Everything's Gone Green

Plum

The observant amongst you will have noticed that the countryside and even the city parks and roadsides are changing colour. The Plum blossom is floating like fluffy white clouds along the hedgerows; there's plenty of it and it looks like it will be a very good year for plums. 

Plum

So, if anyone has a good proposition for what we can use the bucket loads of fruit that we will get, come July, we want to hear about it please.

Plum

Blackthorn is also beginning to bloom too and these flowers are similar to the plum, the fruits (Sloes) are also related, although you might not want to eat Sloes straight off the tree! It looks as if it will be a good year for Sloes too, judging by the scale of the current bloom (provided the weather is not too stromy).

Blackthorn

People have often asked me to differentiate these two blossoms and so I am posting lots of images here to help you distinguish one from the other.

Blackthorn

The most obvious thing to spot is that the Blackthorn has large black thorns all along the branches. If at first you do not notice these, you soon will, if you put your hand in amongst the flowers.

Blackthorn

The Blackthorn has smaller, clumped flowers fizzing along the branches; it tends to be a smaller tree, often looking more like a bush. Whereas the Plum will grow into a medium sized tree.

Small Plum Tree

I say Cherry Plum but the blossom will be very similar on trees that will grow Mirrabells, Greengage, Damson, Bullace as well as plain Plums.

Big Plum Tree

Hawthorn is also adding a green tinge to the woodland fringes at the moment. The fruit and leaves of this tree are also largely edible, if you ever feel slightly peckish on a wander.

Hawthorn, just as prickly as Blackthorn

The next thing to keep your eyes peeled for will be Ransoms, Wild Garlic Bluebells & Cherry blossom. Personally, I will be looking forward to the launch of Printemps, the Unity Brewing Co. Spring seasonal beer, created in collaboration with the Urbane Forager Project using locally foraged Stinging Nettle tips.

Eclipsing the Equinox

There might not be much to harvest from the hedgerows at this time of year but there is still plenty to get excited about.

The weekend of the 21^st 22^nd is when the Vernal (Spring) Equinox occurs. This is the first time of the year when the days and nights are of equal length; the second time is the Autumnal Equinox. The Vernal Equinox is also the time of year in the UK when the clocks get moved forward, so we loose and hour of sleep, which I could do without personally.

More excitingly, this week on Friday morning 20^th March in the UK we will experience a partial solar eclipse, (almost total sounds more fun). In Southampton (where we live) this will occur at about 09:28 with about 83% of the sun covered. Do not try to use sunglasses or anything else; looking at the sun, even during an eclipse is very dangerous and can damage your eyes. The simple and safe way to watch the process is to make a pin-hole camera, or use a small mirror to cast the image onto a plain wall. You can download the Royal Astronomical Society leaflet here.

You will need your eyes to be working at their best during the coming months to spot all the beautiful blossom that is bursting out all over the trees in Spring. This bloom will hopefully be the precursor to vast amounts of free fresh fruit, which you will then be able to access and eat. If you can’t eat it all at once you can transform it into pies,cakes, puddings, jams, cordials, chutney or anything else that comes to mind.

You should also be adding the trees locations onto the FallingFruit map, this way you and other people will be able to locate them more easily in future years.

The Urbane Forager Book Update…

Swift progress is being made during the Spring on the Urbane Forager book and we are now in the final stages of the design work.

If you want to receive updates on the progress of this project, please notify me via the contact pages here or on our community website. Then we can invite you to the book release party and you can be among the first to own a signed copy.

Mansbridge Community Orchard Update

Thanks to backing from Southampton Airport Community Fund, we have been able to buy new tools and equipment for use in the Mansbridge Community Orchard. We may also need to get some professional training.

We have purchased pruning equipment; loppers, saws etc as well as picking tools. Renovating a neglected orchard, with many mature trees, will be a lengthy and on-going commitment. It will take several years to get the main trees into a decent state and longer still to sort out the less accessible areas.

In the Autumn, the real fun begins. We will begin to reap the rewards of the project; we will need to buy more fruit picking and collecting gear to help us gather the apples. We also aim to purchase processing kit, like a nice big fruit crusher and a lager cider press.

The Orchard is beginning to flower now and we must organise another Blossom Walk (provided these gales don't blow it all away). Last year we had perfect weather for the walk and had a great turn out. It is the ideal way to get to know the orchard and to familiarise the locations of all the various trees. It is much easier to recognise the fruit trees, when they are covered in bloom. It will also be a good opportunity to recruit more volunteers who want to help manage and get involved with all the other activities in the orchard.

Blossom, Beltain and A Beautiful Game

Using up the last remaining apples in our store, the Head Chef knocked us up a lovely apple tart on Friday night. This set me to thinking that we should have a quick check to see how the new season’s fruit crop was progressing down at Mansbridge.

After watching the Saints go marching out of the Championship and into the Premier League, my son and I took advantage of a timely break in the relentless April storms.

The boy chose to go by scooter and this meant that I had to jog along with him, which gave me a good run about before the inevitable night of celebration.

On our way along the Itchen we paused briefly to have a chat with a family of friendly geese and three tiny fluffy goslings.

The Community Orchard does look delightful at this time of year.

Most of the fruit trees are coming into bloom now and are covered in the delicate white and pink flowers.

The blossom among the bright green young leaves is a splendid, heart lifting sight. I suggest people make time to get down there and appreciate the beauty this weekend.

As it was, the tree flowers stood out like stars against the slate grey sky; I think they will look better still when the sun eventually breaks through and we finally get the sunshine that we all crave.

Tracks of Deer Dog and Human

Maybe Mr. Blue Sky will visit us for the bank holiday weekend; we have fayres to visit and don’t want to our ardour dampened as we dance around the Maypole.

I know the rain is required but we all could do with a little respite from this wettest of droughts and I hope the Beltain bonfires will burn bright enough to bring on the Summer.



Up the Apple & Pears

A Lovely Big hedgerow Apple Tree

Now is the easiest time to spot fruit trees in the hedgerows and parks and common land, even if you do not have much knowledge of tree types. This weekend we stopped under a small but florid crab apple tree to shelter from the April rain (this is certainly the wettest drought I’ve ever seen). The prolific buzzing of bees in the canopy made a welcome change from the constant background drone of traffic.

A Great Spot For A Picnic; by a Canal, with Free Fruit and Walnuts

Apple and pear trees are coming into bloom and the blossom will be abundant, which is why, like, Cherries, they are sometimes planted as ornamental trees.

Apple

Many countries celebrate the flowering of fruit trees in Spring. It is a time of rejuvenation and transformation.

Pear

So, when you next spot a tree covered in flowers, take time to look a little closer and see if you can identify what fruit it will bear.

Apple

Structurally, apple and pear trees can look similar although pears tend to be taller and more upright in their growth. Apple trees often show signs of previous pruning but if they have been neglected they can get very gnarled and busy.

Apple

The flowers of pear trees do look similar and both trees begin to grow leaves before flowers but the buds of apple blossom are often tinged with pink; whereas pears are likely to be pure white

The easiest way to determine apple from pear, before the fruit is visible, is by examining the leaves. Pear leaves are more pointed in shape and have a more sharply serrated edge. Apple leaves have more gentle serrations around the edges and a more rounded appearance.

Pear

Of course there are many diverse varieties within any type of fruit tree, so differences will always need to be accounted for. The Urbane Forager’s free Seasonal id Sheets are still available for download to your computer and printing off for convenience…

Pretty as a Picture





Spring is officially here now, the dafodills are out and I've just started on my second barrel of cider. It’s time to get the cameras out... I always like to hear from people who like the pictures used in the Urbane Forager blog. I enjoy taking photographs and often have my camera when we go out on our little adventures; taking lots of shots helps me to build the story.



Shadow of a Cherry Tee on Blinds at Work



I’m no expert, nor do I have special equipment, just a point & shoot camera. I did make sure that I got a robust one, one that can be dropped, dunked, taken to the beach and used by children.

A Fish With Reflected Clouds

The main reason I take nice photos though, is that I’m always looking. I have heard it said that art is really the Act of Looking.

When you look close, you can notice something tiny. When you stand back you may notice something large or distant. It can be about silhouettes, shadows, objects or contrast and colour.

If you don’t take time to look you will certainly never see and even then, you need to be bothered to stop for a minute, get the camera out and take the picture.

Birds on Branches

I think that walking and cycling helps me too, I tend to notice more when I am outside and moving more slowly.

I recently observed the first signs of cherry blossom peeping through. Soon the white haze of plum and blackthorn will be replaced with the rosy/snowy antennae of the cherry trees – they are native to the UK and will be spotted by woodland and along many roadsides. Record the locations and come back later to check for young fruit.

Shortly after the cherry, apple and pear trees will begin to flower, so this will be the best time (apart from autumn) for a wander through the Mansbridge Community Orchard.



Unseasonably Late Snowdrops



Blooming Blossom



Beautiful Hedgerow Blossom



Spring is in the air at last, and it looks like it might be early this year. Daffodils are showing their bright yellow faces by the roadsides and you will begin to notice the hedgerows filling up with the beautiful, snowy haze of blossom.



Plum Blossom Heralds in the Springtime

This busy bloom is the flowers of the blackthorn (sloe is the fruit) and plum trees. It can be difficult to tell the two apart at first (they both belong to the same family) but the blackthorn has long sharp thorns on the branches and trunks, so the clue is in the name.

To Distinguish between Plum and Blackthorn - Press Your Thumb On These...

As the early flowers open, the trees are also filled with plump buds and soon all of these proto-flowers will burst forth in their full glory, smothering the trees in a haze of effervescent beauty.

This blossom is not just a thing to marvel at and wonder over. It is also a chance to register where delicious fruit may be growing later on.

At this early stage you will not be able to discern which variety of fruit (if any) will later appear; it could be damson, mirabelle, bullace, cherry plum, greengage or normal plums.

Like a Chinese Painting

Cherry plums make a sweet, firm afternoon snack; I often pick some during my lunchtime wanders and stash them in my lunchbox to munch on later.

Plum Blossom Normally Has Five Petals

The elusive greengage is quite simply delicious; they burst in your mouth like soft, delicate nectar-filled purses. There is a stone in there too mind you, so it’s best not to get too carried away.

If you are lucky you may even find a Victoria plum tree (the head Chef’s favourite) – We found one last year with big, fat beauties on it. It was in a Chandlers Ford car park and most likely a remnant left over from an old orchard or fruit garden.

A Blooming Wave

In the end though, it’s not the technical name of individual fruits that matters, it’s the fact that they taste delicious straight off the tree, freeze easily, cook well, make great wine and cost absolutely nothing.

Hedges Change Colour

There is always a positive glut of plums available every year. So, you should never need to buy them from the supermarket when they are in season next June/July.

Buds Bursting To Open

Free cherries follow soon after the plums.