Abstract
There are concerns about adverse effects caused by dilution of the connectedness to nature, and restoration of cultural practices related to nature has become a significant issue. In Japan, academic approaches to forest cultures have been posited for some time, but have not yet been developed into policy theory. Therefore, in this paper, we focus on the collection and use of edible plants and mushrooms, attempting to identify cultural elements relating thereto, and to interpret the vicissitudes affecting the culture of their use. The process was divided into: pre-, post- and during harvest processes, dividing each into several aspects. Diverse cultural elements were identified, and some of these were linked to the significance attached to the resources examined in the study. Shifting postwar patterns of use were categorized, and we interpreted that the elements with the various significance to people have remained up to the present, and have become popular as recreation. Nevertheless, there were some elements that have unavoidably declined or disappeared due to changes in the natural and social environments. In order to restore forest cultures, there needs to be both an individual approach that fosters the meaning of forests to people, and a wider approach in terms of the relationship between the natural environment and institutions.
