A Quick Quiz

I have decided to post a little quiz, to help keep all you readers tuned in, until the Elderflower arrives with the start of Summer.

A keen sense of observation is the main weapon in the foragers arsenal; so here are a couple of questions for anyone hungry for esoteric knowledge and hoping to find a good spot for future fruitfulness...

Take a good, long, careful look at the following two photos, does this look like a good spot for foraging?

Photo 1

 Is there anything here that might indicate forthcoming fruitfulness?

Photo 2

If you have looked and are still not sure what to search for, here's a clue... It's not always the foliage that tells the truth of the tale.

Spoiler Alert!

Look below for the answer...

Last year, in the moth of July, this pathway was over hung by a huge amount of delicious, multi coloured plums. 

There was such an abundance of fruit that one branch was bent so far that it eventually snapped under the weight, You can still see the sawn off branch, but this was not the answer to the question or the clue...

Many of these juicy fruits fell onto the pavement, where they were crushed by passers by, nobody cleared away the squashed fruit. 

The acidic fruit juice leaked all over the pathway and, over time, the surface of the tarmac has become bleached as a result of this continuous seasonal exposure. Now have a look back at the first two photographs and the markings will seem obvious.

Cherry Plums

As I cycled to work the other day, I spotted a load of squashed plums, fallen on the foot path. The tree overhead was hanging down heavily laden with hundreds of delicious looking small (Cherry) Plums.

Closer inspection revealed that there was actually about four different trees, each sporting different colour Plums and each at a different stage of ripeness.

When fully ripe, plums will drop, obligingly, into the waiting palm of your hand at the slightest of tugs. If they are stubborn to remove, they will taste more tart, which is OK for cooking but they will ripen quickly on the branch.

I quickly stuffed a couple of ripe ones in my mouth as I zoomed past, they burst with a delicate juicy flavour; it had rained heavily the night before, so although small - they were fully plumped.

I returned on foot during my lunch hour and scoffed several more of these juicy beauties. I filled a bag to take home to the family and now return each day to grab a few more to see me through the day. The yellow ones have become house favourites and my daughter tells me, proudly, that she ate 23 of them yesterday!

Meanwhile, in other fruit and nut based news...

• Ripe Blackberries have been spotted in the hedgrows, so it is probably time to get a little gang together and start rummaging around on the commons and parks armed with suitable containers.
• Hazlenuts will soon be ready for picking too. The squirrels have been nibbling at the green ones already and by the end of the summer holidays they will be dropping of their own accord.

It is going to be a bumper year, no doubt about it. So be prepared, check out the falling fruit map (don't forget to add your own discoveries) get outside and get picking!

Elderflowers

It's that time of the year again. As Spring seamlessly segues into Summer, the Elder trees are brightening the hedges with their jaunty ivory white floral clouds. At the Urbane Forager project Elderflowers are the first thing we pick in the year. Elder is followed closely by Cherries and then Plums.

We use these citrusy blooms to produce thirst quenching cordial, a perennial favourite with the children and effervescent Champagne which definitely excites the adult pallet.

Both recipes are simple, as long as you pay sufficient attention to two important points.

• Firstly, the blooms of the Elder smell of bright summer sun in the morning but tend to smell a bit like cat's wee in the evening, so pick them in the morning and process them while still fresh!
• Secondly, when making fizzy drinks, always use pressure safe bottles! Sparking wine is safely surrounded by 1 Kilogram of glass for a very good reason. We save and sterilize Cava bottles from Christmas and birthday celebrations. We then buy fresh corks and cages to secure our own brew, even then I have to keep a close eye on the proceedings to prevent pressure-washing the kitchen with a Champagne fountain.
  

Elderflower Cordial - an easy to make summer classic.

• 3 lemons, sliced 
• 10 Elderflower heads 
• 500g sugar 
• 3L water 
• 1 Large bowl or saucepan
• Filter paper or muslin 

1. Put the sugar in the container and pour over a pint of boiling water. Stir until all the sugar has dissolved. 
2. Then add the remaining 2 litres of cold water and a leave until cold. 
3. Add the sliced lemons, giving each a good squeeze and then add the elderflower heads. 
4. Leave for 24 hours, stirring occasionally.
5. Pour through the muslin or filter paper into bottles.

Refrigerated it will keep for a few weeks. Frozen (in plastic bottles) it will last a lot longer.

Delicious Elderflower Champagne (English Fizz for pedants)

• 2 lemons, sliced
• 7 Large Elderflower heads
• 500g sugar
• 6L water
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 Large container
• Filter paper or muslin (I use a sieve and jelly bag)

1. First fully dissolve the sugar in a pint of boiling water. 
2. Then pour the solution into your container and add 5 litres of cold water, followed by the lemon slices (squeezed as you go), Elderflower heads and vinegar.
3. Cover the mixture and leave for 48 hours, stirring occasionally. 
4. When ready, filter the mixture (I used a sieve, jelly bag & funnel) into strong bottles (plastic or glass, but able to withstand high pressure), close firmly, and leave.
5. It is a good idea to release some of the air occasionally to prevent explosions. 

The champagne will be ready in about two weeks. It is alleged to improve with time, but nobody has managed to leave it that long yet...

It's totally delicious!

Apples Hazelnuts, Plump Plums and Butterflies

It was lunchtime, so I thought I’d go for a leisurely jog about the area to see how the apples and Hazelnuts were ripening up.

It didn’t take long before I saw the tell-tale clue of squirrel snacking; they had been nibbling away at the green hazelnuts, while the shells were still soft.

I also picked up a few brown shelled nuts, a sure sign that fresh ripe nuts are only a week or so away and we still have some left from our last year’s mammoth horde.

When I reached the apple trees, some looked a little battered by the wettest Summer on record for 100 years. Last night was also the coldest August night on record; not ideal conditions for fruit.

although some trees have not fared well, other apples looked quite fine and a few were already dropping the odd windfall fruit.

I continued further along my route and discovered a couple of yellow/orange plum trees by the roadside and then turned into some woodland.

In the dappled shade my eye was caught by a pair of playful butterflies. I tracked their fluttering forms, hoping to catch a nice photo and when the alighted on a small tree I seized the opportunity to get closer.

It was only as I closed, stealthily, on my intended prey that I realised that they had settled on a plum tree.

They had come to have a quick snack of fresh plum juice. The plums were gigantic and succulent, so I thought that I might as well have a couple too, while I was there…

Purple Plums

Many people have commented on the rainbow of colours, shapes and sizes of the different plums that we have been picking this year.

So we thought it would be nice to show that it is also possible to collect some nice fat purple plums; just like the type that you might expect to buy in your local green-grocer or supermarket.

Unfortunately, when we located these ones, we were not fully prepared. Although improvisation can be less effective, it is often much more fun.

Regardless of any equipment deficit, we came away with enough juicy, ripe, bloomy plums to keep us going for a couple of days.

Plum Picknik & Arthouse Talk

We are organising a foraging Cherry-Plum/Mirabelle Picknik in association with the Transition Network. We plan this for Avenue Park in Stoneham. Anyone who joins us can take in a simultaneous visit to the lovely First World War shrine in the park.

Yummy, Cherry Plums

This event is suitable for families or adults. The lovely plums here are plentiful, they taste great straight off the tree. The fruit is edible straight of the tree and would be great for jam, chutney, pies, wine etc.

Bring a suitable container if you want to take some fruit home with you.

This event will go ahead regardless of the weather ;-) Showers look likely so dress appropriately, bring a brolly or just come to see where the trees are and then come back during the sunny weekend.

Event Venue:   We will meet in the Cricket pitch car park, opposite the Cricketers pub, Chestnut Avenue, Eastleigh.

Date: Friday 20^th July (the last day of school for many children)

Time: 6.00 pm (this Friday evening)

Cost:  Free!

An Oak Leaf, with a Droplet of Water on it

I am also delighted to say that I have been invited to give a talk on our, Fun & Family Friendly Foraging activities around Southampton at the lovely Arthouse Café on Southampton High Street.

In my guise as the Urbane Forager, I will give a short talk on practical foraging.  I will cover legalities, tree identification, health and safety, the objects of his project, the public free fruit map, my rather public Blackberry Ban spat, the campaign for a Community Orchard in Mansbridge, my free fruit for all manifesto and my hidden agenda, to bring back scrumping.

Hopefully, I will bring a selection of different plums or other fruit along for people to sample.  Please spread the news and bring lots of questions to help me along.

Event Venue:   Arthouse Café, High Street, Southampton. See the link on the left-hand side bar.

Date:  Thursday 26^th July

Time:  7.30 pm

Cost:   Free!

Cherry Picknik Anyone?

Can't Reach These!

I went out for a walk around the area of Hedge End where we picked our cherries last time and was pleased to note that there were plenty more close by waiting to be gathered.

Big Sweet Red and Juicy

I also found a tree with some tasty larger cherries by the side of the path, so I decided to spend a little time seeing how many I could reach. It was a bit tricky because I had no picker and there were lots of stinging nettles but I grabbed a bagful anyway.

My Fruity Lunchbox

I also noticed on my rounds that baby hazel nuts are now visible, although not nearly ready for picking. That will have to wait a month or two yet.

A Nut Cluster 

However, the cornucopia of Cherry Plums, Mirabelle’s, Bullace, Greengages etc. (cue long list of different and confusing names) are looking bountiful and they look as if they will ripen in a week or two. Rest assured, I’ll be keeping my eye on them.

Pluckable Plums

Till then, if anyone fancies a Cherry Picknik in Hedge End (close to the railway station), please register your interest here, by email or on the Facebook, Mansbridge Community Orchard page.

The Tester Passes Verdict

Fruit into Flowers

After the blossom falls from the fruit trees, it’s a good idea to pop back to your chosen locations and have a quick look, to check if there is any fruit developing.

Baby Cherries

 I already have noticed a lot of miniature plums and cherries. They really seem to be quite prolific at the moment; whether this crop will mature is not yet known but I’m guessing that the very wet April might have helped to plump up these fruits.

Young Plums Go For It

In a month or so we will be able to check out the progress of the young apples and pears too.

 Industrial Estate - Proto Cherries 

 In June, things will start to get very busy; then all your checking, recording and mapping activities will suddenly come into their own and you will once again be able to pick and eat free fresh fruit straight off the trees.

Fruity Beauty

Yesterday I heard two articles on Radio 4 that caused me to stop and think about the implications of the Urbane Forager project, beyond my family sphere.

A Large, Misshapen Pear Yesterday

First, in a belated rear-guard action against fruity fascism, Waitrose supermarket is now selling weather damaged apples at a reduced cost. This rather strange phrase also applies to ugly or misshapen fruit, which somehow doesn't conform to the current warped ideal of Fruity Beauty.

All Different All Tasty

Well, here at the Urbane Forager we have long recognised the fact that fruit, like people, comes in many shapes, sizes, flavours and colours. The world is a richer place for this; there are over a thousand varieties of apples in the UK alone. Some of my favourite apples are knobbly, russety or possess unique profiles. A quick glance at any of my Usual Suspects or Apple Matrix pictures illustrates this fact. As a society, we should be concerned about waste and in the current financial climate individuals and industry should be reducing it as much as possible.

Don't Judge Us By Our Skin Colour

Thinking about saving money brings me to the second news item that came shortly afterward. Once again, an expert was stating that families apparently cannot afford to buy healthy food and somehow end up eating crisps and junk-food instead of fruit and vegetables. It doesn’t take a genius to spot that this is a matter of education, habit and culture rather than just money. Various people including the well-meaning Jamie Oliver have attempted to address this very serious issue.

Better Than Crisps

Take a brief look back over this year’s blog entries and see the vast amount of fruit and nuts that we have collected - over 200 Kgs of apples for starters – all for free and all from within the city environment. Of course it takes a certain amount of time and knowledge to locate and pick fruit and that is partly what the Urbane Forager project is all about, to demonstrate what can be achieved, if you want and if you can be bothered.

Loads of Free Apples

As an aside, I called the Soil Society to ask if I could define my foraged fruit and nuts as “Organic” and so arguably, healthier. From my interpretation of their definition, it seemed that I could. However, they were unable to give me an answer at the time and this seemed to be because I was eating, not selling the produce (so I wouldn't be wanting to pay the Soil Society any fees), they failed to call me back but in any case, it makes no difference.

Hazelnuts, Delicious and Nutritious

Hazelnuts (also known as Cobnuts and Filberts) are versatile and flavoursome, they are also one of the most nutritious nuts, an excellent source of protein, vitamin E, dietary fibre, magnesium, and B vitamins. They are very low in saturated fat and high in healthy mono and polyunsaturated fats.

Little Brown Beauties

More importantly, hazelnuts are available for free, right now, in a hedgerow near you. These ubiquitous hard-backed, brown beauties can be found in many hedges and woodland but roadside hedges are often easier because the nuts are simple to see when they drop onto the pavement.

Unripe Nuts on the Pavement

Hazelnuts can be eaten unripe, when the squirrels start – you will see the evidence of this on the floor in the form of crushed and nibbled shells with emerald collars. Personally, I prefer not to pick them off the trees but to collect them when they are falling naturally, after ripening; they look brown and will have fallen free of their collars. I collected my first load this week during my lunch hour; I bring a few home each day in my sandwich box (or hat) to be eaten, cooked or squirrelled away for the winter months.

A Hatfull of Hazelnuts

The first nuts started dropping in early September and these do tend to taste a bit green, so I leave them out in the sun for a while before using them. Never leave them outside unattended though, or the local squirrels will soon have them away (these grey-coated gangsters are the pickpockets of the rodent world).

Hazelnuts Ripening on a Tree in June

There are of course oodles of tasty recipes for spreads, snacks, meals, puddings and lots of other ways of preparing them. I made a lovely trail mix this year and I may experiment with drying/dehydrating other fruit to supplement my latest hoard. First though, I intend to make Chocolate & Hazelnut Spread with the children. I have a feeling that this might prove popular...

Urbane Forager free-seasonal-tree-id-sheets-ready

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/hazelnut

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2007/sep/08/features.recipes

Last year I kept my little store in a wicker waste-paper basket in the airing cupboard, which dried them out nicely and they tasted great up until May when I finished them.

Don't Throw These Away