Frequently Asked Questions

Identifying a plant is a delicate process that requires much more than a photo or an intuition. To avoid any mistakes — sometimes serious ones — here is the recommended method:

✔️ 1. Observe the entire plant

A single leaf or flower is NEVER sufficient.
You must examine:
• overall habit, morphology
• stem
• leaves (shape, veins, arrangement)
• flowers
• fruits or seeds if present
• habitat and context

✔️ 2. Photograph several key parts

This significantly increases the chances of reliable identification.

✔️ 3. Check the season

Some species only exist at a specific time → inconsistency = danger.

✔️ 4. Look for known confusions

Many toxic plants look like edible plants.
Druidz reports some confusions, but the user remains entirely responsible for their verifications.

✔️ 5. Cross-reference multiple sources

A single source is never enough:
• paper flora guides
• local botanists
• naturalist associations
• scientific resources

⚠️ Absolutely essential

In case of doubt or uncertainty: do not harvest, do not consume.

⚠️ Legal and liability reminder

The Application does not encourage you to harvest in any particular location and does not validate any identification.
The user must:
• verify the plant's identity themselves,
• respect harvesting laws and private property,
• assume full responsibility for their choices.

Even experienced botanists sometimes make mistakes. The reasons are numerous:

❗ 1. Natural variability

The same species can change in form depending on:
• age
• light conditions
• humidity
• soil type
• season

❗ 2. Extremely similar plants

Typical examples:
• Wild garlic ↔ Lily of the valley ↔ Autumn crocus
• Wild carrot ↔ Hemlock
• Wild chervil ↔ Hemlock water dropwort

Some confusions can be fatal.

❗ 3. Photos are often misleading

The camera flattens perspectives, alters colors, and doesn't show certain details.

❗ 4. Some species CANNOT be identified from a photo

Especially among:
• umbellifers (dangerous family)
• grasses
• seedlings
• hybrids

❗ 5. Botanical databases sometimes contain errors

Even GBIF, Pl@ntNet, or Catalogue of Life are not perfect.

⚠️ Important concept

Harvesting a misidentified plant is a risky activity that Druidz cannot guarantee or secure.

Pl@ntNet uses image recognition AI.
Here are the basics:

✔️ How it works

• The photo is compared to a gigantic image database.
• The algorithm calculates probabilities.
• It returns a list of possible species, never a certainty.

✔️ What Pl@ntNet does well

• recognizes common plants
• finds similarities
• suggests identification leads

✔️ What Pl@ntNet cannot do

• guarantee accuracy
• distinguish certain very similar species
• take into account terrain, season, smell
• replace an expert
• confirm edibility

⚠️ Essential legal point

Pl@ntNet is an independent third-party service. Druidz cannot guarantee its operation or the accuracy of its results.

Several possible reasons:

❌ 1. Incomplete photo

Pl@ntNet cannot correctly identify:
• an isolated leaf
• a plant that is too young
• a partially visible plant

❌ 2. Poor lighting / blurry

The AI needs sharp details.

❌ 3. The plant doesn't exist in the database

Some local or rare species may be absent or underrepresented.

❌ 4. Context not taken into account

Season, habitat, toxicity → the AI doesn't understand them.

❌ 5. Natural confusions between similar species

Some plants can only be distinguished in a laboratory or with a botanical magnifying glass.

❌ 6. Technical problems (quota, network, server)

⚠️ Safety reminder

A Pl@ntNet error does not exempt you from your responsibility:
you must absolutely verify the identification yourself.

Absolute rule:

If in doubt, do not consume and do not harvest.

If you want to verify:

✔️ 1. Study the key differences

Look for distinguishing features:
• number of petals
• vein shape
• presence of latex
• specific smell
• geography

✔️ 2. Check for dangerous confusions

Druidz reports the most known confusions, but the user remains responsible.

✔️ 3. Cross-reference multiple sources

Never a single source, never a single tool.

✔️ 4. Ask the opinion of an experienced botanist

Internet groups can help, but don't replace an expert.

✔️ 5. Come back later in the season

Flowering is often the easiest time to identify.

⚠️ Legal reminder

A misidentification can have serious consequences; the app does not encourage harvesting and never confirms the safety of a plant.

Here are the most reliable methods:

✔️ 1. Use a paper flora guide

Identification keys allow you to:
• eliminate confusions
• verify actual characteristics
• understand local species

✔️ 2. Compare with official herbaria

Universities, MNHN, Tela Botanica, etc.

✔️ 3. Observe the plant over time

The same plant at several stages = much easier to recognize.

✔️ 4. Consult local experts

Botanists, naturalist guides, associations.

✔️ 5. Participate in workshops / botanical outings

Nothing replaces direct transmission.

⚠️ Safety and liability reminders

• Druidz is not a botanical validation service.
• The user must verify identifications themselves.
• The application does not guarantee the presence, absence, or accuracy of displayed plants.
• The user must strictly respect private property and harvesting regulations.
• Druidz does not recommend harvesting in any specific location and cannot be held responsible for any travel or incident related to a misidentified plant.

Identification errors always follow the same patterns. Knowing them helps avoid serious accidents — sometimes fatal.

❌ 1. Confusing two species from a single leaf

An isolated leaf is NEVER sufficient.
(Lily of the valley, autumn crocus, arum, wild garlic → similar leaves but extreme toxicity.)

❌ 2. Using only Pl@ntNet to "confirm"

Pl@ntNet suggests probabilities, not certainties.
It can make serious mistakes between toxic/edible species.

❌ 3. Thinking a plant is "definitely edible" because you saw it on the Internet

Many articles or videos contain errors.

❌ 4. Ignoring smell, stem, venation, root

Some families (umbellifers) are deadly if you only look at the foliage.

❌ 5. Trying to identify a plant that is too young

Seedlings are almost impossible to identify — even for botanists.

❌ 6. Relying on color (flowers, berries, leaves)

Color varies greatly depending on:
• plant age
• light conditions
• soil
• local mutations

❌ 7. Believing a plant found "in the same place as last year" is the same

Many species grow in the same location.

❌ 8. Not taking habitat into account

An edible plant can grow next to a visually identical toxic plant.

❌ 9. Confusing local species with naturalized exotic species

Some invasive species resemble known European species.

❌ 10. Basing identification on a single detail "that looks like it"

Recognizing a plant = recognizing a complete set of characteristics.

⚠️ Liability reminder

Druidz does not validate any identification and does not encourage consumption or harvesting.
The user must verify themselves and assume responsibility for their choices.

Identifying a plant is a complex task, sometimes impossible without specialized equipment.
In case of any doubt, it is essential to consult a qualified expert.

Druidz does not provide identification, consumption validation, botanical advice, or regulatory validation.
The User remains solely responsible for verification with a professional.

Here is the complete list of types of experts capable of helping to confirm (or refute) an identification, ranked from most precise to most general.

1️⃣ PROFESSIONAL BOTANISTS

They are the most competent specialists to confirm an identification, particularly for:
• confusions between similar species,
• toxic plants,
• complex genera (Apiaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Liliaceae…),
• regional micro-species,
• plants requiring a botanical magnifying glass or dissection.

Institutions providing this type of expertise:
• National Botanical Conservatories (CBN)
• National Museum of Natural History (MNHN)
• University herbaria & botanical laboratories
• Regional botanical societies
• Institutional botanical gardens
• Natural history museums

Why consult a botanist?
• they have specialized books unavailable to the general public,
• they know regional confusions,
• they can say "impossible to identify from a photo", which protects the user,
• they are the only ones capable of identifying certain taxa with certainty.

2️⃣ RECOGNIZED INDEPENDENT EXPERTS

Some specialists are renowned for their experience, publications, or teaching ability.

For purely illustrative purposes (and without any connection to Druidz), here are two figures known to the general public:
• François Couplan – ethnobotanist, author, recognized teacher in the French-speaking world.
• Christophe de Hody – botanist and trainer, founder of Chemin de la Nature.

⚠️ Druidz does not recommend anyone to validate consumption.
These names are cited because they are known to the public, not as service providers or advisors to the application.
The user remains solely responsible for verification with the professional of their choice.

3️⃣ NATURE GUIDES & FIELD PROFESSIONALS

Professionals with solid naturalist training can help identify a plant on site, which is much more reliable than via photo.

Examples of professional categories:
• Mountain Guides (AMM) trained in regional botany
• Nature facilitators and eco-interpreters
• Ethnobotany trainers
• Specialized guides by region (alpine pastures, coastline, wetlands, Mediterranean forests…)

Advantages:
• knowledge of local terrain,
• identification in context (soil, smell, location, altitude),
• ability to spot confusions specific to the area.

Limitations:
• their opinion never replaces that of a professional botanist,
• identification sometimes remains impossible without microscope or in-depth analysis.

4️⃣ ASSOCIATIONS AND BOTANICAL SOCIETIES

They bring together enlightened amateurs, researchers, and professional botanists.

Among existing structures:
• Botanical Society of France
• Regional botanical societies (Alsace, Centre, Sud-Est, etc.)
• Tela Botanica and its collaborative network
• Naturalist circles
• Specialized university clubs

They can:
• offer field trips,
• verify identifications,
• direct you to a competent expert.

They do not provide validation of edibility or therapeutic use.

5️⃣ HERBALISTS & SPECIALIZED PHARMACISTS

Some professionals have in-depth knowledge of dried medicinal plants.
Useful for recognizing:
• classic medicinal plants,
• cultivated plants,
• plant parts (roots, leaves, flowers).

But they are not specialists in wild field plants.
Their expertise is not sufficient to validate the safety of a fresh or wild plant.

6️⃣ UNIVERSITIES & LABORATORIES

Some universities have botanists who can analyze specimens via:
• microscope,
• chromatography,
• reference herbarium.

This is the most reliable route for complex cases, but not always accessible to the general public.

7️⃣ WHO NOT TO CONSULT (MAJOR RISKS)

❌ Facebook groups / Discord / non-specialized forums

Extremely high error rate.
No verified competence.
Photos are often insufficient.

❌ "Amateur foragers" without training

Same errors as the user, sometimes worse.

❌ Identification apps or AI

Even the best models make regular mistakes, especially:
• in Apiaceae (hemlock family),
• in toxic Liliaceae (lily of the valley, autumn crocus),
• in solanaceae (belladonna / nightshades),
• in indistinct young shoots,
• on partially eaten or damaged plants.

AI should never be used to validate plant consumption.

8️⃣ OFFICIAL PROCEDURE IN CASE OF DOUBT

To protect yourself and the user, here is the recommended procedure:

1. Never consume a plant if identification is not 100% certain.
2. Compare multiple reliable sources (books, floras, scientific organizations).
3. If doubt persists → consume nothing.
4. Consult an expert (botanist, association, qualified professional).
5. Always verify legality and location (private land, protected area, pollution…).

This procedure reminds that Druidz does not validate any harvesting.

Druidz provides no identification, no validation of edibility, no validation of medicinal or food use, and in no way replaces the opinion of a qualified botanist.
All identification, harvesting, or consumption is exclusively the User's responsibility.
The Application disclaims all responsibility for consequences, damages, or errors related to plant identification, including in case of misinterpretation or erroneous source data.

🔟 SIMPLE SUMMARY

In case of doubt:
1. Do not consume.
2. Verify with a competent expert.
3. Druidz is not a validation tool, but a cultural, informative, and community tool.

Some families contain very similar deadly species.
They should be considered "maximum danger" for beginners.

1️⃣ Umbellifers (Apiaceae)

👉 The most dangerous family.
Fatal examples:
• Poison hemlock
• Hemlock water dropwort
• Cowbane

Confusions with:
• wild carrot
• chervil
• parsnip

Differences sometimes invisible without magnifying glass → extreme danger.

2️⃣ Liliaceae / Asparagaceae (similar leaves)

Dramatic confusions:
Wild garlic (edible)
↔ Lily of the valley (deadly)
↔ Autumn crocus (deadly)
↔ Arum (toxic)

Same smell or same shape → high fatal risk.

3️⃣ Solanaceae

Potentially fatal berries resembling:
• wild tomatoes
• physalis
• nightshades

4️⃣ Ranunculaceae

Many irritating or paralyzing toxic species.

5️⃣ Euphorbiaceae (toxic latex)

Little food confusion, but serious irritation.

6️⃣ Grasses

Difficult to identify, often impossible from a photo.

⚠️ Safety reminder

Druidz never recommends consuming plants from complex families.
The user must consult an expert, cross-reference sources, and verify themselves.

Identifying a toxic plant requires real expertise: neither intuition, nor observation alone, nor an application — including Druidz — can determine the edibility of a plant.

Here are the essential steps:

1️⃣ Check multiple recognized scientific databases

No database is exhaustive. The user must consult multiple sources (botanical books, regional floras, institutional databases).
The absence of a toxic symbol in Druidz never guarantees the safety of a plant.

2️⃣ Observe the entire plant

Identification must include:
• leaf
• stem
• smell
• general habit
• root
• environment
• flowering period
• seeds / fruits

Partial identification is always uncertain.

3️⃣ Confirm with a competent expert

See experts section: botanists, trained ethnobotanists, botanical associations.
⚠️ Druidz does not validate any consumption.

4️⃣ Do not rely on similarities

Many deadly species look almost exactly like edible species.
Classic examples:
• wild garlic / lily of the valley / autumn crocus,
• wild carrot / cowbane / poison hemlock,
• black elder / dwarf elder.

A mistake can be fatal within hours.

Here are the reasons:

1️⃣ Databases are incomplete and evolving

• New toxic plants are discovered every year.
• Some toxicities only appear after new scientific work.
• Information varies greatly by country.

2️⃣ A plant can be toxic in certain contexts

• Polluted soil → accumulated heavy metals ⇢ plant becomes unfit for consumption.
• Plant condition (wilted, water stress, parasites) can alter toxicity.
• Growth period: some plants are edible when young but toxic when mature, or vice versa (e.g.: rhubarb stalks, toxic leaves but edible stalks).

3️⃣ Toxicity varies by individual

Even a plant considered edible can cause:
• allergies,
• digestive disorders,
• anaphylactic shock,
• drug interactions.

4️⃣ Confusions are the main cause of poisoning

The edible plant is often not the plant actually harvested.

⚠️ This is why a plant not listed as toxic can kill exactly like a plant identified as toxic.

Here is a simple but comprehensive overview of deadly or severely dangerous toxins, without encouraging use, purely informational.

⚠️ This list is not exhaustive: it should be presented as an educational overview, never as a scientific reference.

1️⃣ NEUROTOXIC ALKALOIDS (deadly)

Families most concerned: Apiaceae, Solanaceae, Amaryllidaceae.

Examples:
• Cicutoxin – water hemlock (tremors, convulsions, respiratory arrest).
• Coniine – poison hemlock (violent neurotoxin, death by paralysis).
• Atropine / Scopolamine – datura, belladonna (hallucinations, coma, death).

Characteristic: very small quantities are sufficient.

2️⃣ CARDIAC GLYCOSIDES

lily of the valley, oleander, foxglove.
Cause:
→ cardiac disorders, fibrillation, cardiac arrest.

3️⃣ RENAL OR HEPATIC TOXINS

Slow accumulation, sometimes fatal after several days.

Examples:
• oxalates (certain Araceae)
• pyrrolizidines (ragwort, comfrey — dangerous internal use)
• toxic phenylpropanoids

4️⃣ LECTINS

Ex: ricin / castor bean seeds.
Ultra-toxic even in very low doses.

5️⃣ SAPONOSIDES & SKIN IRRITANTS

Ex: giant hogweed → severe photosensitization, burns.

6️⃣ EXTERNAL POLLUTION – ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICITY

Not related to the plant itself, but to what it absorbs:
• heavy metals (lead, cadmium, arsenic),
• pesticides,
• hydrocarbons,
• industrial soils,
• roadside edges (chronic pollution).

These dangers must be mentioned everywhere, as they do not engage your responsibility if you have warned.

7️⃣ PARASITES AND BIOLOGICAL RISKS

• echinococcus eggs (fruits, herbs in contact with fox droppings),
• microscopic fungi,
• larvae,
• soil bacteria.

The absence of toxicity indication in Druidz in no way implies that a plant is edible or safe.
Toxicity can come from the plant itself, the environment, misidentification, or an individual reaction.
The User remains fully responsible for verifying the safety of a plant with reliable sources and qualified experts before any use.

Some very popular edible plants have deadly look-alikes.
The confusions presented below are among the most frequent and dangerous.

⚠️ This list is not exhaustive and is not intended to serve as an identification guide.
It simply illustrates the seriousness of the risks, even for "known" plants.

Wild garlic (Allium ursinum) vs Lily of the valley / Autumn crocus

Wild garlic: garlic smell → but smell is insufficient (risk of confusion with fingers already impregnated with smell).

Lily of the valley: deadly cardiac toxic.

Autumn crocus: very powerful toxic, often fatal even in small quantities.

Accident rate: very high in Europe.

Wild carrot vs Poison hemlock / Water hemlock

Extreme resemblance within Apiaceae.
Hemlock:
• contains coniine, fatal neurotoxin,
• causes respiratory paralysis.

⚠️ Even experienced botanists sometimes make mistakes.

Black elder (edible cooked) vs Dwarf elder (toxic raw)

Dwarf elder → severe vomiting, digestive disorders.

Black elderberries must be cooked.

Giant hogweed vs Angelica / Lovage

Giant hogweed → burns, severe photosensitization (dangerous plant even without ingestion).

Arum / Calla vs young edible leaves (nettle, sorrel, etc.)

Arum: violent mouth irritation → frequent hospitalizations.

Buttercup vs edible plants with smooth leaves

Buttercups → toxic, caustic, irritating.

The presence of a plant in Druidz does not imply any guarantee of identification.
The confusions presented above demonstrate that even experienced foragers can make mistakes.
The User remains fully responsible for refraining in case of doubt, even minor.

⚠️ Symptoms vary depending on the toxin, dose, age, health status, and individual sensitivity.
This section is not a medical diagnosis: it only serves to show the potential severity.

1️⃣ Digestive symptoms (most common)

• nausea
• vomiting
• violent abdominal pain
• diarrhea (sometimes bloody)

2️⃣ Nervous / neuromuscular disorders

Often observed in poisoning by toxic Apiaceae or Solanaceae:
• dizziness
• tremors
• confusion
• hallucinations
• convulsive seizures
• progressive paralysis (hemlock)
• coma

3️⃣ Cardiac disorders (cardiac glycosides)

• extreme slowing or acceleration of heart rate
• palpitations
• arrhythmias
• cardiac arrest

4️⃣ Renal / hepatic damage

• jaundice
• dark urine
• extreme fatigue
• renal / hepatic insufficiency

5️⃣ Severe allergic reactions

• urticaria
• Quincke's edema
• anaphylactic shock (life-threatening emergency)

6️⃣ Skin irritations and photosensitization

• chemical burns (giant hogweed)
• blisters
• long-lasting scars
\The symptoms presented are purely indicative.
In case of doubt or suspected exposure to a plant, the User must immediately contact a poison control center or healthcare professional.
Druidz provides no diagnosis or medical advice.

⚠️ Druidz does not provide medical protocol.
This section does not give any therapeutic procedure: it only reminds commonly accepted safety reflexes.

1️⃣ Never try to treat yourself

• do not make yourself vomit, except on medical advice,
• do not drink anything (some toxins spread faster).

2️⃣ Call a competent service immediately

Depending on the country:
• France: Poison Control Center (0 825 812 822) or 15 (SAMU)
• EU: emergency number 112
• Other countries: national emergency service or poison control center

3️⃣ Gather information

Emergency services will ask for:
• the suspected plant
• the quantity consumed
• the time since ingestion
• first symptoms
• a photo of the plant (if possible)

4️⃣ Never rely on Druidz to assess dangerousness

The app must display a clause like:

Druidz does not assess the toxicity of ingestion.
No information from the application should be used to decide on emergency measures.
In case of doubt, call emergency services immediately.

Reason 1 — For legal reasons

Only qualified professionals (doctors, pharmacists, dietitians) can provide medical or nutritional advice.
Druidz is neither a medical service nor a substitute for a healthcare professional.

Reason 2 — Risk of user confusion

An application can be perceived as an authority even when it does not wish to be.
To avoid any misunderstanding:

Druidz does not validate, recommend, or certify any plant as edible, medicinal, or safe.

Reason 3 — Plants are unpredictable

• variable concentration of toxins,
• soil pollution,
• drug interactions,
• possible allergies even to "safe" plants.

Reason 4 — Remote identification always carries a risk

No photo, description, or fact sheet replaces the direct expertise of a botanist.

⚠️ No. Absolutely not.

Druidz should never be used to:

• determine that a plant is medicinal,
• decide on a dosage,
• make a remedy,
• replace a treatment,
• treat a symptom,
• diagnose poisoning or disease.

Why?

1️⃣ Legal status

Medicinal use of plants is strictly regulated in most countries:
only doctors, pharmacists, certified herbalists, or qualified professionals can give therapeutic advice.

Druidz is not a medical service.

2️⃣ The risks are extreme

The same plant can:

• be medicinal at very low doses,
• become deadly at a slightly higher dose,
• interact with medications (anticoagulants, antidepressants, anxiolytics, hormones, etc.).

St. John's wort, buckthorn, digitalis, yew, raw chanterelle, or even yellow gentian can cause serious accidents.

3️⃣ Natural variability is enormous

Two identical plants can contain:

• different levels of alkaloids,
• toxins amplified by drought,
• heavy metals absorbed from the soil,
• invisible molds producing mycotoxins.

4️⃣ The application is not designed for medicinal use

Druidz provides general information, not verified by healthcare practitioners.

No information from the app should be used to decide on medicinal use, internal or external.

Druidz provides no phytotherapy advice.
Any medicinal use of a plant must be validated by a healthcare professional.

Many plants harmless to humans are deadly to domestic animals.
Animals do not all have the same detoxification enzymes.

⚠️ Druidz is not a veterinary database
This section simply raises awareness of risks.

📌 Plants very toxic for dogs

• Oleander → deadly cardiac toxic.
• Yew → neurotoxic, rapid death.
• Castor bean → ricin, fatal toxin.
• Aloe / Aloe vera (certain varieties) → digestive fire + kidneys.
• Some solanaceae (datura, belladonna).

📌 Toxic for cats

Cats are extremely sensitive.

• Lily → acute renal failure, fatal even by licking pollen.
• Aloe
• Ficus
• Philodendron (irritating oxalates)
• Dieffenbachia

📌 Toxic for horses

• Ragwort → hepatotoxic, cumulative.
• Yew → extremely deadly for equines.
• Buttercups → irritating.
• Sycamore maple → atypical myopathy (often fatal).

Why don't animals "protect" themselves?

Contrary to myth:

• dogs eat plants while playing,
• horses ingest dry plants with hay,
• cats lick toxic pollen,
• hungry animals eat what they find.

Druidz provides no veterinary advice.
Any suspicion of animal toxic ingestion must be immediately treated by a veterinarian or veterinary poison control center.

A soil can make a plant dangerous even if the species is perfectly edible.
Toxicity can come from heavy metals, hydrocarbons, pesticides, solvents, microplastics, pathogenic bacteria, or former industrial or agricultural activities.

Here are the main indicators that a soil is potentially polluted:

• Proximity to very busy roads, parking areas, parking lots, expressway edges or ring roads
• Presence of old factories, workshops, hangars, disused plants, gas stations, landfills, unknown embankments
• Very dark, oily soils, with chemical odors, soot traces or unnatural residues
• Intensive urban areas: building bases, beaten earth between sidewalks, heavily frequented parks
• Intensive agricultural lands that may have received pesticides, herbicides or chemical fertilizers for years
• Railway edges (herbicide treatments and metallic deposits)
• Soils near old treated gardens (copper, arsenic, historical lead in paints)

A contaminated soil is not always visible to the naked eye: a very clean and vegetated land can contain invisible heavy metals.

Maximum caution:
Always prefer natural environments away from human pollution (deep forests, meadows, old wastelands, mountains, uncultivated rural areas).

Plants harvested in polluted soil can become toxic even if the species is normally edible. The user must check their environment and never consume a plant from a suspicious area. The app does not guarantee soil quality or absence of pollutants.

Heavy metals are among the most dangerous contaminants because they accumulate in the body and in plants.
Several plant species naturally absorb lead, arsenic, cadmium, nickel, copper or mercury.

Main risks:

• Chronic toxicity: liver, kidney, nervous system damage
• Acute toxicity: vomiting, neurological disorders, arrhythmias
• Bioaccumulation: even in repeated small amounts, heavy metals accumulate in the organism
• No cleaning or cooking can eliminate these toxins

Areas to strictly avoid:

• Roadsides, highways, busy streets (lead, fine particles, hydrocarbons)
• Old industrial sites, wastelands, abandoned factory zones
• Filled lands without known history
• Immediate proximity of railway tracks
• Landfills, old landfills, urban wastelands
• Soils near zinc roofing or old lead piping networks
• Gardens located in old areas where paint or leaded gasoline may have accumulated in the soil

A plant can appear healthy and yet be saturated with heavy metals.
Regular consumption of plants taken from these areas is dangerous.
The user must always favor wild areas away from any human activity. The app never guarantees the absence of heavy metals in a harvesting location.

Some plants are capable of absorbing and concentrating large quantities of pollutants present in the soil, even when they are in very low concentration.
These species are called hyperaccumulators or bioaccumulators.

They can concentrate:

• heavy metals (lead, arsenic, cadmium, zinc, nickel, copper)
• organic pollutants (pesticides, hydrocarbons)
• microbial or fungal toxins
• radioelements in certain contexts

Common examples of bioaccumulating species (non-exhaustive list):

• Nettles (Urtica dioica) → nitrates, heavy metals
• Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) → heavy metals
• Goosefoots → nitrates
• Plantains (Plantago spp.) → heavy metals
• Knotweeds
• Reed, cattail, rush (polluted wetlands)
• Wild Brassicaceae in urban areas
• Ferns in contaminated soils
• Trees like birch or willow on polluted soils

A hyperaccumulating plant can be perfectly toxic even though its species is considered edible and reputed safe in wilderness.

This phenomenon is invisible to the naked eye:
a plant can be beautiful, vigorous, green, without any sign of pollution, while being saturated with heavy metals or toxins.

The user must always avoid harvesting:

• in urban or peri-urban areas
• near roads or frequented paths
• in or near industrial zones
• in soils whose history is unknown
• in chemically treated areas

The app cannot analyze soils or plant quality: all responsibility remains with the user, who must choose healthy natural environments for any harvest intended for consumption.

Urban foraging presents risks far greater than those of natural areas.
Even when plants appear clean and abundant, the urban environment can concentrate many invisible and persistent pollutants:

• Heavy metals (lead, arsenic, cadmium, zinc) from traffic, old paints and infrastructure
• Brake dust, fine particles, hydrocarbons
• Reworked or filled soils whose history is totally unknown
• Municipal or private herbicide treatments
• Fecal contamination from domestic animals
• Microbial deposits linked to human density

The risk is all the higher as many urban species are bioaccumulators, capable of strongly concentrating pollutants.

Even "clean" urban parks can be contaminated:
the grass may be mowed but the soil remains loaded with historical pollutants.

For all these reasons, it is strongly discouraged to consume plants harvested in the city.
If a plant is collected in an urban area for decorative, observation or botanical study purposes (non-edible), the user must strictly comply with the rules of the places and never make food use of it.

The application in no way guarantees the sanitary quality of urban plants.

Roads are one of the most important sources of plant contamination.
Pollution from engines, tires, brake pads and old leaded fuels remains present in soils for several decades.

Main risks include:

• heavy metals (lead, cadmium, zinc)
• fine particles and combustion residues
• polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), highly toxic
• microplastics from tire wear

The dispersion of these pollutants depends on relief, weather, hygrometry and vegetation type, but studies show abnormal concentrations:

• up to 10–30 meters from the road edge for heavy metals
• up to 50 meters for fine particles
• up to 100 meters for certain fallout linked to prevailing winds

As a precaution, no harvest intended for consumption should be made less than 50 meters from a road, and ideally:

• 100 to 150 meters from very busy roads, national roads, expressways or ring roads
• even more if the terrain is downhill from a road (pollutant runoff)

The user is solely responsible for verifying that their environment is free from pollution sources.
The app does not measure the actual safety distance and cannot guarantee the absence of contamination.

Some environments present an extreme health risk, even when they appear completely vegetated.
These areas can contain historical, invisible and persistent pollutants.

Major risk areas:

• Old factories, workshops, hangars, disused buildings
• Industrial wastelands or lands whose past use is unknown
• Railway areas: rail edges, embankments, stations, abandoned tracks (herbicide treatments, metallic deposits)
• Filled lands with materials of unknown origin
• Old landfills or burial zones
• Combustion or incineration areas
• Oil, solvent, fuel, bitumen deposits
• Surfaces near old lead-painted frameworks, paints or roofing

Dangerous characteristic:
plants often grow vigorously there, as some pollutants paradoxically stimulate their growth. This gives a misleading illusion of "good health".

Main risks:

• Serious poisoning by heavy metals
• Persistent organic contaminants (PAHs, solvents, PCBs)
• Industrial phytosanitary product residues
• Presence of asbestos in some fill materials
• Undocumented old pollution

No visual analysis can validate the safety of an industrial site.

It is strictly inadvisable to harvest plants from these areas for consumption.
Plants can be studied for educational, photographic or naturalistic purposes, but never intended for food.

The user is responsible for verifying the legality and safety of the location. The app guarantees no environmental information and cannot be held responsible for contamination linked to a polluted site.

Wild plants can be contaminated by dangerous parasites, invisible to the naked eye, that can cause serious diseases:

• Echinococcus multilocularis (alveolar echinococcosis) – parasite transmitted by foxes, dogs and cats, potentially fatal.
• Echinococcus granulosus (cystic echinococcosis).
• Taenia spp.
• Giardia, Cryptosporidium, and other intestinal parasites.
• Eggs or larvae from animal droppings deposited on plants or soil (foxes, dogs, cats, rodents).

It must be understood that:

• Parasites resist cold, sometimes down to -30°C.
• Washing alone does not completely eliminate echinococcus eggs.
• Echinococcosis can take 10 to 15 years to develop symptoms.
• A single contaminated berry, leaf or grass can be enough.

The highest risk areas:

• Undergrowth frequented by foxes
• Edges of forest paths
• Meadows where dogs pass
• Edges of agricultural crops
• Wetlands where droppings stagnate

Druidz in no way guarantees the absence of parasites on referenced plants.
The user must systematically adopt maximum caution, and in case of doubt, completely abstain from consuming.

Washing limits certain risks but does not eliminate all dangers (especially heavy metals or echinococcus eggs).
It is a risk reduction measure, not a safety guarantee.

Recommended method to limit contamination:

1️⃣ First remove damaged or visibly soiled parts.

2️⃣ Rinse thoroughly with clean water, rubbing gently to remove soil and deposits.

3️⃣ Soak in water with white vinegar (10 min): limits certain microbial contaminants.

4️⃣ Rinse again abundantly.

5️⃣ For robust plants: a pass under slightly warm water can help remove deposits.

6️⃣ For fragile berries: favor gentle rinsing to avoid bursting the fruit.

IMPORTANT:

• Washing does not eliminate heavy metals absorbed by the plant.
• Washing does not completely eliminate parasites.
• Washing does not make toxic or doubtful plants edible.

Druidz provides no sanitary guarantee on the quality of harvested plants.
The user is solely responsible for assessing the safety of their harvest.

Plants growing near water directly reflect the quality of that water.
Some areas should be considered high risk:

📌 Stagnant waters

Ditches, ponds, puddles, urban or agricultural swamps can contain:

• wastewater
• pathogenic bacteria (E. coli, salmonella, leptospirosis)
• parasite eggs
• hydrocarbons
• phytosanitary residues
• toxic algae blooms

Plants growing in immediate proximity to these waters are likely to be contaminated.

📌 Polluted rivers or agricultural tributaries

Frequent risks:

• pesticide runoff
• nitrates and ammonium
• heavy metals downstream from industrial zones
• veterinary residues
• untreated wastewater discharges
• bacteria dangerous to humans

📌 Urban areas downstream from cities

A visually "clean" river can be contaminated by invisible discharges.

As a precaution:

• avoid any plant growing less than 5–10 meters from stagnant waters or dubious flows
• completely avoid aquatic plants intended for consumption
• avoid areas downstream from factories, treatment plants, parking lots, roads

Druidz cannot guarantee water or soil quality.
The user must assume that a plant near water is potentially dangerous.

Yes, but with limitations.

There are soil analysis kits accessible to the general public, allowing measurement of:

• pH
• nitrate content
• approximate presence of heavy metals (depending on kits)
• organic soil quality
• electrical conductivity
• some simple contaminants

However:

• these kits remain non-professional and do not detect all dangerous pollutants
• many do not measure PAHs, petroleum residues, or solvents
• heavy metals are often detected with low precision
• a serious analysis requires a certified laboratory, with standardized sampling and spectrometry

For a complete analysis, you must:

• contact an agricultural or environmental analysis laboratory
• request a "heavy metals + hydrocarbons + solvents" panel
• provide a compliant sample (depth, quantity, homogenization)

Even with an analysis, a result is only valid for the tested sample, and may be different elsewhere on the plot.

Druidz offers no soil analysis, does not guarantee absence of pollution and provides no agronomic advice.
The user must always assume that an unknown soil may be contaminated.

Before any harvest — even of a plant you think you know — it is essential to respect these fundamental rules:

1️⃣ 100% certain identification

• No harvest if the plant is not formally recognized.
• In case of doubt, even slight, do not harvest.
• A photo or "resemblance" is never proof of identification.

2️⃣ Verify legality

• Some areas are strictly forbidden (national parks, reserves, private property…).
• Many species are protected or regulated.
• Druidz does not provide comprehensive information on local laws: the user must inform themselves before any harvest.

3️⃣ Assess the environment

• Never harvest in a polluted, dubious, artificial location or exposed to urban and agricultural risks.
• Systematically stay away from roads, parking lots, industrial zones, wastelands, stagnant waters, rails, drainage channels.

4️⃣ Harvest only what is necessary

• Take only a small fraction of the plant.
• Leave the majority of individuals intact to preserve the ecosystem and allow reproduction.

5️⃣ Respect the plant

• Never uproot the root except in invasive species or if the practice is authorized and sustainable.
• Always cut cleanly, without unnecessarily destroying the habitat.

6️⃣ Respect wildlife and other users

• Avoid disturbing birds, pollinating insects, wild animals.
• Do not create visible passage traces.

7️⃣ Remember that Druidz guarantees nothing

• The application does not certify identification, edibility, or location safety.
• Harvesting is always done under the exclusive responsibility of the user.

A plant can be perfectly edible… but growing in an environment so contaminated that it becomes dangerous.

📌 Potentially healthy spot (positive indications)

✔ natural wetland but without stagnation
✔ rich forest soils, far from roads
✔ old untreated meadows
✔ clearings or path edges rarely frequented by dogs
✔ lands away from intensive agricultural surfaces
✔ absence of chemical smell, black moss, greasy deposits

These signals offer no guarantee but increase the chances of a clean environment.

📌 Potentially toxic spot (danger)

⚠️ Proximity to a road axis (< 50 to 100 m)
⚠️ Parking lot edges, urban areas, sidewalks
⚠️ Surroundings of conventional fields (pesticides, herbicides)
⚠️ Industrial wastelands, reworked soils, embankments
⚠️ Runoff zones, ditches, stagnant waters
⚠️ Soils with visible waste, black stains or chemical odors
⚠️ Presence of dog or fox droppings

"Hyperaccumulating" plants amplify the risk: dandelion, plantain, nettle, sorrel, goosefoots, wild raspberries, etc., can concentrate heavy metals and toxins.

📌 Critical points to remember

• A "natural" spot can be polluted for decades without visible sign.
• The soil can be healthy, but the plant parasitized (echinococcus, giardia…).
• A plant can be perfect botanically but dangerous because of the location, and Druidz can never assess this risk.
• In case of doubt about the terrain: never harvest.

Responsible harvesting serves to protect plants, animals, soils and other foragers.

1️⃣ Always take little

• Take < 10% of a group of individuals.
• Never harvest an isolated population.
• Leave young shoots and reproductive individuals.

2️⃣ Preserve habitats

• Do not trample wetlands, mosses, fragile forest soils.
• Never turn over stones, logs or stumps (fauna and microfauna).

3️⃣ Respect natural cycles

• Harvest only in season.
• Avoid critical flowering phases or seed production.
• Preserve melliferous species essential to pollinators.

4️⃣ Replant when possible

• Favor local, wild and indigenous species, never invasive ones.
• Bring back some seeds at home only when the law allows it and on abundant species.
• Rethink your garden as a refuge for wild plants, pollinating insects and microfauna.

5️⃣ Zero-trace

• No plastic, no waste, no abandoned bags.
• Use reusable containers.
• Close herbaceous areas after passage to leave nothing showing.

6️⃣ Respect for other users

• Hikers, owners, farmers, foresters: discretion and mutual respect are essential.
• Never enter private land without explicit authorization.

7️⃣ Forager ethics: caution + gratitude

• Harvesting is an exchange with the environment, not an extraction.
• Take only what you need, and only when nature can offer it.

Overexploiting a spot means:
➡️ taking too much
➡️ too often
➡️ in the same place
➡️ to the point that the plant population can no longer regenerate.

An overexploited spot leads to:
• local disappearance of the species,
• loss of biodiversity,
• decrease in resources for wildlife,
• soil impoverishment,
• conflicts with other foragers or owners.

Signs that a spot is being overexploited:

• Fewer adult individuals than before
• Presence only of young shoots
• Stunted, uprooted, or injured plants
• Absence of seeds or reproductive stems
• Bare, trampled, turned soil
• Visible presence of repeated passage traces

Golden rule:

➡️ If you have doubts about a spot's ability to regenerate, do not harvest.
➡️ If the plant already seems weakened: do not harvest.

User responsibility:

Druidz does not encourage any form of systematic or intensive harvesting.
The advice given here does not replace local regulations, which may prohibit any harvesting even light.

Harvesting correctly is an art.
Bad harvesting can kill the plant, even if the quantity taken is small.

1️⃣ Always cut, never pull

• Cut with a clean knife, scissors or pinch with fingers without pulling.
• Pulling uproots, tears, exposes to fungal infections, prevents regrowth.

2️⃣ Do not touch the root (except invasive species)

• Roots are essential for survival.
• Harvest roots only if the law allows it, and only on very abundant species.

3️⃣ Keep the growth center intact

• On rosettes (dandelion, plantain, young nettle): leave the central bud.
• On stems: cut above a node to allow regrowth.

4️⃣ Preserve reproductive capacity

• Do not take everything before seed production.
• Always leave several intact adult individuals to ensure offspring.

5️⃣ Minimize trampling

• Stay on already open areas.
• Avoid walking on mosses, young shoots or fragile soils.

6️⃣ Respect the plant even in abundant areas

Abundance ≠ total permission.
Ecological resilience is never infinite.

Legal note

These recommendations do not authorize harvesting in areas where it is prohibited.
The user remains exclusively responsible for respecting habitats, protected species and local laws.

These quotas are ecological recommendations, not legal authorizations.
They do not cancel any law, and are applicable only where harvesting is permitted.

📌 General rule

➡️ Never take more than 5 to 10% of the population present at a spot.

This is the golden rule that allows the plant and ecosystem to continue functioning.

📌 Specific quotas by plant type:

🌿 Leaves (nettle, plantain, dandelion…)

• Harvest only outer leaves
• Never more than a third of the plant
• Always let the core grow

🌸 Flowers (elder, hawthorn, clover…)

• Harvest only a small part of inflorescences
• Leave the majority for pollinating insects

🍓 Fruits & berries

• Harvest only what is immediately needed
• Leave at least half for birds and local wildlife

🌱 Young shoots

• Never harvest if the population is small
• One less young shoot = one less adult the following year

🌿 Roots (burdock, dandelion…)

⚠️ Practice only when legal.
• Harvest from a very abundant group
• Never take more than a few individuals
• Replant seeds if possible

📌 When not to harvest at all?

❌ Spot too small
❌ Spot already recently harvested
❌ Weakened plant
❌ Protected or threatened species
❌ Pollution or health risk
❌ Doubt about identification
❌ Doubt about legality

In all these cases, the answer is simple: do not harvest.

Melliferous zones (rich in flowers producing nectar and pollen) are essential:
➡️ for domestic bees,
➡️ for wild pollinators (bumblebees, hoverflies, butterflies…),
➡️ for the overall balance of ecosystems.

Harvesting in these areas requires extreme vigilance, as removing too many flowers or resources can weaken already threatened insect populations.

Rules to absolutely respect:

• Priority to pollinators: leave a majority of flowers intact.
• Harvest at the periphery: never take from the center of the flowering spot.
• Avoid key areas: known wintering, nesting or high pollinating activity locations.
• Respect the season: harvest after the reproduction period if possible.
• Always leave several complete flowering stems for each individual.

Why is this crucial?

The local disappearance of a melliferous plant can lead to:
• a decrease in food resources for insects,
• a weakening of domestic bee colonies,
• a collapse of other plants dependent on pollination,
• an overall spot imbalance.

These good practices do not constitute authorization to harvest in protected areas or natural reserves. The user remains exclusively responsible for respecting sensitive habitats.

Harvesting seeds to replant (only when the law allows it) helps restore local plant populations.
But poor harvesting can do more harm than good.

1️⃣ Harvest at the right time

• Wait for full maturity: dry fruits, brown pods, hard seeds.
• Do not harvest from immature plants.

2️⃣ Harvest sparingly

• Never harvest more than 10% of the seeds produced by an individual.
• Always leave the majority for natural reproduction and wildlife.

3️⃣ Choose the right individuals

• Harvest from vigorous, non-parasitized plants.
• Favor individuals well adapted to the local climate = better resilience.

4️⃣ Sow intelligently

• Sow near the original spot (local ecology)
• Sow at the right time according to weather:
– moist but not waterlogged soil,
– no frost in the following days,
– no heatwave.
• Bury seeds at the right depth: as deep as their diameter, except very fine exceptions to be sown on surface.

5️⃣ Do not introduce species elsewhere

Reintroducing plants outside their natural zone can become:
• invasive,
• illegal (protected species),
• dangerous for the local ecosystem.

The user is solely responsible for verifying the legality of harvesting and sowing. Druidz encourages neither illegal harvesting nor transplantation of species outside their natural habitat.

Knowing when to abstain is one of the essential gestures of a good forager.

❌ DO NOT harvest in the following weather conditions:

• After heavy rains → risk of contamination, soil subsidence, plant fragility.
• During severe drought → the plant is stressed, harvesting would kill it.
• In case of frost → modified toxins, weakened tissues.
• In strong wind → risk of falling branches, poor observation.

❌ DO NOT harvest if:

• Identification is not 100% certain
• There is doubt about toxicity
• The spot is too small / overexploited
• The plant appears sick, parasitized, yellowed or deformed
• The soil is polluted (urban, roadside, dubious wasteland)

❌ DO NOT harvest during these ecological moments:

• During full flowering, when pollinators depend on it.
• During reproduction (seed production, fruiting).
• On isolated young shoots.

❌ DO NOT harvest in the following areas:

• Private land without authorization
• Protected areas (parks, reserves…)
• Sensitive or fragile habitats
• Agricultural cultivated lands (pesticides, legal risks)

Reminder

If doubt exists, do not harvest. The simple rule:
➡️ In case of uncertainty, your safety and that of nature come first.

The right tools enable clean, respectful and safe harvesting.

📌 Basic tools:

• Clean folding knife
To cut stems without pulling.

• Small pruning shears
For woody stems.

• Light gloves
Protection against nettles, irritants, cuts.

• Cloth bag / wicker basket
Allows plant aeration, prevents fermentation.

• Paper bags
Ideal for separating species, noting location and date.

📌 Advanced tools (optional):

• Botanical magnifying glass (10x)
Essential for analyzing veins, hairs, fine details.

• Map / GPS / Smartphone
Only for orientation.
⚠️ Druidz does not guarantee location accuracy: field verification required.

• Paper botanical guide
(Example: works by François Couplan)
Always preferable as a complement to digital identification.

• Notebook
To document observations, habitat, characteristics.

📌 Tools to absolutely avoid:

❌ closed plastic bags (fermentation, mold)
❌ aggressive tools (shovels, spades) outside specified legal uses
❌ non-ventilated containers (alter leaves)
❌ equipment that damages roots or habitat

Seed harvesting is a useful gesture only when the law allows it and when enough individuals remain to guarantee the spot's survival.

Here are the essential rules:

1️⃣ Wait for complete maturity

• Brown dry fruits / open pods / detachable achenes.
• Seeds must be firm, not green, not soft.
• Never harvest seeds that are still immature: this penalizes natural reproduction.

2️⃣ Harvest gently

• Cut the flowering stem above a node, without uprooting the entire plant.
• Handle infructescences delicately to avoid involuntary dispersion.
• Always leave ¾ of the production in place for wildlife and natural regeneration.

3️⃣ Harvest from multiple individuals

• NEVER empty a single individual of all its seeds.
• Harvest a very small volume from several plants = genetic diversity + ecological respect.

4️⃣ Avoid fragile, rare or isolated plants

If the spot has:
• < 10 individuals,
• weakened plants,
• a sensitive or protected species,
➡️ Do not harvest.

Seed harvesting can be illegal in many areas (parks, reserves, Natura 2000 sites, private lands).
The user is fully responsible for verifying legality and ecological impact before collecting.
Druidz provides no harvesting authorization.

Good conservation increases germination chances. But poor drying leads to mold, fungi and total losses.

1️⃣ Drying

• Spread seeds on absorbent paper in a dry, dark and ventilated place.
• Avoid direct sunlight (alters germination power).
• Average drying time: 3 to 7 days, depending on humidity.

2️⃣ Cleaning

• Remove envelopes, debris and moist pieces.
• Keep only healthy seeds: hard, homogeneous, without mold traces.

3️⃣ Storage

• Use paper bags or sterile and very dry glass jars.
• Optionally add a small anti-humidity packet (silica gel).
• Store in a place that is:
– dry,
– cool (15–18°C ideal),
– away from light.

Important: keep seeds out of reach of children, animals and humidity sources.

4️⃣ Transport

• Prefer labeled paper bags:
– plant name,
– harvest date,
– location (approximate coordinates or general habitat),
– weather conditions.
• Avoid closed plastic bags (condensation risk → mold).

Druidz encourages no illegal collection, nor import/export of plant material subject to local, national or international regulations.
The user is solely responsible for complying with laws in force.

Replanting local plants helps restore biodiversity if done correctly. Poorly done, it can become ecologically destructive.

1️⃣ Always use local plants

• Absolute priority to local ecotypes (varieties adapted to your region).
• Never introduce a plant from another region or country → risks of invasions, hybridizations, ecological imbalances.

2️⃣ Choose the right place

• Conditions close to the original site: soil, exposure, humidity.
• Non-polluted, non-saturated, non-compacted land.
• Avoid national parks, reserves or regulated areas.

3️⃣ Prepare the soil

• Lightly aerate the surface (without deep turning).
• Remove stones and debris.
• Moisten slightly but avoid mud.

4️⃣ Sow at the right time

• Generally in autumn for perennial and wild plants → they germinate in spring.
• Spring sowing for some annuals.
• Never sow just before frost or heatwave.

5️⃣ Sowing technique

• Simple rule: depth = seed diameter (except very fine seeds to be sown on surface).
• Space seeds to avoid immediate competition.
• Cover lightly if necessary.

6️⃣ Water correctly

• Water in fine rain just after sowing.
• Keep soil moist but never waterlogged.
• Gradually reduce watering once seedlings are established.

7️⃣ Ecological monitoring

• Check for appearance of pollinating insects.
• Monitor possible presence of diseases.
• Do not overwater → risk of fungi.
• Favor natural establishment (let young plants adapt).

Replanting may be regulated or prohibited in some places.
Druidz provides no authorization.
The user is entirely responsible:
• for verifying the legality of sowing,
• for the impact on the local ecosystem,
• for any involuntary introduction of unsuitable species.

Favoring local plants is not just about ecology: it's also about safety, biodiversity, and respect for laws.

1️⃣ Local plants are adapted to your climate

• They require less water, less maintenance, less human intervention.
• They resist diseases and climatic variations of your region better.
• They promote living, balanced and stable soil.

2️⃣ They support local biodiversity

• Pollinators (bees, bumblebees, butterflies) recognize and use indigenous plants better.
• Birds, insects and microfauna often depend on specific plants present in the region for thousands of years.
• An exotic plant doesn't always provide the pollen, nectar or shelters needed by local wildlife.

3️⃣ They avoid invasive species

Many exotic species introduced by humans have become invasive: they suffocate local plants, destroy soils, impoverish biodiversity.

Known examples:
• Japanese knotweed,
• Buddleia,
• Pampas grass,
• Black locust outside its original range, etc.

Introducing or replanting a plant outside its region can contribute to this type of ecological catastrophe.

4️⃣ They reduce risks of diseases and parasites

Some exotic plants carry fungi, bacteria or harmful insects that can decimate entire ecosystems.

5️⃣ They respect local legislations

Many regions prohibit the introduction or dissemination of non-indigenous plants (European directives, prefectural orders, park regulations, etc.).

Druidz provides no authorization for species introduction.
The user is 100% responsible for compliance with local laws.

Melliferous plants are essential for wild bees, bumblebees, butterflies and hoverflies. Favoring or replanting them reasonably directly contributes to local biodiversity.

1️⃣ Favor LOCAL melliferous plants

Always favor:
• indigenous species,
• subspecies actually present in your region,
• hardy, perennial or perennial plants adapted to the local climate.

These plants:
• offer nectar and pollen more adapted to local pollinators,
• bloom at the right time of year,
• naturally integrate into the ecosystem without disrupting it.

2️⃣ Examples of local melliferous plant groups (by region)

These families are given for information (not exhaustive list to avoid regional errors):

• Local Asteraceae: dandelion, centaurea, yarrow
• Lamiaceae: sages, local lavenders, wild mints
• Fabaceae: clovers, sainfoin, bird's-foot trefoil
• Rosaceae: hawthorn, dog rose, blackthorn
• Local Umbelliferae: wild carrot, fennel, sweet cow parsley
(⚠️ Warning: some Umbelliferae have deadly confusions — never replant without absolute certainty.)

3️⃣ Why is this essential?

• Pollinators are declining worldwide.
• Their survival depends on stable and adapted floral diversity.
• Melliferous plants restore soils, improve ecological resilience and stabilize food chains.
• Some local plants feed very specialized pollinator species, which don't survive otherwise.

4️⃣ When NOT to plant?

• If the species is not local → risk of invasive species.
• If the area is protected (national park, reserve, Natura 2000…) → planting is regulated or prohibited.
• If you cannot water in case of drought → insects will depend on plants you cannot maintain.
• If you are not sure of identification → ecological and legal risk.

Druidz guarantees neither:
• the suitability of a plant to a given region,
• the ecological impact of sowing,
• legal authorization to plant or introduce a species into an environment.

The user must verify:
• local regulations,
• ecological compatibility,
• absence of invasive character,
• certainty of identification.

Any planting is done under the sole responsibility of the user.

As a general rule: NO, it is forbidden to replant in a natural area without explicit authorization.
Each country, region or municipality has its own laws, but the global trend is clear:

Replanting in a natural environment can modify or disturb an ecosystem, even with "good intentions".

Areas where planting is generally prohibited:

• National parks
• Nature reserves
• Biological / integral reserves
• Natura 2000 zones
• Biotope protection zones
• Forests managed by the State or a private operator
• Private lands without written authorization
• Dunes, marshes, wetlands, sensitive cliffs
• Highly specialized environments (peat bogs, dry grasslands, alpine pastures…)

Why is it forbidden?

Because an introduced plant:
• can become invasive,
• can carry diseases or parasites,
• can unbalance relationships between local species,
• can alter the natural evolution of the site.

Druidz does not authorize, recommend or guide any planting in natural areas.
The user must imperatively verify local regulations. Any action is done under their sole responsibility.

Creating a wild garden (also called "naturalist garden") consists of favoring biodiversity by relying on:

1️⃣ Local plants

Always favor:
• indigenous varieties,
• robust perennial plants,
• local melliferous plants.

They require less maintenance and better support pollinators.

2️⃣ Differentiated zones

A good wild garden often integrates:
• a tall grass area,
• wood/stone piles (shelters),
• some areas of bare soil,
• a small pond or water point (if legal).

3️⃣ Minimal maintenance

• don't mow too often,
• avoid pesticides and fertilizers,
• let some plants go to seed.

4️⃣ Why is it important?

A wild garden:
• feeds hundreds of insect species,
• restores micro-habitats,
• naturally improves soils,
• is more resilient to climate change.

Druidz does not guarantee the suitability of a plant or development to a geographical area.
The user must verify local laws, particularly concerning:
• ponds, ditches,
• protected species,
• fire risks,
• neighborhood.

Yes, provided three major principles are respected:

1️⃣ Plant only at home, or with the owner's written authorization

No planting should be done in a natural environment or in a space that doesn't belong to the user.

2️⃣ Never plant a plant whose identity is not certain

The risk is:
• ecological (invasive species),
• health (toxic plants),
• legal (protected species).

3️⃣ Understand Druidz's limit

Druidz:
• does not validate any plant as edible,
• does not guarantee any identification,
• does not recommend any agricultural gesture,
• only provides raw, uncertified information.

The wild vegetable garden created via the information consulted is exclusively the user's responsibility.
Druidz ensures no cultivation success, nor any legal or ecological aspect.

Reasoned replanting plays an important role for ecosystem resilience — but only on private or authorized land, and with local species.

Why replant?

• Restore a weakened plant population
• Support pollinators
• Partially compensate for the impact of harvesting
• Maintain local genetic diversity
• Help some melliferous or medicinal species to regenerate

When is it useful?

• If a private spot is regularly harvested
• If some plants disappear locally
• If pollinators lack resources
• If you want to favor local flora in your garden

Bad practices (to absolutely avoid)

• Replanting in nature without authorization
• Introducing exotic species
• Replanting a misidentified plant
• Transporting seeds between distant regions

Druidz does not guarantee:
• the legality of sowing,
• the feasibility of replanting,
• the ecological impact of an action,
• nor the suitability of a plant to a territory.

Any replanting action is done under the sole responsibility of the user.

Water sources, fountains, and water points displayed in Druidz come from OpenStreetMap (OSM), a collaborative global mapping database.

OSM works like Wikipedia for mapping: thousands of contributors add and update field data.

Druidz enriches this data with:

• Community comments (sharing field experiences)
• Automatic AI moderation (Google Perspective)
• A reporting system for outdated information

⚠️ IMPORTANT: OSM data is collaborative and may contain errors, omissions, or outdated information.

Druidz does NOT guarantee:
• GPS position accuracy,
• Current water quality,
• Water point accessibility,
• Water potability.

You are solely responsible for verifying the safety and potability of each source on-site before consumption.

Comments are helpful BUT never replace your own field assessment.

What Druidz does:

✅ Automatic AI moderation (Google Perspective)
✅ Spam, toxicity, and inappropriate content filtering
✅ Community reporting system
✅ 5-second cooldown after rejection to prevent spam

What Druidz does NOT do:

❌ Verify shared information accuracy
❌ Guarantee field feedback reliability
❌ Test mentioned water quality
❌ Certify potability

Comments reflect individual experiences that may be:
• Outdated (sources can dry up or get polluted)
• Subjective (personal water quality tolerance)
• Incomplete (missing treatment information)

⚠️ GOLDEN RULE: Always treat or filter wild water before drinking, even with positive comments.

In case of poisoning, Druidz disclaims all responsibility.
Users share information in good faith, but you are solely responsible for your hydration decisions.

✅ Yes, you can comment on water points to help the community with your field feedback.

Useful information to share:

• Observed water quality (clear, cloudy, odor...)
• Point accessibility (easy, difficult, off-trail...)
• Flow rate (good, low, dry...)
• Available facilities (tap, pump, tank...)
• Date of your visit
• Treatment used (filter, tablets, boiling...)

🚫 Why your comment might be rejected:

1. Automatic AI moderation
Our system (Google Perspective) automatically analyzes each comment and filters:
• Toxic or aggressive content
• Insults and inappropriate language
• Spam and advertising
• Repetitive messages

2. Safety cooldown
After rejection, you must wait 5 seconds before retrying.
This prevents spam while letting you correct your message.

💡 How to avoid rejections:

✅ Stay factual and constructive
✅ Avoid excessive judgments
✅ Share concrete observations
✅ Be respectful towards other users

⚠️ Responsibility:
You are responsible for your contributions. Deliberately sharing false information may result in account suspension.

You can edit your text during cooldown to correct what triggered the filter, then resubmit.

No.
Recipes present in Druidz — whether generated by AI or published by users — are not verified, controlled or validated.
They may contain errors, be incomplete, inappropriate, or even dangerous.

Several factors can make a recipe risky:
• misidentification of the plant,
• incorrect dosage,
• inappropriate cooking time,
• environmental contamination,
• AI errors or inaccuracies,
• inaccurate information provided by a user.

Some plants become toxic depending on their age, preparation or growing location. Even a normally edible plant can cause poisoning if it has absorbed pollutants, parasites or heavy metals.

Users must therefore verify themselves each plant, each preparation and each step, cross-referencing multiple reliable sources before any consumption.

Because it is impossible, even for an expert, to remotely guarantee that a plant is edible.

Edibility depends on many parameters:
• natural variations between individuals of the same species,
• soil pollution or contamination,
• season, growth stage, weather,
• individual allergy risks,
• inappropriate preparations,
• errors in third-party data,
• confusion between very similar species,
• technical limitations of AI and collaborative databases.

Druidz only provides indicative information, potentially incomplete, subject to errors, and which never replaces human verification, caution, or expert opinion.

The user must therefore always confirm toxicity, identification and preparation before any consumption.

Some recipes have an experimental or approximate appearance for several reasons:

1️⃣ Automatically generated recipes

AI systems can suggest:
• atypical mixtures,
• imprecise dosages,
• incorrect cooking methods,
• culinary ideas inspired by general trends, but not adapted to the actual plant.

2️⃣ Content published by the community

User recipes are not examined or validated before publication.
They may reflect personal trials, local practices, or non-standardized methods.

3️⃣ Lack of botanical information

Some plants have very little reliable culinary documentation.
Associated recipes may therefore be approximate, interpretative or based on culinary intuition.

4️⃣ Database limitations

Third-party sources may contain errors, confusions, poorly managed synonyms or contradictory information.
This directly influences suggestions generated by AI or user contributions.

The user must consider each recipe as an inspiration base, never as a safe instruction.
Any preparation requires rigorous personal verification, especially regarding identification, doses and toxicity.

Before embarking on a recipe found on Druidz, it is essential to carry out several independent verifications. A recipe should never be followed "as is" without prior control.

1️⃣ Verify botanical identification

First of all:
• confirm the species with multiple reliable sources,
• compare with regional floras,
• observe all parts of the plant (leaves, stem, flowers, smell, habit).

If doubt remains → do not make the recipe.

2️⃣ Verify potential toxicity

A plant can be:
• toxic raw but edible cooked,
• toxic at certain stages,
• toxic depending on the soil where it grows,
• allergenic or irritating.

Always cross-reference recognized botanical sources before use.

3️⃣ Control dosages and techniques

Some preparations require:
• blanching,
• long cooking,
• elimination of toxic parts (petioles, seeds, latex),
• very precise quantities.

A dosage error can make a recipe dangerous.

4️⃣ Verify region and season

Depending on climate and plant age, toxin or irritant substance content varies.

5️⃣ Take pollution and environment into account

A plant growing near:
• a road,
• a parking lot,
• an industrial zone,
• wasteland,

may contain contaminants. A recipe doesn't make a polluted plant edible.

6️⃣ Verify your own tolerance

Some perfectly edible plants cause irritation, allergies or digestive disorders in some people.

Not all edible plants are edible in all conditions. Here are the essential distinctions:

1️⃣ Edible (raw or cooked)

A plant considered edible is consumable under normal conditions, but this doesn't guarantee total absence of risks: allergies, contamination, confusions remain possible.

2️⃣ Edible only cooked

Some plants are:
• irritating raw,
• toxic raw,
• bitter or indigestible raw,
but become edible after cooking (heat destroying toxins, enzymes or irritating latex).

Classic examples: some brassicaceae, some apiaceae, some plants rich in oxalates.

3️⃣ Edible young, but no longer edible mature

For many species, young shoots are:
• tender,
• low in fiber,
• less concentrated in irritating substances.

With age, a plant can become:
• harder,
• more bitter,
• richer in toxic compounds,
• harder to digest.

Some plants are edible only at a very specific stage.

4️⃣ Edibility variable by individual

Even a plant considered safe can cause:
• allergies,
• irritations,
• hypersensitivities,
depending on the person.

Even perfectly edible plants can trigger sometimes severe allergies. Here are the essential precautions:

1️⃣ Identify families at risk

Some plant families cause more reactions:
• Asteraceae (ragweed, dandelion, mugwort…)
• Apiaceae
• Fabaceae
• Lamiaceae
• Anacardiaceae

A reaction can occur even without allergic history.

2️⃣ Test the plant in very small quantity

Before consuming a new plant:
• taste a tiny amount,
• wait 24 hours,
• verify absence of symptoms.

Never make a complete recipe on first use.

3️⃣ Observe warning signs

The following symptoms require immediate cessation:
• oral itching,
• swelling,
• redness,
• nausea,
• breathing difficulties,
• dizziness.

4️⃣ Beware of cross-reactions

Some known allergies can cause cross-reactions:
• pollen ↔ plants from the same family,
• latex ↔ some plant species,
• tree nuts ↔ some rosaceae.

5️⃣ Check interactions with medical treatments

Some plants can:
• increase medication effects,
• decrease them,
• or create a dangerous interaction (anticoagulants, immunosuppressants…).

6️⃣ Never taste a plant whose identification is uncertain

A misidentification can cause a serious reaction, even in someone without known allergies.

Some perfectly edible plants become toxic when consumed raw.
The most common causes:

1️⃣ Presence of thermolabile toxins

Some toxic molecules disappear only after cooking:
• hemagglutinins,
• irritating enzymes,
• latex,
• alkaloids degraded by heat.

Without cooking → risk of poisoning, bloating, vomiting.

2️⃣ Oxalates, saponins, irritating substances

Some plants contain crystals or irritating compounds that:
• partially disappear with cooking,
• remain dangerous raw.

3️⃣ Plant stage

A part can be edible cooked (young shoot, bud), while the same plant older or in another part becomes irritating raw.

4️⃣ Essential rule

Even if a plant is indicated as "edible":
→ always verify if it must be cooked, and how.

Children are much more sensitive to toxins, allergies, parasites and dosage errors. There are specific risks:

1️⃣ Risk of misidentification

An adult can make a mistake; a child cannot compensate for the error.

2️⃣ Increased allergy risks

Their immune system reacts strongly:
• skin reactions,
• edema,
• digestive disorders,
• cross-reactions.

3️⃣ Toxin risks even in micro-quantities

Some toxic compounds have a tenfold effect in children.

4️⃣ Infectious risks (parasites, bacteria, soil)

Soil ingestion, handling plants close to ground → possible parasites.

5️⃣ General recommendation

Never give a child a wild plant to taste:
• without formal identification by an expert,
• without absolute certainty of its edibility,
• without verifying absence of soil pollution.

Children should not serve as testers, and error is not recoverable.

Some plants become dangerous because of how they are prepared. The most common errors:

1️⃣ Not enough cooking

Many plants must:
• be blanched,
• cook for a long time,
• be drained of their latex,
• be blanched in several waters.

Insufficient cooking can leave toxins active.

2️⃣ Wrong part used

• edible leaves, but toxic stems,
• toxic seeds,
• inedible roots.

Many poisonings come from plant anatomy errors.

3️⃣ Wrong season

Some plants become dangerous when they go to seed or age:
• nitrate concentration,
• alkaloids,
• irritating bitter substances.

4️⃣ Dangerous mixtures

Some plants should not be combined with each other or with certain foods.

5️⃣ Improvised fermentations or preserves

Poor preservation can lead to:
• botulism,
• toxic molds,
• improper fermentations.

6️⃣ Non-neutralized pollution

No cooking, drying, or vinegar neutralizes heavy metals or contaminated soil.

Druidz is not designed to:
• diagnose,
• advise on diet,
• treat a health problem,
• replace medical advice.

1️⃣ Plant variability

Their nutritional composition depends on:
• age,
• climate,
• soil,
• pollution,
• variety.

Impossible to establish a reliable nutritional profile case by case.

2️⃣ Medical risks

Plants can:
• interact with medications,
• trigger allergies,
• aggravate certain pathologies,
• contain invisible toxins.

3️⃣ User recipes are not verified

They can be:
• poorly dosed,
• inspired by local traditions unreplicable elsewhere,
• experimental.

4️⃣ Botanical information doesn't replace diagnosis

Even a plant considered "medicinal" is never used:
• without supervision,
• without precise knowledge of toxicity,
• without individual assessment.

5️⃣ What Druidz actually provides

Druidz offers:
• exploration,
• cultural transmission,
• botanical discovery,
• recipes to interpret with caution,
• but no promise of health, efficacy or nutritional value.

Offline mode allows you to use Druidz even without mobile or Wi-Fi connection.

When an area is downloaded, the application stores locally:

• all recipes already present in the backend, whether they have been opened or not,
• plant points available in the area (at the time of download),
• Pl@ntNet identifications already made (no new offline identification),
• map tiles corresponding to the downloaded area.

This mode is designed for:
• hikes,
• areas without network,
• countries or regions with poor connectivity.

⚠️ Offline mode displays a snapshot of backend data at the time of download.
If a user adds a recipe or spot later, it won't appear offline until the area has been resynchronized.

Offline download is limited by a premium quota of map tiles. This quota represents the maximum number of tiles the user can download during a given period according to their subscription.

Two download modes exist:

1️⃣ Rectangle download

The user draws a rectangle on the map.
The application downloads:

• all tiles included in the area,
• until reaching the premium quota limit.

This mode is suitable for:
• preparing a large area (valley, massif, bivouac area),
• gathering multiple spots in a single offline zone.

2️⃣ GPX trace download

The user imports a GPX trace.
The application automatically downloads:

• all tiles crossed by the trace,
• a buffer around the trace (to explore a bit around),
• within the premium quota limit.

📌 Auto-cutting of long traces

If a GPX trace is too long to be downloaded in a single block:

• the application automatically cuts the trace into several segments,
• each segment is downloaded separately,
• always within the available quota limit.

This allows covering very long hikes (GR, thru-hikes, trekkings) without overloading the quota in one shot.

3️⃣ Premium quota operation

When the premium quota is exhausted:

• it's no longer possible to download new tiles,
• already downloaded areas remain accessible offline,
• the quota automatically renews according to subscription rules (monthly, annual, etc.).

➡️ There is no mechanism to recover quota by deleting areas on the phone.
The only way to get quota back is to wait for the renewal provided by the subscription.

4️⃣ Tips to optimize quota

• Prefer GPX traces to rectangles (more efficient).
• Verify the offline area before leaving.
• Avoid too wide rectangles that consume enormous amounts of tiles.
• Load tiles over Wi-Fi to avoid interruptions.

Druidz uses your location only to improve the exploration experience:

• display plants present around you,
• offer the right map backgrounds,
• calculate your progress in the exploration map,
• enable offline downloading of areas you visit,
• adjust local search (probable plants in the region).

The application only reads your position when you use a feature requiring geolocation (e.g.: map, spot, local search).
Outside these moments, no location is collected.

Druidz only collects occasional points triggered by a user action:

• opening the map,
• displaying a tile square,
• loading an area,
• using a local function.

These data serve to:

• display the map around you,
• suggest the most probable plants nearby,
• update your "explored world map" (visited areas),
• feed rankings (global exploration).

👉 These points don't allow reconstructing your actual movements.
👉 No trajectory is recorded.
👉 No continuous tracking exists.

If you refuse location:

• the app works normally,
• only features related to your position (nearby plants, automatically centered map, local tiles) will be limited,
• you can still access all plants, spots, recipes, global maps.

Druidz never attempts to bypass a location refusal.

No, never.

Druidz:

• doesn't read your position continuously,
• doesn't track your movements in the background,
• doesn't collect GPS trajectory,
• doesn't measure speed or direction,
• performs no temporal tracking.

Your actual movements are not recorded.

The "exploration map" system simply updates areas you have visited or displayed in the application.
These are occasional events, not tracking.

Exactly like:
• Pokémon GO's "Pokédex",
• the explored areas map in a video game,
• AllTrails exploration badges.

To allow you:

• to visualize the regions you have explored,
• to progress in world rankings,
• to track your "personal world map".

Recording only concerns:

• areas (squares/tiles),
• occasional interactions (map opening, zoom),
• isolated events.

This system:

• stores no itinerary,
• doesn't track your movements,
• doesn't allow tracing your real life.

No.

The recorded data are too rare, too spaced and too imprecise to reconstruct a movement.

The application never collects:

✘ a continuous series of coordinates,
✘ precise movement timestamps,
✘ direction or speed,
✘ a GPS trace.

These are only visited areas, exactly like a flag on a map.

Yes, but only:

• the list of validated areas,
• exploration markers,
• points necessary for ranking.

Never your continuous position.

These data serve to:

• generate your personal map,
• calculate your XP,
• maintain the world ranking.

They are not resold,
not used for advertising,
not used to track you.

Yes.
At any time, you can:

• reset your explored map,
• delete your account,
• request complete data purge (GDPR).

Deletion is final.

Some features cannot work without:

• nearby plants,
• local exploration score,
• offline downloading of an area around you,
• spot display on map.

If you refuse location, features remain accessible, but:

• the app won't know where you are,
• suggestions will be global and not local,
• exploration score will remain unchanged.

In Druidz, users can contribute by publishing:

• a recipe,
• an identification via Pl@ntNet,
• a comment,
• a rating on a recipe,
• a vote to confirm or deny presence,
• a report (error, danger, inappropriate content).

All contributions go through two levels of moderation:

• filters and automatic controls on the application side,
• server-side verifications.

You can report:

• an incorrect, dangerous or inconsistent recipe,
• a possibly toxic plant,
• an identification error,
• a problematic comment.

The "Report" button is present on all content.
A red flag then appears on the sheet, visible to all, until the report has been processed.

Comments reported multiple times are automatically deleted.

Voting allows confirming or denying the presence of a plant at a spot.

🔒 Vote only on site

Only people physically present can vote (geolocation required).
This prevents abuse and guarantees a minimum of reliability.

📉 Vote influence

• Confirmed spots → more visible
• Denied spots → can be hidden

In case of saturation (too many spots/km²), only the most reliable spots remain displayed.

This is never a scientific validation nor an indication of edibility.

Yes.

When you delete your account, Druidz:

• deletes your recipes, comments, votes, identifications, reports — all your contributions

You can also delete some contributions individually before account deletion.

Druidz applies an automatic + server moderation system.

Thus:

A contribution can be refused or deleted simply because it doesn't pass moderation.

This is the only official reason.

This includes for example:

• inconsistent, dangerous or misleading content,
• non-compliance with internal safety rules,
• data incompatible with app functioning,
• or any element blocked by automatic filters.

It's never a personal sanction:
it's a general mechanism aimed at guaranteeing platform quality and safety.

Several reasons can lead a spot to receive bad ratings:

1. Plant absence during visit
Users present on site can indicate that the plant is not visible or no longer present.

2. Initial identification error
A spot added due to confusion can be quickly corrected by users.

3. Old data
Some observations come from open databases (GBIF, FallingFruit, etc.).
Flora evolves: the plant may have disappeared from the site long ago.

4. Reliability issues
Lack of confirmations, too many contradictions, successive negative votes.

A bad rating never means the plant is toxic or dangerous:
it only indicates that the spot is not considered reliable by users.

Druidz applies several mechanisms to automatically reduce human pressure in sensitive areas:

1. limited display

Protected areas (national parks, reserves, regulated spaces) receive no particular highlight.
Data there are treated as informative data, not as harvesting areas.

2. automatic reminders

In any sensitive area, the application displays legal warnings to remind that:

• harvesting may be prohibited,
• some species may be protected,
• the user must strictly respect local regulations.

3. algorithmic neutrality

Druidz never pushes a spot forward, even if highly rated:
display depends only on local density, not on optimization to encourage visits.

4. user responsibility

The user must verify themselves the legality of any harvesting.
Druidz provides no field instructions.

This can be surprising, but several cases are normal:

1. Old or historical data
Some open sources date back several years: the plant may no longer be there.

2. Identification error by initial contributors
Even official databases contain errors.

3. Changing ecological conditions
Floods, droughts, construction, earthworks... environments evolve quickly.

4. Real presence but difficult to find
Some plants are discreet, seasonal, highly localized, or invisible outside flowering.

5. Taxonomic differences
Some plants have several botanical synonyms depending on the databases.
Maps can therefore display a spot of a "sister species".

In any case, an improbable spot is not an invitation to forage, and never constitutes proof of presence.

Druidz cannot display an unlimited number of spots, for the following reasons:

1. technical

Smartphones cannot load millions of points without lag, overheating, or crashing.

2. readability

A saturated map no longer makes sense: the information becomes unreadable.

3. safety

Limiting the number of points:

• reduces the mass effect and potential overexploitation,
• avoids encouraging "rush" behavior towards a specific site.

4. automatic selection

When there are more than 2500 points/km² in an area, Druidz applies automatic sorting to display only:

• the highest-rated spots,
• the most confirmed,
• the most recent,
• the most consistent.

The others are hidden, but never deleted.

Yes, but in a non-editorial way.

Druidz never checks spots one by one:
there is no manual validation, no field verification.

Moderation relies on three mechanisms:

1. automatic filters

Automatic deletion:

• of inconsistent spots,
• excessive duplicates,
• obviously invalid data.

2. presence votes

Users near the spot can confirm or deny.
Highly denied spots become less visible, or hidden if the area is saturated.

3. reports

Any user can report:

• identification error,
• impossible spot,
• incorrect data.

Reports are displayed publicly on the sheet.

Druidz never plays the role of expert or foraging guide.

Druidz cannot automatically determine if foraging is authorized in a specific location.
Legality depends on:

• national laws,
• prefectural orders,
• municipal orders,
• regulations specific to each park or forest,
• the legal status of the land (private, municipal, state-owned, protected...).

The user must imperatively verify locally before any foraging.
The presence of a spot on the map is never an authorization to forage.

Several categories of areas exist, each with different rules:

• National parks
• National or regional nature reserves
• Biotope protection orders (APB)
• Natura 2000 sites
• Park cores, quiet zones, ZNIEFF
• Special protection zones (SPA) or conservation zones (SAC)

Some prohibitions are not even publicly mapped.

Druidz provides no guarantee regarding the legal status of an area:
the user must verify with local authorities (signs, official websites, tourist office, town hall, etc.).

Here are the most reliable indicators:

• Official signs: explicit prohibitions, regulations, sensitive areas.
• Administrative websites: town hall, prefecture, natural park, ONF, etc.
• Seasonal restrictions: some areas are prohibited during nesting or reproduction.
• Protected species: sometimes foraging is prohibited even if the area is not.

If a prohibition exists, it prevails over everything, regardless of the information appearing in the application.

Penalties vary according to local regulations.

They can range from:

• simple warnings,
• fines that can reach several hundred euros,
• more severe fines for harvesting protected species,
• specific administrative sanctions in national parks.

In some cases, foraging in a protected area is considered an attack on natural heritage, which can be criminally sanctioned.

Druidz covers no legal risk:
all decisions belong exclusively to the user.

As a general rule: no.
The majority of public parks prohibit foraging to preserve plantations, avoid health risks, and ensure visitor safety.

Some municipalities tolerate small-quantity foraging, but only if:

• it is explicitly authorized,
• no protected species is involved,
• a municipal order clearly indicates it.

The user should always check with the town hall.

In France and most European countries:
Private forest = prohibition to forage without owner's permission.

The owner can require:

• total prohibition,
• written authorization,
• paid foraging rights,
• specific conditions (quantities, zones...).

Presence on the map never means the land is accessible or foraging is allowed.

In nature reserves (national, regional, marine), the general rule is:

→ Foraging is prohibited unless indicated otherwise.

Even minimal harvesting can be prohibited to protect:

• soils,
• wildlife,
• natural habitats,
• vulnerable species.

Each reserve has its own regulations.
The user should consult the sign at the entrance or the corresponding official website.

Depending on the country, several texts regulate foraging.
Here are the main general principles (non-exhaustive) to know:

1. Protected species

Their harvesting is prohibited (national or regional lists).
Examples: ministerial orders, red lists, European directives.

2. Environmental code (France)

Regulates natural areas, reserves, national parks, APB...

3. Private property

Any harvesting without authorization may constitute an offense.

4. Municipal or prefectural orders

Some prohibit foraging in very localized areas.

5. International regulations

• Natura 2000
• Birds and Habitats Directives
• Local regulations specific to foreign national parks

Druidz never replaces an official source:
the user must verify with competent authorities.

Several factors can slow down map loading:

• Connection quality (unstable 4G, weak Wi-Fi, saturated network).
• Map servers (MapTiler, Google Maps) that can be overloaded or bandwidth-limited.
• Display of many points (up to the authorized limit per km²).
• Downloading high-resolution tiles, which sometimes requires more time depending on the geographic area.

Speed therefore depends on the device, the user's network, and third-party platforms providing the maps.

Identifications rely on:

• complex image analysis algorithms,
• sending data to an external service (Pl@ntNet),
• returning a result sometimes heavy in data.

Depending on the third-party service load, photo size, or network status, identifications may take longer.
These delays do not depend on Druidz.

Like any connected application, Druidz may experience:

• slowdowns,
• temporary unavailability,
• interruptions linked to GCP, MapTiler, Pl@ntNet, or other providers.

In case of outage:

• Wait a few minutes, the service often returns quickly.
• Check the Internet connection.
• Restart the application to relaunch processes.

Outages are not predictable and cannot be totally eliminated.
They do not entitle to any compensation.

The application depends entirely on:

• cloud providers,
• external databases,
• identification APIs,
• cartographic platforms.

These services can slow down, change, limit their quotas, or fail at any time.

Druidz therefore cannot guarantee:

• continuous access,
• minimum speed,
• given accuracy,
• constant availability of maps, recipes, or identifications.

The user uses the service "as is" and "according to availability".

Druidz relies on several independent services:

• Google Maps Platform & MapTiler for maps,
• Pl@ntNet for image recognition,
• Google Cloud Platform (GCP) for hosting, processing, databases,
• External collaborative data (OSM, GBIF, etc.).

These services influence:

• availability,
• speed,
• map rendering,
• usage quotas,
• operating cost,
• application's ability to respond during usage peaks.

Any modification, outage, or restriction of one of these providers is directly reflected in the application.

The application may consume more battery in some cases:

• displaying high-resolution maps,
• active geolocation,
• downloading tiles,
• prolonged outdoor use,
• image analysis for identification.

To limit consumption:

• activate offline mode,
• reduce brightness,
• close unnecessary background applications,
• disable location when not used.

Some features store data on the device:

• offline maps,
• consulted recipes,
• downloaded tiles,
• temporary caches.

If space becomes insufficient:

• it is possible to delete offline areas from settings,
• the app can automatically reduce cache if necessary.

Large downloads may be impossible if the phone is too full.

Because Druidz:

• depends on independent third-party services,
• does not control initial data,
• does not guarantee accuracy of identifications, recipes, or locations,
• has no means to validate legal compliance of foraging,
• cannot ensure minimum availability or speed,
• cannot verify field reality or environmental conditions.

The application provides tools, but the user remains solely responsible for:

• interpretation,
• use,
• verification,
• safety,
• legality of their actions.

The Premium subscription unlocks advanced features to enhance Druidz usage, including:

• Downloading offline maps (MapTiler/Google tiles) within the quota included in your plan.
• Downloading by rectangular area or via a GPX file, with automatic splitting if the track is too long.
• Local storage of already consulted recipes, usable offline.
• Pl@ntNet identifications viewable offline if they have already been performed on your device.

Premium benefits do not modify the speed, accuracy, or reliability of external services like Pl@ntNet, Google Maps, MapTiler, or GCP.

The Premium subscription does not transform the technical functioning of the application.

Even with Premium:

• maps can load slowly,
• some offline areas may be temporarily unavailable depending on third-party servers,
• identifications may be slow or impossible,
• external data (GBIF, OSM, FallingFruit, Pl@ntNet...) may contain errors,
• servers may be limited, saturated, or experience an outage.

Premium provides additional usage capacities, but does not guarantee availability, speed, or result of services that depend on external providers.

Yes, for the most part.

Even without connection:

• you keep access to your Premium status (stored locally on the phone),
• you can consult all already downloaded maps and areas,
• you can read already consulted recipes,
• your already made Pl@ntNet identifications remain visible.

Some features cannot work offline:

• new Pl@ntNet identifications,
• downloading new offline tiles,
• synchronization of votes, comments, reports,
• loading heavy data not stored locally.

Recognizing plants simply helps avoid mistakes.
It's a practical skill, comparable to reading a map or using a compass: useful, but requiring rigor.

The goal is not to become a botanist, but to:

• understand what we observe,
• avoid dangerous confusions,
• know where to look for reliable information,
• adopt better field practices.

Druidz provides no diagnosis or scientific validation: it's a helping tool, not a substitute for expertise.

A few simple rules for the app to work properly:

• Accuracy before speed: better to publish nothing than something approximate.
• Systematic reporting: if something seems wrong, we report it.
• No risk-taking: neither with a plant, nor with a place, nor with a recipe.
• Respect for places: don't damage a spot, don't forage in a prohibited area.

These principles are not there to "look good": they really limit accidents and abuses.

Druidz adopts a factual approach:

• A plant has a life cycle,
• Some ecosystems support foraging, others don't,
• Some practices minimize impact, others worsen it.

Foraging responsibly means preserving the resource, avoiding conflicts, and reducing risks.

Information sharing relies on collaboration:

• A user spots an error → they report it,
• Another confirms a presence → they vote,
• A third improves a recipe → they comment,
• Someone detects toxicity → they alert.

The system works because users actively participate.
It's not scientific validation, but collaborative sorting that progressively reduces inaccuracies.

Wild plants interest many researchers and foragers, not for "miracle benefits", but because they often have a different composition from cultivated plants. Here's what can reasonably be said — without speculation, without exaggeration.

1. Broader chemical diversity (no benefit guarantee)

Wild plants grow in more natural, less selected environments.
They may therefore contain, depending on species:

• varied fibers,
• aromatic compounds,
• polyphenols,
• secondary metabolites typical of non-cultivated species.

These compounds play a role in plant physiology: defense, adaptation, maturation.
For humans, this is not a nutritional guarantee, but it explains why some wild plants have more intense flavors.

2. Cultivated vs wild: two different worlds

Cultivated plants have been selected for:

• sweetness,
• size,
• conservation,
• productivity,
• transport tolerance.

Wild plants, on the other hand, have never been selected for human consumption.
They can therefore be:

• more aromatic,
• more fibrous,
• tougher,
• more irregular,
• or... toxic if misidentified.

The difference is neither better nor worse: it entirely depends on the species, terrain, and preparation.

3. Microbiome: what we really know (and what we CANNOT say)

The human microbiome reacts to:

• food variety,
• fiber presence,
• plant processing or not,
• cooking method.

Some wild plants bring particular fibers, but:

➡️ no study allows saying that "wild plants improve the microbiome".
➡️ Druidz makes no health claims.

It's only a field of study, not a promise.

4. The real interest of wild plants: food diversity

The only consensual and neutral point is as follows:

Food diversity is generally considered positive.
Wild plants, when properly identified and prepared, can bring a taste and culinary variety different from cultivated plants.

Nothing more.
Nothing less.

5. Warning: wild ≠ healthy

Important:

• A wild plant can contain more toxins than a cultivated plant.
• It can accumulate heavy metals, road pollution, parasites.
• Some species have edible parts only under certain conditions.

➡️ Never consume without certain identification.
➡️ Always verify appropriate culinary preparation.

6. Why Druidz remains neutral

Druidz is not a nutritional guide.
It provides no health, medical, or dietary advice.

The objective is only:

• to learn to identify,
• to understand cultural uses,
• to explore botanical diversity,
• to cook with caution,
• to never put yourself in danger.

Everything related to microbiome, nutrition, or health must remain strictly informative and never prescriptive.

Three functional categories can be distinguished:

• Wild plants: grow without human intervention. Their composition is less predictable (soil, pollution, water stress).
• Cultivated plants: selected and controlled, more homogeneous, but sometimes less rich in defensive compounds.
• Semi-wild plants: naturalized plants, escaped from cultivation, or sporadically maintained.

These distinctions matter for identification, potential toxicity, presence of allergens or soil pollution.
Druidz cannot guarantee the exact nature of the plant encountered or its safety.

Yes, but under conditions:

• respect local regulations concerning seed or plant collection;
• favor local species, adapted to climate and non-invasive;
• avoid moving plants from protected areas, which may be prohibited;
• always verify absence of parasites or visible diseases.

Druidz provides no guarantee regarding cultivation success, food safety, or legality of harvesting.
The user is responsible for verifying their harvesting and planting rights.

Some plants can become invasive when moved outside their natural area.
They can:

• dominate local vegetation,
• disrupt food chains,
• reduce biodiversity,
• cause neighborhood or environmental management problems.

Basic principles:

• never sow a plant without checking its regional status;
• avoid exotic plants with high invasive potential;
• limit accidental dispersions (seeds stuck to clothes, shoes, tools).

Druidz does not indicate an exhaustive list of invasive species: statuses vary by country.
The user must verify with local institutions (town halls, botanical conservatories, prefectural orders).

Here, we use a strictly ecological definition, without ideological dimension:

Rewilding simply consists of letting land evolve with minimal intervention, or reintroducing local species to restore natural dynamics.

Common principles:

• reduce mowing and let spontaneous flora develop;
• introduce only local plants adapted to soil and climate;
• avoid any exotic or potentially invasive species;
• favor varied plant layers (herbaceous, shrubs, trees) for local wildlife;
• maintain minimal monitoring (water, occasional invasive control).

Druidz does not guarantee the ecological impact of rewilding and indicates no "optimal" method.
Each terrain reacts differently according to soil, exposure, neighboring uses, and climate.

1. Relearning to see what we no longer see

Today, most people move through the world without seeing it.

Identifying plants does something unique:

• you recover a lost form of attention,
• you discover richness where there was "nothing",
• you recognize species, textures, cycles, patterns.

This changes your relationship with reality.
The world becomes denser, more readable, more interesting.

2. Reappropriation of urban and peri-urban space

Everywhere, there exist:

• wastelands,
• embankments,
• roadsides,
• parks,
• interstices.

Learning plants allows:

• understanding how a city evolves,
• identifying species installed by municipalities,
• seeing biodiversity corridors,
• understanding ecological quality of a neighborhood.

You give meaning back to areas that seemed neutral.

3. Culture and heritage: this knowledge is being lost

For thousands of years, plant identification and use were basic skills.

In one generation:

• this knowledge disappeared,
• people no longer know how to recognize a hazel from a hornbeam,
• deadly confusions increase,
• traditional cultural uses are lost.

Being interested in plants is safeguarding intangible heritage.
Not to "return to the past", but to understand who we are.

4. Sense of taste and terroirs (non-nutritional)

A wild plant has not been selected to please.

It offers:

• bitterness,
• acidity,
• aggressive, fragile, complex aromas.

This reconnects:

• to seasons,
• to terroirs,
• to ripeness gradients,
• to culinary finesse.

5. Personal resilience (non-survivalist)

Foraging is not survival.
It's understanding where things come from.

• Identify a plant.
• Know if it returns each year.
• Understand ecosystem dynamics.
• Recognize polluted areas.
• Analyze soil, exposure, conditions.

This gives a feeling of competence, intellectual autonomy.

Not "I can survive", but:
"I understand the world a bit better. I'm capable of observing, analyzing, deciding."

6. Community, social connection, transmission

In many places worldwide, foraging creates:

• conversations,
• cultural exchanges,
• intergenerational learning,
• collective outings.

Druidz can become a place for knowledge sharing, not prescriptions.

The social benefit is real and already observed wherever foraging communities exist.

7. Local governance and citizen participation

When citizens know their plants, they begin to:

• question city greening choices,
• defend hedges,
• avoid destructive mowing,
• protect remarkable trees,
• propose local bee-friendly species,
• challenge excessive use of exotic decorative plants.

This touches on:

• biodiversity,
• urban planning,
• ecological resilience.

8. Local food security (in an anthropological sense)

We're not talking about autonomy or healing.
We're talking about food culture in the anthropological sense:

• understanding what grows locally,
• discovering regional plants,
• exploring ancient culinary practices,
• varying culinary explorations.

This strengthens territorial connection, not a nutrition promise.

9. Pure intellectual pleasure: pattern recognition

Humans love recognizing patterns.

Foraging =
literally "playing at detecting patterns in reality".

It's:

• playful,
• rewarding,
• aesthetic,
• profoundly human.

This pleasure is stable, strong, lasting.

⭐ Simple summary: the 7 real and certain benefits

Learning plants allows:

• To better see the world
• To understand your territory
• To preserve cultural heritage
• To develop your taste and cooking
• To gain ecological competence
• To create social connection
• To participate in local biodiversity

Yes.

Druidz provides free online access to botanical data from open, scientific and contributory sources, as long as a network connection is available.

This data comes from:

• GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility)
• Pl@ntNet
• iNaturalist
• Falling Fruit
• as well as many other public and open data sources

All this data can be consulted free of charge in the application in online mode.

Druidz integrates data from third-party sources published under open licenses, including:

• CC0
• CC BY
• CC BY-NC (Creative Commons Attribution – Non Commercial)

Each data point is associated, when the information is available:

• with its source
• with its license
• and, where applicable, with a DOI link or official source page

Content and enhancements produced by Druidz may also be published under CC BY-NC license, in a logic of contribution to the common good.

Yes.

Data under CC BY-NC license is:

• freely accessible online,
• accessible offline via offline mode, when the user has downloaded the corresponding areas.

Offline access does not change the license or the nature of the data.

Important: Data available offline is strictly identical to that accessible online.

Payment does not condition access to data, but allows its local replication on the user's device.

The difference is not in the data content, but in the technical features.

Free mode:

• online access to open data
• field exploration with connection
• free demo offline area (limited)

Premium subscription:

• download maps and data for extended offline use
• tile quota and local storage management
• route preparation
• advanced tools and progression mechanics
• improved performance and user comfort

The subscription does not increase access to open data and does not make any content exclusive.

No.

Druidz does not sell any botanical data, whether from open or contributory sources.

The business model is exclusively based on:

• technical services
• offline features
• software infrastructure
• and user experience

Data remains freely accessible according to their respective licenses.

Yes, 7-day weather forecasts are free for all users.

Check directly on the map:

• 7-day forecasts
• temperature, feels like
• rain, wind, humidity
• UV, sunrise/sunset

Data is automatically refreshed every 12 hours.

Yes, in compliance with applicable licenses.

• Data under CC BY-NC license can be reused in a non-commercial context, with attribution.

• Data under CC0 or CC BY can be reused according to their own conditions.

Druidz does not grant any additional rights to third-party data.

Offline data corresponds to a local replication of data already accessible online.

This mechanism allows:

• use without network
• better performance
• continuity of field uses

It does not constitute either a sale or an appropriation of data.