Signs of Spring

As I ride my bike to work, through the February weather every day, I notice changes, over time, in the roadside foliage. I think about what might be growing there in a few months and I make a mental note to check back on my prospects in the Summer.

Winter & Spring is always a lean time for foragers, especially those of the Urbane persuasion. So to entertain myself during the cold dark periods I like to test out my home made drinks and preserves to see how they are maturing. I was delighted with my Ransom Capers. 

My Elderberry Wine seems effective at staving off the colds, the Walnuts and Hazelnuts are great for baking or simply nibbling, the Cider and Apple juice is still lovely, and the Grape wine has matured into a perfectly tolerable rose. 

So, to keep you amused during the Winter/Spring months, Dear Reader, here is a fun quiz, to get you thinking about the hedgerows in your own area...

1. Identify the tree & flower images on this page. 
2. Work out if they will deliver anything edible. 
3. Work out the time of year that you would harvest and produce.
4. Plan what you could make from the available bounty.

Yuletide Traditions

Another Yuletide is looming fast and the stormy weather has been perfectly suitable. We have been busy with all the normal preparations and arrangements. We cut our own Christmas tree from a local quagmire (nursery) and this has been a fun, and inevitably muddy, tradition in our family for years. Then we spent about 2 days in the loft hunting for the lights, which were actually buried, deep in my son's bedroom.

Venus has been shining brightly in the East each morning. I'm far from superstitious, but I'm sure that this will be bringing love into our homes. Although, just in case, we did also pop out and harvest a big carrier bagful of mistletoe, to hang around the house. This also always makes a welcome gift to friend and neighbours.

I have also been siphoning & bottling this season's cider, and I'm pleased to report that it is tasting mighty fine already, and will only improve with time.  We are looking forward to adding some spices and mulling several bottles, to take to parties.

We also have 2 gallons of fine rose wine to bottle, this is the produce of our grape growing escapades this year. Obviously, this needs more time to mature but all the signs are good and I have high hopes for it being drinkable!

Winter and the Hope of Spring

Winter is always a lean time for foragers and this Winter has been an especially wet and stormy one here in the UK. I seems as if it has not stopped raining for the last 6 months! Obviously, this is not actually true but it has been unusually damp for a long time and many rivers are swollen.

However, a wise person once said, "There's no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing!" We have still been out and about in the landscape, enjoying the weather regardless of what it chucks at us.

We visited Stonehenge for the Winter Solstice, which was fascinating particularly as this is one of the only times when the public are allowed in amongst the stones, which are normally fenced off. The clear advantage of the Winter Solstice over the Summer Solstice is that you don't have to get up quite so early because sunrise is around 8:00. Although it still proved difficult to arrive on time - despite leaving home at 6:00 - because parking is very limited and all the surrounding roads are designated tow away zones. However, after some improvisation, fence climbing and nocturnal navigating, we did reach the stones just in time.

We visited a storm-swept, yet somehow beautifully peaceful Devon in late December. We spent our time exploring the breathtaking beaches in wellies and waterproofs, and watching the waves smashing into the shoreline and breaching the breakwaters.

The New Forest is a short distance from our city, Southampton, and, while we love to find new places to visit and wander, there are a few favourite places that we frequently find ourselves walking through with friends. the whole of the forest is like one giant boggy mire at the moment, so suitable clothing and footwear is essential. Often we find ourselves delicately picking our way from tussock to tuft, trying to avoid sinking from sight like some poor character from the Hound of the Baskerville's. I would not be surprised to discover that some of the tales written by Conan Doyle, who is buried nearby in Minstead, were inspired by the seriously muddy New Forest environment.

Now the crocuses are out, shining like jewels amongst the mud and frost, Ransoms & wild Garlic is beginning to show itself and the daffodils, forcing their way out of the soaking ground will soon be trumpeting in the green shoots of Springtime.

Something Brewing in the Heart of Southampton

As I trudge, begrudgingly up my garden path like some Antarctic explorer, the grass crunches under foot and the crisp cold seeps deep into my toes. The shed that contains my locked bike looms out of the pale moonlight.

Cycling to work, my face is frozen and my fingers are feeling like frostbite but the sky is now turning a thin grey-blue and distant vapour trails trace a pinkish web over the firmament. Shortly, the garish orange glow in the East becomes the sunrise over Segensworth. 

The frost still lies thick on the ground but above the cold car parks and grim and grimy buildings of the industrial estate, the morning sky now burns a brilliant azure; it’s going to be a cracking day.

The fragile beauty of Winter still holds the hope of Spring within its vice tight grip, singing in the wind, vibrating in the sharp shards of ice and even seeping through the weeping rain and snow. It’s all too easy to wish for shorts and the sizzle of a Mid-Summer sun but the wheel of the year turns steadily and we must first start our search for signs of change.

Speaking of seasons, I am delighted to announce an exciting new collaboration between the Urbane Forager and Southampton based beer behemoth Unity brewing Co. Head brewer Jimmy Hatherley wants to create a sophisticated new range of seasonal Wild beers and the Urbane Forager is a perfect fit as a partner for this project.

I popped down with some friends, to meet Jimmy in his taproom and supped some of his awesome ales. We also sampled some of my own 2016 Elder-flower Champagne and Cider; by the end of the evening I would have agreed to almost anything. However, seasonal foraging is my strongest suit. So, we shall soon see what fresh flavours we can bring to the Unity taproom table. 

In the meantime, I definitely recommend visiting Unity brewing if you are in the area, or buying their merchandise from a Southampton pub/off-licence.

Pre-Peared for Winter

As any busy parent will testify, you cannot always find the time to do the things you enjoy, even at the weekend. However, after a big storm, my son's midday football match was cancelled due to pitch flooding and his bedroom had only just been re-plastered, so we could not paint that. So, we decided to get out for a short wet, chilly walk in the New Forest.

I was on the lookout for Sloes, which seem to be in short supply this year but we ended up yomping about in boggy heath-land. So I simply enjoyed photographing the astonishing pallet of colour and texture present in the  sodden landscape.

We also managed to get up to our allotment, which has been a little neglected recently. My son planted his own Apple pip in a pot about 7 years ago. This seed germinated, grew steadily from a tiny twig into a small stick and then, in 2013 we finally transferred it to our allotment, where it continued to develop, until it out grew my own 6' height. 

A Brilliant Bowl Barrow

Every time an Apple pip is planted and allowed to grow into a tree, it creates a completely novel variety, with a unique fruit. This Spring we were delighted when it flowered for the first time and, when it finally bore fruit, it was crisp and sweet. There was only a few apples but what a great reward for his enduring patience.

On our return home we were treated to a roast dinner followed by Pear Tart Tatin, freshly baked from our stash of delicious Pears, which do need consuming.

Earlier in the week I had utilised a load more by knocking up a double batch of Pear and Walnut chutney in readiness for those cold Winter nights. It took ages to reduce and the house smelled of vinegar for a while but I'm sure it will be worth it.

Ice and Ancient Royalty

It had been raining hard, now it was freezing cold and the wind was howling, but a wise person once said that “there’s no such thing as Bad Weather, only inappropriate clothing!” With this in mind we layered up our clothing, got out our boots, waterproof jackets and trousers, located our hats and gloves and zipped out to the rain soaked bog that used to be the New Forest.

I always have a look at an Ordinance Survey map before we go for a walk. I normally try to find places along the route with quirky names, to amuse the children. My daughter once commented that I always take them to places named after the Devil, Hell or other gruesome things.* This is largely true but it’s not because I worship the Devil (I don’t).

On this little trip I  managed to find Deadman’s Hill, Claypits Bottom, Burnt Balls and the Butts (which did indeed made the kids laugh). I wanted to explore Studely Castle, the site of a royal hunting lodge. There are quite a few sites like this in the New Forest and they always seem to be in good locations - fit for a king, I guess. We did find the remains of the embankments and it commanded a great view. The children were duly pleased to know that kings had once tramped through the same sodden swamp that we had.

Once we got out of the woods the kids delighted in finding large sheets of ice, picking them out of puddles, then hurling them headlong to shatter, sending shimmering shards of ice, skittering across frozen water. Very entertaining! Their waterproof gloves were being sorely tested but it kept everyone happy and motivated to move on in the hunt for ice.

We only went as far as the Butts (a tumulus actually) before we felt the need for food and warmth, and started to think about heading home. Around here we found a nice frozen pond, which looked perilously dark and bottomless. We had to restrain the children from wading in too deep but it made a good full-stop for final ice smashing activities, before turning back along the boggy quagmire that was our path.

*As I explained to my daughter, this is due to the old Christian habit of renaming ancient pre-christian places of burial, worship or habitation as wicked or evil. Knowlton Henge is a classic example. Many churches were built on top of, or on the site of prehistoric antiquities, in an attempt to usurp the existing religious association. Twyford Church near Shawford was apparently built on top of a Stone Circle - and a Sarsen stone can still be found in the lane that leads up to it.  The Hell Stone is a Neolithic burial chamber and the Devil’s Coits is another Stone Circle.

February Feelings

Winter is always a lean time for foragers, especially if (like me) their specialism lies in fruit and nuts. February can seem like the harshest month but the plants show the truth is otherwise. Even though there have not been a huge amount of new posts during the cold season, it does not mean that I have not been busy…

What does that strange aura around the moon mean?

In fact I have been busier than normal editing and proofing my latest book. This exciting new volume will be based on the Urbane Forager project and is currently with a designer, so the first editions will not be too far away now. Don’t worry dear readers; you will be the first to know when and where it will be available.

Ahh!

I have also been busy packing up my work office (yes, I have a day job too). The company is moving, which for me is a shame. I have always cycled most days from Southampton, where we live, to Hedge End, for work, but now the office is moving to Segensworth (Fareham), which is twice as far to pedal, so I will need to carefully consider my travel options.

During my time in Hedge End the Urbane Forager project took shape and became popular. My endless lunchtime walks brought me into close contact with the trees and I began to recognise the blossom and then the fruit. From there the whole thing grew organically and I identified a great abundance of fruit trees in the area.

I will also miss the cycle ride, my Winter morning and evening rides are brightened by the drifts of snowdrops and crocuses that I spy in the roadsides. 

I always hear a nightingale in West End thicket as I take a short cut to the A27, and I even saw it once. Not that these are glamorous birds at all but it is rare to actually see one.

I will have start to walking around the Segensworth industrial estates now, and begin to map fruit and nut trees across a whole new area.

Summer Summary

Hazelnuts are now starting to fall, so make like squirrels and get collecting. They come in many different shapes and sizes and only trial will tell which nuts hold the biggest kernels. I have my favourite trees but these nutritious little beauties are very common in hedges and woodland all over the UK.

Hazelnuts will keep very well in a dry place. So, if you don’t cook or eat all of them straight away, you can save some until Christmas. They will keep a lot longer than that too; I recently finished cracking my supply from last year, to make space for this year’s crop!

Apples and Pears are still ripening on the trees and they will soon be ready to pick. I have been scoping out my favourite local trees to see how well they are doing. When fruit trees supply a heavy crop one year, they tend to have a bit of a rest the following year, so it’s well worth checking before you make any plans.

In due course, we will be organising an Apple Day at Mansbridge Community Orchard. This fun annual event is likely to be held in early October.

Other things to be thinking about at this time of year include Elderberries, Sloes and Medlars, all of which are plentiful and can be converted in to an array of delightful and delicious hedgerow treats.

Blackberries and Mulberries are still very abundant at the moment and you can always freeze any that you or your children do not greedily gobble up.

Crab Apples can be processed into a great many different preserves and drinks and there are loads available for free at the moment.

As Autumn begins, It’s always worth keeping an eye on the Sweet Chestnuts. It’s far too early to collect them yet, but it’s always good to bear these magnificent trees in mind.

Frosty days might seem a long way off at the moment, but the seasons still turn and keen observation of change is a key weapon in the forager's arsenal.

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