blackberry picking

Talitha

I picked 2lbs in Halifax this afternoon. I was really surprised they were ripe.
I had decided to walk to the doctors (2 miles... downhill all the way there) and the only thing I had to put them in was the paper bag from the chemist. So my jeans are stained but I feel VERY virtuous all round :j

Also have first lot of beans sprouting and first batch of yoghurt fermenting. This site has been SUCH a good influence :T

tanith

On a bike ride the other day my daughter and I spotted loads of blackberries on the cycle track so we will go back armed with bags and baskets to put them in...... I just love blackberry and apples together....... mmmmmnnnnnnnnnn

thriftlady_2

catowen wrote:

We go blackberry picking every year, although ours are still green/pink at the moment, so i think it will be next month before we can start!!!!

thriftlady - is there anyway of finding out if something is definatly a sloe? This year near my house we have berrys that look exactly like the sloes in the link you posted above, but ive never noticed them around here before!!!! I dont want to start picking them, sticking them in my gin (the best place for them!!!) and then find ive picked something poisonous!!!!!

Can you remember whether there were lovely white flowers around April time but without leaves ? The sloe bush is called blackthorn because the flowers come before the leaves and the effect is to make the branches and long thorns look black. The thorns are about 2cm-2.5cm long.It's usually the first blossom you see in the hedges in Spring.

HTH:)

thriftlady_2

The classic book on the subject of gathering wild food is Food For Free by Richard Mabey.

marklefty

thriftlady wrote:

The classic book on the subject of gathering wild food is Food For Free by Richard Mabey.

I would agree with thrift lady have both his food for free books pocket and large and Wild flowers of Britain Roger Phillips as it shows you what you are looking for and what to watch out for.
With the food for free try the nettle soup even my teenage daughter enjoyed it until she found out what it was.

marklefty

Talitha wrote:

I picked 2lbs in Halifax this afternoon. I was really surprised they were ripe.
:T

I tried Bradford and Bingley, Nationwide, Coventry, Leeds building societies and could find a single blackberry in any of them, How do you do it?????:rotfl:

headcovers

Could the other berries have been elderberries?


Picture on this site

wombat_2

I love picking blackberrries :j

I've not seen many ripe ones round here (Oxford) yet.. only a few on a really busy road, and I was too embarrassed to grab them!

My mum swears by taking a walking stick with her when she picks them, to grab the high-up ones and keep out of the way of the p r i c k l e s ! - it works but you might get some funny looks!

twink

yes wombat the biggest brambles are always just out of reach:D

V_Chic_Chick

Headcovers beat me too it - I was going to say elderberries as well.

http://www.frenchentree.com/france-brittany-gardening/images/Elderberries.jpg