6 things to harvest in the forests of the Homeland

September 18, 2026

Fall goods Red River Métis Citizens can harvest to celebrate National Forest Week

^{Head outdoors this September to harvest these six things in the Red River Métis Homeland.}

Feel the dirt beneath your boots and take a deep breath of purified air from the trees, because it's National Forest Week 2026.

National Forest Week is celebrated across Canada to appreciate and bring awareness to our forests and the vital part they play in Red River Métis environment, culture, and livelihood. The Red River Métis have always nurtured a harmonious and economic relationship with the forests of the Homeland: boreal and aspen.

Historical sources of Red River Métis economy such as the fur and pemmican trades are intertwined with the resources our forests have to offer. Our Homeland forests continue to boost Red River Métis traditional economies but also bring Citizens back to their heritage and together with their community.

Whenever Red River Métis Citizens go to harvest, it's vital to adhere to the current Métis Laws of the Harvest. Rooted in traditional Red River Métis values of conservation, sustainability, and respect for the land, the Métis Laws of the Harvest offer guidance for responsible harvesting.

Make sure you have a valid Harvester card with up-to-date CTF stickers before harvesting. To get your updated CTF stickers or to learn more about harvesting, visit mmf.mb.ca/harvesters.

This National Forest Week, the Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF) is encouraging Red River Métis Citizens to explore forests themselves and look for these six fall harvest items.

Don't harvest anything that you can't confidently identify; if you need help learning to harvest in the forests of the Homeland watch for harvesting events in your area at mmf.mb.ca/events.   

Here are six things to harvest this fall to celebrate National Forest Week

1. Chokecherries

_{Chokecherries were one of three berries historically used to make pemmican alongside Saskatoon berries and highbush cranberries.}

September is the perfect time to pick chokecherries. Despite their name and bitter reputation, chokecherries can be cooked down with sugar into a delicious jam, jelly, or syrup with an almond-like flavour. This black cherry bush can grow to be the size of a shrub or small tree and comes from the rose family. Don't be confused by the attractive bright red of the unripe cherries; the cherries are ripe and ready for harvesting when they are a dark red to a near-black purple. You can find this tart treat in both the boreal and aspen forests of Manitoba, usually along the outer edges of the forest line.

The cherry family carries cyanide in its seeds; you can dry them in the sun to nullify the toxicity. To err on the side of safety, you can also strain the seeds from a syrup or jam during processing.

Chokecherries have a lookalike called the honeysuckle. You can distinguish the two by looking at their berries. Honeysuckle berries are called "twin berries" for the distinct way the berries grow directly into each other, always in twos along a stem, whereas the chokecherries grow multiple berries along a stem, creating bunches.

2. Lobster mushroom

_{Add lobster mushrooms to your fall harvest for a prairie-grown mushroom with a seafood-like flavour!}

This delicious forest harvest gets its name, and unique culinary reputation, for their stunning bright colours resembling cooked lobster and having a flavour reminiscent of seafood. These mushrooms are highly sought after by mushroom harvesting enthusiasts.

You can find lobster mushrooms in late summer to early fall. They grow in both the boreal and aspen forests, but can be more commonly found in the latter. Lobster mushrooms have an interesting nature; they are a parasitic fungus, attacking and taking over gilled mushrooms and growing off their body until the previous mushroom no longer exists.

For lobster mushrooms, the younger the mushroom, the lighter the colour. Ideally, you want to harvest these fancy looking mushrooms when they're younger and have a white to orange colour rather than the older red or purple (Mushroom Marauder).

3. Rose hips

_{Waiting for the first frost to harvest rose hips helps soften and sweeten them.}

There's nothing better to enjoy on a crisp fall morning than rose hip tea. There are multiple kinds of roses that grow naturally in the Homeland: the prickly wild rose and the prairie rose. Roses are shrub plants that flower and then grow rose hips - the fruit of the plant (although the rose petals are also edible). Apart from their sweet floral taste, they are high in antioxidants and vitamin C. In addition to being turned into a tea, they can also be refined into skincare products.

Rose hips are red and orange when ripe. They are berry-like fruits that appear after blooms drop from the plant. Rose hips contain seeds you'd remove before consuming (Grow Forage Cook Ferment). The best rose hips are harvested after the first frost of the year.

Wild roses have no toxic lookalikes, making them a great option to start for those new to harvesting (Grow Forage Cook Ferment).

4. Chicken of the woods

_{Chicken of the woods makes for a great meat alternative in your favourite recipes.}

Vegans, vegetarians, and foodies alike will love this fall harvest: chicken of the woods. Commonly used as a meat substitute, these large yellow and orange mushrooms grow on the side of hardwood trees - you'll never find them growing out of the ground (Mossy Oak). They prove to be a great harvest for beginner mushroom hunters due to their distinct characteristics.

You can harvest this mushroom all season long - from late spring to fall (Mossy Oak). You'll want to harvest them when they're younger as they get brown and woody with age, losing their delicious flavour. And, you guessed it, it has a chicken-like flavour.

5. Labrador tea

_{Due to the ledol levels in the leaves, Labrador tea is a one-cup-a-day kind of tea.}

'Tis the season for warm beverages to cozy up with, so number five on our list is the Labrador tea plant, which is commonly used for, as the name suggests, tea.

Also known as Hudson's Bay tea, bog tea, and swamp tea, this small evergreen shrub is commonly found in wetland areas of the boreal forest, but you'll likely see it anywhere you hike. This ground-level shrub has dark green leaves, rolled edges, and a fuzzy underside. The plant produces distinctive white flower clusters (Parks Canada), but you'll want to wait until after the flowers are gone to harvest. The Labrador tea plant can be harvested from summer well into the fall.

If you like a warm piney herbal tea, you may want to try this shrub out. When making your Labrador tea, you'll want to add a small number of leaves for steeping - only one to five leaves for a single thermos - or you might get a stomach ache. The potential digestive discomfort is due to the ledol and other tannins found in the plant, meaning you'll want to be cautious when consuming Labrador tea.

6. Highbush cranberry

_{These showstopping berries make a great addition to any holiday feast.}

Highbush cranberry jelly is a delicious preserve to make for the holiday season. Technically part of the honeysuckle family rather than a true cranberry, these delicious berries can be harvested in September and October.

A large multi-stemmed plant that grows in forest clearings and moist environments, highbush cranberries can sometimes be found along bodies of water. You can identify the shrub by their maple-like leaves that turn vibrant red with hints of deep purple during the fall - and, of course, the showstopping berry.

You'll want to harvest highbush cranberry after the first frost when the berries turn from their unripe yellow and green colour to a beautiful bright red. Don't be discouraged by the unpleasant "gym sock" odour of the ripe berry; once processed, the smell will dissipate and only the tasty cranberry flavour will remain.

Forests are more than just a place to explore. From the foods they provide to the traditions they sustain, they are an essential part of Red River Métis culture, history, and way of life. For National Forest Week, we encourage Citizens to explore the forests of the Red River Métis Homeland firsthand - and maybe pick up a treat on the way.

Don't go on the journey alone - join the Energy, Infrastructure and Resource Management (EIRM) team on one of their many field days across the Homeland. Visit EIRM's Natural Resources page at: mmf.mb.ca/natural-resources to learn more, and keep an eye on our events page for field day events in your area: mmf.mb.ca/events.

Works Cited

Grow Forage Cook Ferment. "Foraging Rose Hips & Wild Rose: Identification, Harvesting, & Uses,"www.growforagecookferment.com/foraging-for-rose-hips

Mossy Oak. "Chicken Of The Woods Mushrooms - Identifying and Cooking," www.mossyoak.com/our-obsession/blogs/recipes/chicken-of-the-woods-mushrooms-identifying-and-cooking

Mushroom Marauders. "Lobster Mushrooms - An In-Depth Overview," Lobster Mushrooms - An In-Depth Overview

Parks Canada. "Labrador tea," Labrador tea - Wapusk National Park

 

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