Spring Blows Hot and Cold

February was playing games. It was frosty, it was foggy and it has also been unseasonably sunny and warm.

We have been out in hats coats and gloves and we have been out in shorts and t-shirts.

Plum Blossom is filling the hedgerows with a white bloom, Blackthorn and Hawthorn will soon follow. 

Meanwhile Daffodils and Crocus are painting the road sides and gardens. Flashes of colour to fill in between the new growth of trees and bushes.

We have been on some lovely walks, including down Hurst Spit and around the Keyhaven nature reserve. 

When the sun has been hot and the tide good, we have been messing about on the river with boats from St. Deny's Boat Club.

 

March looks set to start with a good old fashioned storm. How it will turn out after that, only time will tell, but I hope the prevailing wind stays Southwesterly.

Get Outdoors

Well, the clocks have gone back, we have had our first frost, Halloween is upon us and the kids have been getting creative with pumpkins.

It has been half term and we have not rested on our laurels - We started off with a walk from Woodhenge to Stonehenge, which was a beautiful and peaceful way to approach the awesome world heritage monument. The whole place is a great deal improved since the car park and road were removed.

Another day we visited Brownsea Island in Poole harbour, something we had not done before but will definitely do again. We walked around the island and the red squirrels were superb;  we literally had to drag the kids away when it was time for the last boat home.

Later in the week, we had yet more apples to press into juice. Fortunately the weather was with us and we got busy in the garden.

My daughter and I had harvested 110 Kgs from a friend's trees, the Sunday before and we  managed to fill about 40 more bottles with the golden nectar to store for use throughout the year.

Finally, we capped off the weeks exertions with a trip from Studland Bay to Old Harry rocks, by kayak, with St Deny's Sailing and Rowing Club (a very fine institution). It was a bit windy and quite a long journey but it was exhilarating.

I probably need a bit of a rest now but with kids about, I doubt I will get one any time soon!
Don't forget to put the Urbane Forager book on your Xmas present lists!

Bite Sized Beauties

My son reminded me that we had not yet visited the Mayor's Pear tree on Peartree Green this year. So we zipped on up there and, sure enough, the small tree was loaded with ripe fruit.

These are some form of Asian Pear, we love them and visit each year. We reached up and picked ourselves a bag full of these bite sized, pendulous treats.

My children call them "Snack Pears" - to small to be practical for cooking but  sweet, crunchy and juicy. Last year we harvested several kilos and I made a gallon of delicious perry.

The house is now well stocked, with enough to last us through half term. Although, we may pop back to re-stock before the season is over, if our supplies are consumed too quickly.

Don't forget to put the Urbane Forager book on your Xmas present lists!

Walnuts & Wooden Rain

Who can identify all of the tasty-looking Autumnal treats on the above tray? This is a selection of the items that I took along for my recent talk to the Highfield Women's Institute and, between them, they were able to identify all.

We have been focusing on gathering Walnuts recently, the green hulls have been splitting open and ejecting the nuts, like a delightful wooden rain. The children and I cycle about the neighbourhood harvesting them.

We can gather a surprising amount and add them to our bursting hazelnut hoard. The nuts will keep for a good few months if kept well ventilated and dry and we make all kinds of delicious things from them throughout the Winter/Spring months.

I have also recently gathered my first Chestnuts of the year, from an early shedding tree, near where I work. It is not really time for them to fall yet but seasonal variations are always to be expected.

My Cider has begun fermenting, it seems to be getting pretty over-enthusiastic and erupting through the bubblers in curious volcanic-looking sculptures in the kitchen.

Don't forget to put the Urbane Forager book on your Xmas present lists!

Foraging Book New Kindle Version

We picked a massive amount of delicious Raspberries, Redcurrants, Blackcurrants and Tayberries from our allotment. The rustic fruit-cage doing its level best to prevent the birds snaffling our soft fruit.

We made Raspberry milkshakes and I also predict a seasonal super fruit favourite, Summer Pudding.

Meanwhile, on the foraging front, Cherries are ripening on the trees and the early trees are already fit for picking. Plums are getting very close too and we will arrange a Plum Picknik very soon, so keep a keen eye on this blog.

We are also delighted to announce that our lovely book, the Urbane Forager: Fruit and Nuts for Free, is now also available on Kindle at the very favourable price of just £4.99.

The more traditional paperback version is still available from all good bookstores (probably some bad ones too), as well as all the normal online outlets.

I also have a couple of spiral bound and laminated field-guide versions, please contact me personally if you would prefer one of these.

This lovely book is packed full of beautiful photographs, seasonal information, recipes, identification sheets, and good advice on how to find, harvest and prepare fresh, free, fruit and nuts. Order your copy now and get ready for the first flush of fresh free fruit of the year!

Beltain and a Blossom Walk

It looks like the Summer is finally getting a grip here in the south UK and everyone should soon be making Elderflower Cordial. I prefer Elderflower Champagne but you need to take a few elementary precautions.

I believe the warm weather may have been encouraged as a result of the recent Beltain celebrations at Butser Ancient Farm. Beltain is an ancient tradition to bring on the summer, to celebrate the drawing back of the night and lengthening of the days.

We often visit this wonderful place for this extraordinary event; there is always lots of interesting things to explore and do. The evening always culminates with the very dramatic burning of the colossal Wickerman.

This year  the 10m hight shape-shifting Wickerman took the form of a human body, with the head of a badger, and antlers sprouting out from behind its ears. You can write down your wishes on paper scraps and stuff them into his legs, to be burned and sent into the night sky as red hot sparks later in the evening.

It was a chilly day and we were prepared for rain (though it never came), you can always hide in a round house and sit by an open fire listening to stories, if you get too cold. My daughter and I kept warm by walking about all the various activities, drinking hot cocoa and by dancing to a band playing sea shanties.

Toward the end of the evening, as darkness fell, everyone was entranced by a team of rhythmic drummers marching out toward our towering statuesque bonfire, which was lit by a lucky young lad with a flaming torch.

While the flames licked ever upwards and our wishes joined the stars glimmering in the darkness, there was a constant chorus of ooh!s,  ah!s and cheers to supplement the drummers, who had now retreated to a safer distance, as various parts joined the conflagration or exploded after crashing to the ground.

Finally, we tramped back over the fields, tired and weary but still awed by a night of wonder, our path lit by the flaming torches we carried.

There will be a Blossom Walk on Saturday May 14th at the Mansbridge Community Orchard. We will meet at 04:00pm on the old stone bridge over the Itchen, regardless of the weather. The bridge is at the end of the Pitch and Putt course and near the White Swan pub/restaurant on the A27. 
The walk is free and volunteer led but you will be traversing rough ground and fields, so dress appropriately and everyone is responsible for their own health and safety.
If anyone wants to buy copies of my lovely book, let me know in advance and they will be available for the totally fantastic price of just £10.00.

Radioactive Spiders Not Required

Green Walnuts

A friend of mine recently enquired as to how I had secretly become an expert on fruit trees. He was not the first person to ask me this question, but the truth is, it does not take much time to learn the basics of tree identification. We already supply free, downloadable seasonal id pdfs on our blog and these sheets are also in the Urbane Forager book.

Anyone can learn to recognise a few tree species; you have to spend a while acquiring your skill but think of the benefits. It will be fun, satisfying and you could save a lot of money. You will spend more time outdoors and do more exercise, which is good for both your physical and mental health. Honing a new ability can be like obtaining a super power (only you don’t need to be bitten by a radioactive spider). 

The key to the Urbane Forager method hinges upon a few simple specific ideas.

Focus: We only bother to identify fruit and nut trees, those that will supply us with produce later in the year. This way, children (and adults) can be safely engaged and we do not have to worry about poisonous plants. You can see the main types of trees we pay attention to by looking at the id sheets page. Through time we have learned to spot other trees too, like Mulberries and Medlars.

Plum Blossom

Seeing: You have to actually see, not just look. It’s not difficult, but you do have to make a conscious decision to notice and log the things that other people choose to overlook. Observation is the fundamental weapon in any forager’s arsenal. The trees are ubiquitous, you just haven’t noticed them before.

Plums

Recording: Part of noticing things is remembering the locations, so write it down. We always use the Falling Fruit free access map, but a hand-drawn paper map is just as good. This way we can easily remember to go back and check the places that we might otherwise have forgotten.

Frequency: You need to be constantly moving, exploring, covering ground, walking or cycling around your area. We do spot trees when we go out on specific walks, but the majority I notice on my way to and from work or during my lunch time trips. 

Plum Blossom

I am a compulsive walker and get out of the office in all but the very worst conditions. I see the same things frequently and over time this helps me to tune into seasonal changes. You will not notice anything sat on the sofa watching TV.

Plums

Seasons: You need to observe the trees throughout the year. Spring is always a good place to start and it's coming soon. The different tree species come into boom in sequence, which is very handy. However, it’s no use noticing tree blossom during the Spring if you don’t know when it will produce delicious ripe fruit. Watching various species as they flower and fruit will reinforce your knowledge. Harvesting the bounty yourself on a sunny Summer’s day will really hammer that message home.

Of course, once you have made use of your new super power, you may well need to cultivate a few more skills. Depending on how much you pick, you might need to find an expert to help you store, bake, preserve, pickle, juice, freeze, or ferment your harvest. Alternatively, you could learn how to do this for yourself and that will be a whole lot more fun.

Blossom Sequence Mnemonic Competition

Now, there's a post title I didn't imagine ever writing, but you will be pleased to hear that there is a good reason for it. When Spring arrives, we always use blossom in the trees to help us easily locate and identify fruit trees. We then check back later to look for signs of maturing fruit.

To help remember the sequence that fruit trees bloom in we designed an acronym PBCAP (Plum, Blackthorn, Cherry, Apple, and Pear) Plum normally flowers around March (I have seen Plum blossom in January this year), the others follow in quick succession. The fruit of the Blackthorn is the Sloe so the B could be replaced with an S.

We remember this by using a mnemonic Perceived Blossom Calculates Abundant Produce but this is unwieldy. If you can think of a better one, send it in or write your comments below, the composer of the best will be duly announced and the lucky winner will receive a free copy of our beautiful book, the Urbane Forager: Fruit and Nuts for Free.

As a footnote I will remind readers that a mnemonic does not need to have anything to do with the subject matter, it only needs to be memorable. Richard Of York Fought Battle In Vain is a popular example for recalling colours of the rainbow or Naughty Elephants Spray Water for children learning the compass. So we could have Panthers Black Creep And Pounce or whatever