wild strawberries

[Salina]

I found some wild strawberries growing along the roadside today when I was out walking the dog. are these safe to eat? I was wondering because the last time I ate blackberries from the roadside without washing them they made me quite ill, but anytime I've picked them from a field I have been fine, so I was thinking maybe there was road fumes or something on them.
Quite chuffed at finding them lol, never seen them before.
also, is there any such thing as a wild blueberry? last summer I found a bush heavy with little blueberry looking things growing on the roadside, and it has little green berries on it again this summer which I presume will ripen into the blue ones, I didn't eat any though because I wasn't sure if they were poisonous or not lol.

[leona]

wild strawbs yes. if its a really busy road might not be very nice tho and id wash them. i know my dogs pee everywhere so you never know! i get ill from eating blackberrys so i dont know if its a matter of washing them. i dont think we have blueberrys wild in this country but im sure there must be some relative of them somewhere.

[leona]

bilberrys maybe?

[mrs potato head]

Wild strawberries are fantastic, best collected early in the morning before the rabbits get them.
Cloudberries are lovley to. Found on heathland 5-6 inch high stem with a cluster of orange berries at the end.

[Flummery]

Heathland produces loads of bilberries (sometimes called whinberries too). They are lovely in a pie!

[Hazel at the Hill]

On our annual hols to visit my mum's twin in Elgin, Morayshire, we used to all go bilberry picking - don't know why we bothered really as you need about 10,000 just for one pie, we ate far more than we put in the bowl, and all came back purple all over from the juice!

Ahh, happy days!

[rustylady]

When we were kids in a little village in South Devon we used to pick and loads of "wild food", including strawberries and blackberries. Nowadays I would be very carefull, it's not just traffic fumes - you never know what sprays may have been used nearby. That's one reason I like to grow my own fruit and veg - I know exactly what's been used.
The little blue berries we used to pick on and near the moors. Bilberries (and we also used to call them whortleberries.

[SimonCole]

I don't think it's safe to eat fruit from the roadsides. My reason is that they may contain lead from vehicle fumes.

[Two_Sheds]

I don't think it's safe to eat fruit from the roadsides. My reason is that they may contain lead from vehicle fumes.

just like our lungs! lol

[SimonCole]

just like our lungs! lol

More concentrated according to some of the research I've read.

[Flummery]

I do agree Simon. For my wine-making foraging I have a number of local field paths I use so I know only the occasional tractor has ever gone past.

[Birdie Wife]

Bilberries, blaeberries, whinberries, windberries, all the same thing and all totally fantastically edible. However, I've never seen one growing on the roadside - could you post a picture of the leaves and unripe berries just to be on the safe side?

[leona]

wow i didnt know cloudberrys grew here! i heard about them alot when i was planning a trip to norway early this year but while i was there it was far too early for berrys. going back next month tho and am dying to try cloudberrys.

[swampie sue]

Could they be Sloes,

Are the fruits quite large, and is the bush also covered in sharp large thorns?
If so they could be Sloes, the fruit of the Blackthorn. If so you could make Sloe Gin or Sloe Jelly, or as I did once make Sloe Gin Jelly.

[Flummery]

Sloes would still be green and hard in the summer when Salina found them. Sloes don't darken up that early. It sounds like blue/whinberries.