WARREN — Only a few minutes into foraging, they found aster, Black-eyed Susan seeds and hosta in the empty lots on Mercer Avenue.

The aster with its small flowers was mostly ornamental — good for crafting — but the hosta was very edible, Sophia Buggs explained to Janet Shaffer of Niles and Cheryl Bollinger of Mineral Ridge.

Buggs, who runs a small, urban farm on Carroll Street on Youngstown’s South Side, considers herself a teacher and a steward of the land more than a traditional farmer. She does, however, grow some food at Lady Buggs Pharm, most of which she sells to individuals or chefs at small, local restaurants.

She recently led two free classes on urban foraging in Warren, where she took participants through city lots to find plants that are edible, medicinal or useful for crafting.

It was a matter of teaching people how to be sustainable where they live, she said.

“Foraging gives people back their wholeness where they are,” she said.

Buggs said she wants people to make peace with foraging foods in their neighborhoods — something that is often stigmatized. Sometimes people feel like they need “permission” to be in their own yards, which isn’t the case — you have a right to be there, Buggs said. And, you might just find edible plants to put on your table.

On the Mercer Avenue lots, participants in the foraging class found black raspberry, black locus and northern spice bush — all of which have parts that can be eaten.

When foraging, Buggs recommends bringing the proper tools: a basket, gloves, a paper bag to dry plants, shears or a knife and a hand trowel. She also suggests dressing for the activity in practical, comfortable clothes.

She said when stepping onto the land, foragers always should ask permission — both in the practical way of checking with neighbors and in the spiritual sense. Buggs regards the land as a sentient being and said she believes that to access its wholeness, a person must ask its permission and offer thanks when taking something from it, whether that be a prayer, a song or a gift like water.

“You always feel better,” Buggs said of thanking the land.

Buggs said she discourages people from foraging in the “devil’s strip,” or the land between the sidewalk and the road, because it is close to vehicles’ exhaust and road litter.

She recommends using cellphone applications that help identify plants. Her favorite one, PictureThis, not only lists the properties of plants, but also tells the related folklore or includes a poem.

Buggs said when it comes to sustainablity, people in urban areas often feel they can’t be sustainable, but it can be as easy as composting in your own back yard.

“You have plenty to give,” Buggs said. “You can return it back to the land.”