They are the foods of our ancestors - and maybe our future too.

On forest floors and through our hedgerows, moorlands and seashores lie the foods that were long foraged by our ancestors as part of daily life in Scotland.

Now, the ‘lost’ wild tastes of our open-air food larder are being hunted down to preserve them for the future.

Biologist Dr Marian Bruce is on a mission to save the 'lost' tastes of Scotland's wild larder. PIC: Contributed. | Contributed

Dr Marian Bruce, a biologist based in Perthshire, has created The Wild Scottish Flavour Wheel to enable people to rediscover the long-gone tastes of wild ingredients and encourage greater understanding and use of wild plants.

Dr Bruce is seeking input from people living across the country to share stories, folklore recipes, memories and opinions about the tastes of the wild to create an online library of wild Scottish flavours.

“There are wild flavours all around us, but so much of our knowledge of this is at risk or needs to be rediscovered,” she said.

“Broadening everyone’s understanding of this is a way of enhancing the richness of our world and reconnecting with nature. We want as many people as possible to rediscover these lost flavours of Scotland.

“Flavour is somewhat subjective and often hard to describe, so we’re asking everyone to take part in the further development of the wild flavour wheel.”

The wheel identifies 50 Scottish species – from gorse to elderflower, pignut, hairy bittercress and the penny bun mushroom - which are then split into ten flavour profiles, including earthy, berry, hedgerow and floral.

Pignut, a caloric staple of times passed, is a small flowering plant sought for its tubers, which are dug from underground. It is said to taste similar to a celery heart crossed with raw hazelnut. Some have a spicy aftertaste. On the Wild Scottish Flavour Wheel, the pignut sits in the earth category.

In the floral category, gorse - with its sweet, coconut smell - is found, along with other flowering plants such as honeysuckle and meadowsweet. Bog myrtle, which has been used to make beer, candles and midge repellent, features in the spice category, along with juniper and sweet woodruff.

Meanwhile, the taste of the hedgerow can be found in dog rose, rowan and crab apple.

By bringing the wild species and their tastes together, it is hoped that a collection of “national natural flavour assets” can be created.

Dr Bruce said the understanding of Scotland’s wild tastes would improve as feedback from the public increases.

She said: “I’m looking for a wide range of contributions, particularly the community of foragers. This input could take the form of words for flavour, descriptors of species on the wheel, family recipes, stories or folklore around the species and suggestions for new additions. This community collaboration will bring the flavour wheel to life.

“The Wild Scottish Flavour Wheel will expand with more information, become more interactive and is an evolving resource and tool for people to enjoy, use and be part of.”

Dr Bruce lives on a farm in Perthshire where she has founded Highland Boundary, which produces spirits, liqueurs, syrups and bitters using only hand-foraged, sustainably harvested wild Scottish botanicals.

She works collaboratively with Heriot-Watt University, the University of Edinburgh and University of Aberdeen to promote and research wild plants, circular economy business systems, nature restoration and natural capital financing, community impact of nature restoration and carbon sequestration.

The Wild Scottish Flavour Wheel will be launched at the Scottish Wild Food Festival, which takes place on May 17 and 18 at Tir na nOg in Stirlingshire.

Saving the 'lost' wild flavours of Scotland - from pignuts to gorse and penny bun

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