Having just returned from a weekend evening meal at my in-laws (yes, I truly like my in-laws…i got lucky), blackberries are on my mind. Why? Because, for desert I was treated to the best blackberry cobbler, EVER!
It got me to thinking. Blackberries in my part of the country are usually a June fruit. In fact, June is usually when I go out and test my luck and my mettle to harvest some of my own out in the wilds. So why did we have blackberry cobbler with ‘just picked’ blackberries in mid-July. I wasn’t sure, so I investigated.
The lack of moisture and excessive heat has caused the plants to delay maturation. (Unfortunately, it caused the same problems for my tomatoes…more on that in another blog). However, since we are dealing with wild blackberries, natural selection has permitted the hardiest of plants to grow…plants ideally suited for our environment. That means, these wild plants are not afraid of a little hot and dry weather, they just alter their production schedule a bit and proceed on with their reproductive cycle. They make use of the water that is there, shut down when it is not, and produce their little fruits (and corresponding seeds) when the conditions, not a calendar, tell them to. These little brambles are truly an inspiration in efficiency and evolution.
That said, there are plenty of Blackberries (and raspberries) still available in the wild. In fact, many are just coming on. In my region, we have had two ‘pickings’. The first one came on about the normal time in mid-June, but the second flush is just now appearing. One of the things that I have noticed is that the second flush of fruit is a bit smaller due to the lack of moisture, however, the dry spell has concentrated their sugars to they are much sweeter than normal. Can anyone say Blackberry Jam!
Today is actually raining for the first time in weeks, but tomorrow I plan on going out in the evening and looking along the hedgerows, highways, and lake front parks that dot our community, I may even wander up into the woodland paths in the mountains. For a great family outing and a chance to teach your kids about the wonders of nature and where foods come from, I encourage you to seek out blackberries in your area. A quick call to the county agent or the Department of Fish and Wildlife can inform you if you have wild berries in your area and where the best place to look are located. It will be a fun outing for the family, a low cost activity that the kids will enjoy (especially if properly dressed and prepared), and the rewards will be well worth the effort. The blackberries are there and ripe for the picking. I never thought I would say this, but “Thank you, hot, hot dry summer.”
If you would like a primer on where to find and how to harvest fresh picked berries and not pay up to $10 a pound for them, check out this post.
By the way, I am going to be transplanting some berries this fall…wild, thorny berries perfectly suited for my region, not the tame thornless (tasteless) hybrids…along the back edge of my property. So expect a post on the how-to’s of that a little closer to time. Transplanting is easy and is best done in Oct-Nov, but more on that later.
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