*These are 2 different (free) programs, one following the other, both at the library, with foraging expert, Mark Vorderbruggen!
Register once, and you can attend one or both... Wild edible plants identification walkabout at the library parking lot will be from 10:00 - 11:30, followed by a wild hill country mushroom talk presentation inside the library from 12:00 -1:00. These will be in-person only, not streamed.
 
10:00 AM Outside Parking Lot:
Foraging Walkabout - No need to head into the wild, suburbia is filled with edible and medicinal wild plants. Come see what foraging instructor and author Dr. Mark "Merriwether" Vorderbruggen sees when he walks the grounds of the Dripping Springs Community Library. You'll see nature and dinner in a whole new light!

12:00 PM Inside:
9 Beginner Fungi for Hill Country Mushroom Hunters Presentation - One doesn't think of the Texas Hill Country as an edible wild mushroom hotspot, but it is! Learn where and when to look for nine easily identifiable fungi deserving a place on your plate.

About Mark:
Mark "Merriwether" Vorderbruggen, Ph.D. is often (somewhat) jokingly described as a scientist raised by wolves. Having a M.S. in medicinal chemistry and a Ph.D. in physical organic chemistry, he brings science into the world of wild edible and medicinal plants. On the science side he has sixteen patents and numerous articles in research journals from his career as a chemist. However, his true love is plants and the miracles they contain. Since 2008 his website www.foragingtexas.com has been one of the top wild edible/medicinal plant sites on the internet; he's written countless foraging articles for a wide variety of magazines; taught hundreds of foraging walkabouts; appeared on radio, TV, and podcasts galore; wrote the acclaimed books Idiot's Guide Foraging and Outdoor Adventures Guide Foraging; consults with everyone from Real Spirits Distilling to NASA; and writes the “Forking Weeds” articles for every issue of Texas Gardener Magazine. From January 2020 to July 2025, he was the medicine man for Medicine Man Plant Co., bringing forth the ancient plants that can still help with modern issues. Currently he’s either teaching classes on foraging, writing about foraging, or letting out his inner caveman in some secluded wilderness!