Foraging

[JanieB]

Mrs Wadders post gave me a thought. I grew up out in the sticks. I’ve foraged all my life. I married a farmer so had free range over our fields and hedgerows. After I divorced him I continued to live in farm cottages for several years until I met and moved in with Brian.

This is/was a small rural town and only a few minutes walk to the countryside until now. I’m quite happy to walk the dogs the extra distance but foraging is becoming more difficult. The housing that is being built is pushing the reachable hedgerows further and further out. I know that every planning consent had the developers agree to keep the hedges and they have all, without fail, ignored that and grubbed them out. When pulled up about it they say they are going to replant but we know it won’t be brambles, sloes, elderberries. We might get crab apples and cherry plums. And possibly rowan which isn’t native to this part of the UK and is grown as a decorative tree.

As as I get older it will make it more and more difficult, and more difficult to find hedges that I’m allowed to pick from. There’s also the competition with other foragers.

Sorry for for the long post.

[nickdub]

You could go rural guerilla and start planting brambles, hips, nuts etc along the way, while out for your constitutionals.

[muck lover]

The next generation will have lost the skills and knowledge to forage. I get funny looks even out picking blackberries. Today I foraged ground elder and dandelion leaves which I washed and popped in freezer along with some kale for my two sons to blend into a smoothie.

[burnie]

I take my Grandchildren out near Perth, luckily this part of Scotland still has some forage around, there's a lot that doesn't grow this far north, but the hills are fruitful in the autumn. We have ransomes almost out and sweet ciceley will be up soon along with wood sorrel.

[Small pumpkin]

We have ransomes almost out.

Picked our first yesterday. Went lovely with our foraged pigeon