The next time you’re wandering around the streets of Copenhagen, don’t bother ducking into a cafe or bakery for your mid-afternoon snack. Copenhagen’s city council recently voted to plant public fruit trees, including blackberry bushes and apple trees, in a variety of public green spaces (playgrounds, cemeteries, churchyards, parks, sports facilities) in an effort to reconnect people with local flora and food.
Photo: DUSAN ZIDAR/Shutterstock
Copenhagen to Plant Communal Fruit Trees on City Streets
The tradition of local foraging is long in Denmark, with laws on the books dating back to the Middle Ages allowing citizens to harvest food from public lands. People were also permitted to harvest from private lands with footpaths, as long as they remained on the trail. The Danish capital is just expanding the idea into urban spaces.
For visitors to Denmark unfamiliar with its abundance of natural resources, Vild Mad, is a free mobile app that educates people about foraging. The app guides users through the country’s beaches and forests ripe with local ingredients, provides tips, and suggests recipes. 