals."
