When It Comes to Berries, Go WILD

Despite our recent hot, dry weather at Heart & Sole Gardens, blackberries are ripening along creek banks and I can not resist that taste when I take breaks from pulling weeds in almost 100 degree temperatures. The tart sweet flavor revives me and, with a good drink of water, farm work is again possible. 

Unlike hybrids, wild blackberries vary in size and flavor

Along the wooded tree line at our farm is a patch of wild raspberries, both red and black.  These fruits are smaller than supermarket hybrids, but like wild blackberries, possess more intense flavor.  Close to the raspberry canes is a mulberry tree and the last of its ripe fruit is another temptation, but most of those berries go to hungry birds that can reach those tall branches much easier than I. 

Japanese beetles also love wild berries

If you have never tried wild berries, plan to enjoy these seasonal treats this summer.  When I was a child, my neighbor paid me fifty cents per gallon for all the blackberries I could pick.  Despite summer's heat, battle scars from the prickly briers and the lurking fear of encountering snakes lying in wait for small rodents and birds that came to feast on the berries, I enjoyed picking blackberries.  Let me know if you find a child willing to sell wild berries for fifty cents per gallon . . .I will buy!  

Easy to identify, Wineberries are delicious wild treats

Another tasty wild berry that grows in North Carolina is the Japanese Wineberry.  Similar in shape and color to the red raspberry, Wineberries have a unique flavor and with an almost non-existent shelf life, it is imperative to consume or process them as soon as possible after harvesting.  To learn more about Japanese Wineberries, visit Seedtales and, if you are lucky enough to find Wineberries or happen to have some growing in your backyard, try the recipe, courtesy of Heirloom Restaurant's Chef Clark Barlowe, included in the blog.  

Visit seedtales.com for the recipe for Wineberry Upside Down Cakes