Blueberries

[theorsmeister]

I once read, it may have been Mears or Richard Mabey, but I am sure that it said somewhere in my bushcraft library that blueberries lower the blood sugar level and are not good for survival eating.

Is this really true, and do they really not have calorific value?!

It is useful to know because in much of the highlands they are abundant among the heather on the moors and taste delish!!!

 

[Spacemonkey]

Ah, blobar jam! We used to pick them in the Norwegian mountains and make jam from them. Lovely on hot buttered toast. One such jar was smashed by the baggage destroyers at Heathrow which then promptly leaked all over the sack and it's contents. You cannot remove blueberry staining so most ended up in the bin... Have seen it stocked in Tescos (for a King's ransom) but it's not anywhere near the same.

Anyway, we used to eat them a lot without any ill effect, but that's not quite a survival situation is it?

 

[michael]

as it happens I think I did read it one of my dog eared bushcraft books.

Not sure about calories though, would be interested.

 

[Viking]

Blueberries is not dangerous, I have eatne them all my life every year. They have a good effect if you have dairrea and will give you a diarrea if you eat too much of them (but then you have to eat very much). More red tungs and blue lips

 

[Moonraker]

I once read, it may have been Mears or Richard Mabey, but I am sure that it said somewhere in my bushcraft library that blueberries lower the blood sugar level and are not good for survival eating.

Is this really true, and do they really not have calorific value?!

It is useful to know because in much of the highlands they are abundant among the heather on the moors and taste delish!!!

It is only the leaves of the Bilberry Vaccinium myrtillus (USA=Whortleberry, Blueberry, FR=Mrytille, NO=Blåbær) which reduce levels of blood sugar not the fruits.

More details:

Vaccinium myrtillus L. Ericaceae.
Bilberry, Huckleberry, Whortleberry (June-July: leaves) A deciduous shrub, 20-60cm high, with a creeping rhizome, numerous branched erect stems, and green angular twigs. The leaves are alternate, shortly petiolate, 0'8-3'5cm long, ovate, acute, finely toothed, light green, with distinct criss-cross venation The flowers are 1-2, axillary. The corolla is pitcher-shaped, up to 6mm in diameter, greenish-pink, with very short, turned-back lobes The anthers are awned, opening by pores. The fruit is a berry, 6-8mm In diameter, globose, black, prumose
Habitat heaths, moors, woods; on acid soil Distribution throughout the region. Active ingredients tannin, mytillm, pectin, arbutin, Vitamins Band C. Effect astringent, diuretic; reducing level of blood sugar (leaves only). Parts used mainly the mature dried or fresh fruits; more rarely the dried leaves; both are best dried in shade Application Medical: 2 tablespoons of dried berries are taken once a day for enteritis; the same amount can be taken fresh for constipation As a decoction (3 tablespoons dried berries to 500ml water, boil for 8- 10 minutes) take 1 cup 3 times daily against diarrhoea or use as a hot mouthwash for gingivitis or a gargle for inflammation of the throat. A decoction based on leaves is sometimes used but can lead to harmful side-effects (hydroquinone poisoning) when used excessively or for long periods. Edibility: the fresh fruits are sweet and very tasty. The freshly pressed juice is refreshing and a valuable source of vitamins B and C. The berries can be used In the home for soups, pies, preserves, jams, wine, etc.

source: 'Hamlyn Guide To Edible & Medicinal Plants of Britain and Northern Europe. Edmund Launert. 1989. Hamlyn Publishing Group. ISBN 0 600 56395 2.

Click the link above to the Plants For A Future reference page for more info. Photographs for identification here:

Flora of Northern Ireland - Vaccinium myrtillus Bilberry

Apparently they help night vision. In the 30's bilberries were exported to Britain from Aubenas in France in quantity for distribution to the miners working in the coal mines. Also, during the 2nd World War the pilots of the Royal Air Force consumed whole bilberry salads daily in order to increase their vision for their night sorties!

There is a nice site here with info on bilberries in Norway:

Norge på Menyen: On being “berry” Norwegian, or not “just a blueberry” in Norway

A recipe for the popular:

NORWEGIAN BLUEBERRY SOUP
serves 6-8

1 envelope of unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup cold water
4 cups fresh orange juice
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar
2 cups fresh blueberries, washed
fresh mint

Soften gelatin in cold water in a custard cup. Place in a pan of hot , not boiling water until melted and ready to use. combine orange and lemon juices, sugar, and melted gelatin. Stir until sugar and gelatin are dissolved. Chill until mixture begins to thicken. Fold Blueberries into mixture. Chill until ready to serve. Spoon into chilled bouillon cups. Garnish with fresh mint.

More recipes here:

Blueberry Home Preservation and Storage Tips

It is traditional to use a small rake or special 'comb' (or peigne in French) to gather bilberries, much like brushing your hair, which pulls the berries off the plants and speeds up harvesting. You can buy modern ones made from plastic and with metal teeth but on this site is an old one made from wood which could be the basis for one made in the field:

BLUEBERRY COMB

Yes, one of the happiest memories of Norway was out in the forests picking handfuls of them and also wild raspberries. Like the Norwegian saying goes:

spise deg blå rundt munnen or “eat yourself blue around the mouth”

 

[Viking]

Did a search on "Blåbär" (bluberries in swedish) and found a lot of info. If you eat blueberries you will get older and will improve your seeing. Blueberries is also used in many medicines. An interesting fact is that ony 7% of all the bluberries in sweden is getting picked by people, and it´s free for anyone to ppicj these berries.

Found a pic of bluberry picker that is used in sweden.

 

[BorderReiver]

I once read, it may have been Mears or Richard Mabey, but I am sure that it said somewhere in my bushcraft library that blueberries lower the blood sugar level and are not good for survival eating.

Is this really true, and do they really not have calorific value?!

It is useful to know because in much of the highlands they are abundant among the heather on the moors and taste delish!!!

I thought that was blackberries.

 

[michael]

Just the leaves. comforting to know because when I go to the highlands I am gobbling them all day. Nice one MOONRAKER, I will haveto try that soup

 

[Moonraker]

I thought that was blackberries.

Nope. Blackberry (Rubus fruticosus) leaves make an excellent herbal tea like Raspberry tea which is the same genus (be sure to dry them slowly at a natural temperature to allow them to ferment a bit).

 

[Moonraker]

If you eat blueberries you will get older and will improve your seeing.

So to avoid mortality I just skip blackberries

Certainly they help vision, and night vision in particular as I quoted above they were used by RAF pilots during the war to help seeing better during night operations. You are right Johan, they are a really useful plant and especially since they taste so great

Good photo of the picker too, similar to modern ones I have seen here in France.

 

[Keith_Beef]

Bilberry combs are also traditional in Russian, where they are often made from birch or linden wood.

Be careful where you use the combs, as in Belgium and in some regions of France (e.g. in the "réserve naturelle du Frankenthal-Missheimle (Haut-Rhin)") and Swizerland (e.g., canton of Berne) their use is illegal, and this may be true elsewhere.

http://www.chez.com/dth/rcl/rcl15.htm
http://www.be.ch/cgi-bin/frameset.exe?http://www.vol.be.ch/lanat/natur/pflanz_f.html
http://www.droit.org/jo/19951020/ENVN9530037D.html
http://membres.lycos.fr/stblaise/arrete_13_10_89.html


Keith.