Foraging for Fruits this September

September is THE time of year for fruit foraging. In the hedgerows you can find an abundance of produce that can be used to cook up some delightful dishes and drinkies too if you are that way inclined. What a great time to get out and do some foraging for berries.

So, whilst I had already collected a nice little stash of Damsons and cooking apples from the trees in my garden, I thought I would try my hand at a bit of found fruit. In particular, I had my eyes peeled on the ready for some blackberries... a lovely compliment for the apples when baked in a delicious pie or crumble (stay tuned for coming recipes). So armed with a little local knowledge from my grandma about the best places to search I walked off down the country lanes with nothing more than my own two hands, a camera and a plastic bag (I know I should’ve brought a decent bag – good thinking!).

Delicious Blackberry Fruits sat waiting in the hedgerows

I perused the hedges looking for blackberries like a keen eyed bird of prey looking for a tasty mouse, but without too much luck. Whilst walking along the lanes I happened to come across a few berries and eagerly snatched these up, but it wasn’t looking like a great yield this year, perhaps I was late? Unperturbed I carried on towards the spot my grandmother had told me was the place to be. When I arrived I wasn’t surprised to see that there were actually rather few berries oh no! I collected what I could and started to head home a little dejected and a bit sad I wouldn’t be feasting upon an apple and blackberry masterpiece shortly.

A few Damsons waiting to be harvested

On the way home though, things started to look bright again when I happened upon a lovely damson tree in the hedges, and despite already having the motherload of damsons from the two trees located in our garden, this opportunity was too good to resist and I’m always a sucker for scavenged fruits and berries; they always seem to taste better. So I collected up what I could with my flimsy little plastic bag that I had found in my pocket and headed off chirpily home.

Tasty found Apples

Well I was very jazzed when I found another apple tree on my way home just around the corner from my house. Of course it would have been rude not to stop just to take a couple of apple samples for tasting purposes and so I gathered up a few more and headed home for a well deserved cup of tea.
All in all I think the day was a success; I managed to collect up a nice little bunch of fruits. The blackberries weren’t out in full force unfortunately, but still I was lucky enough to get some more Damsons and apples ready for some cooking in the upcoming weeks.

If you fancy skipping the foraging part you can always just order trees from us and get a nice fruit collection growing in your very own garden. If you are going to go out and do some foraging, be careful to pick the right fruits... don’t go just picking anything. It is also a good idea not to wander on private land for your fruit picking exploits. Good luck though with yours, let me know if you had better success with your blackberries than I did this year.