Make Family Trips Fun Again

Beautiful Plum Blossom - Out Now!

Many people seem to dread family days out. They do not seem able to find something to do or somewhere to go that will suit everyone's wants and needs.

To an extent, this is normal and obvious to some people - adults, children, teenagers, boys, girls, men, women - don't they always want different things? Isn't that natural? Of course different people will favour different things if given a choice but when everyone has to go out to the same place, on a day out or a holiday for instance, problems can crop up.

Spring is Coming

But who or what is to blame and what can be done to ease the situation? We can always blame lack of time, lack of conversation, mobile phones, meals eaten in front of the TV, modern technology, social media, online gaming is a popular scapegoat. We could blame teenagers, although most of them are normally more interesting and polite than many of the adults I know.

A Stone Style

Foraging has several advantages as a family activity.

• It takes place outdoors and involves walking, so it can help to keep you fit and strong.
• Talking is always much more easy when you are walking or doing something else at the same time.
• You will strengthen your connection to nature, the seasons, weather etc.
• Anyone can do it with a relatively small amount of knowledge or practise.
• Small children and teenagers can enjoy it as much as adults and the elderly.
• It can be integrated with technology, if you wish.
• It is not a "gendered activity".
• You can go out with a specific aim, to a certain place or you can do it in any place or time, just because you happen to be there at that time.
• You can do it all year around - although you will mainly pick fruit and nuts in the Summer and Autumn.
• You can learn about geography, mapping, natural navigation, healthy diet, the seasons, household finances, biology, chemistry, cooking, baking, preserving, pickling, and creating alcoholic drinks for the grown ups.

Awesome Hambledon HIll

The best time to start learning a new skill is always NOW! This is true whatever the time of year but, as it happens, Spring is the best time to start discovering how to forage. This is because you can spot fruit trees best, by recognising their blossom. Fortunately the various fruit trees that we harvest from tend to flower roughly in sequence.

A Steep Start

1. First comes the Plum and Blackthorn (Sloe), around March, filling the hedgerows with a white bloom. People will also notice Daffodils at this time.
2. Next you tend to spot the Cherry trees and they grow everywhere; it is amazing how many grow alongside roads around April. Bluebells are filling the forest floor at the same time.
3. May brings Pear and Apple blossom and also Elderflower, Wild Garlic and Ransoms to herald in the start of Summer.

On Hambledon Hill

If you log the locations of the flowers, you will then be able to check the development of immature fruit. Thus you can be the first to recognise the Cherries as they ripen. For us, picking the first crop of juicy delicious Cherries on a sunny day is a magical moment. We normally eat too many, straight off the tree but we try to bring plenty home for eating, baking or turning into jam.

The 360 View is Simply Awesome

From this point on, the seasons get busier, depending on time and how much of the different fruits you wish to harvest. Any walk, ride or drive in the city, park or countryside is instantly hugely enhanced if you and your family have even half an eye open for the masses of free fresh fruit available. All the information you require is available here.

free, downloadable seasonal id pdfs

the Urbane Forager book
Falling Fruit free access map

A Stone Circle (Guarded by Alpacas) with Hambledon Hill

Early Spring? Make Mulberry Gin!

I found a big box of frozen Mulberries in our freezer yesterday. I gave a couple to the children as a chilly treat and then remembered that we had recently consumed the last of our super tasty Mulberry gin during the Winter nights. It was clearly time to create some fresh supplies.

My brother had given me a bottle of gin for Xmas and I was going to save it until the Summer months, but this seemed a project worthy of breaking that pledge. The decorative bottle that we had dispatched over Christmas was undoubtedly cute, but actually quite small, or so it seemed once we got a taste of it.

I filled too jars with the fruit and steeped it in gin; it soon took on a glowing ruby red hue. Normally when making liquors, I add a bit of sugar to help the process but Mulberries are so sweet, it did not seem necessary. I will test it in due course, just to be sure...

Spring seems to be arriving a full month early here in the UK. Plum blossom is blooming all over the place, snowdrops daffodils and crocuses are all flowering at the same time bringing a cheery flourish to the gloomy weather we have been experiencing.

Does this mean the Plums will be ripening a month early? Will they fruit before the Cherries? Perhaps February or March will turn dramatically colder and ruin the early harvest. Who knows? All we can do is wait and observe the changes as they occur. I remember a bad year for Cherries that I put down to high winds during the blossom season deterring pollinators.

Meanwhile, we can simply enjoy the florid display, allow it to lift our hearts and hope that it heralds a good Spring, warm Summer and prolific Autumn.

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

Going With The Flow

I had such a great response to my previous flow diagram / mind map that I decided to make some more. They are designed to help you plan your own foraging format and manage the storage and processing of whatever you gather.

A Practical, Seasonal Plan Toward Easy Foraging

They are only a rough guide but they will help you to think about what to do, when to do it and how to fit everything in amongst your busy lives, families, work and relaxation. For me, foraging is relaxation; it is the time when I can shake off the burden of daily pressures and get out amongst nature with my kids.

It is very useful to become familiar with the various trees in the winter time too, it's often much easier to spot them when they are not covered in leaves. I have designed some id sheets to help with this, if you want copies, send me your email address and and a message; I will send them - free.

As You Develop Your Skills You Might Want to Get More Involved

In the same way, when Spring arrives (and it looks like it may be early this year) you can identify different trees by their blossom; plum is normally first, followed closely by the cherry trees, apples and pears. Once you can recognise the flowers, shape and bark of the trees, you will realise just how many of them there are, all over the cities, hedgerows and countryside. You can then plan when and how to harvest their bounty when the season arrives.