A bit of foraging...

[John Fenna]

No photos - I forgot the camera!
But - the foraging just got good around here
Not only are the feral gooseberries coming ripe (not many of them but boy do they taste good!) but this year the wild raspberries have gone crazy - not just the odd one or two of most years, this year we are picking tubs of them.
They compare to the wild strawberries (which are also abundant) in that put next to their commercial equivalent the wild ones are much smaller but have flavour that is out of proportion to their size
The Beechmast is so heavy on the trees that the branches are bending .. but is not ripe yet and the Blackberriies are showing more flower than ever...
A great year for wild foods around here!

 

[Clouston98]

Sounds good! It's like you say it has been in previous years round here: patches and clumps here and there- having found any big hits' and if I do I usually munch 'em all .

 

[crosslandkelly]

Plenty of jam making then John.

 

[Goatboy]

Aye Mr Fenna we're having a "mast year" here too, loads of wild gooseberries, raspberries and the likes and the harder fruits like apples, sloes, cherries, plums and the likes are shaping up nicely too. Was tasting the immature cobb and beech nuts up at Forfar Loch on Saturday and they look in line to be cracking too. Good luck with your foraging and hope to hear of the results.

 

[xylaria]

I going to check if the bilberries (blae- whortle- wind- ) are out. The birds are eating something very dark and purple. It looks like it will be a plum year this year.

 

[John Fenna]

Plenty of jam making then John.

The jam making is the Mrs's department... I make wine!
Well I do when I have spare demijohns - all of my 8.5 gallon capacity is full of stuff still bubbling or settling Rosehip, last years Gooseberry, Birchsap, Dandelion and Nettle and a new flavour for this year - Lemon Balm
My storage crates are pretty full too ... which obviously means that I will need to drink more to free up space to bottle more to free up demijohns so I can brew more!
Life is hard.
The Wild Raspberries have proven delicious with a quality Vanilla ice-cream!

 

[crosslandkelly]

Sounds delicious John. Will you be having a tasting session at Dingly dell, purely quality control purposes only.

 

[John Fenna]

Sounds delicious John. Will you be having a tasting session at Dingly dell, purely quality control purposes only.

Naturally!