Can’t face another sad salad? Here’s how to ditch the lettuce and forage for something more exciting

‘If you are new to foraging, check and re-check what you are gathering’ … Alys Fowler in her local park in Birmingham. Photograph: Andrew Fox

I once flew to meet a man because he liked salad. He had come up with a recipe with hundreds of ingredients, many of which were foraged, and that was enough of a reason for a journey to the unknown.

I am a little obsessed with a good foraged salad. There are at least 15,000 edible plants in the world, but we in the west have allowed agribusiness and supermarkets to limit us to 10 or so basics, such as potatoes, onions, carrots, peas and broccoli. When it comes to salad, few of us think far beyond lettuce or tomatoes.