The lengths I go to for blackberries

[MrsTerryPratchett]

Nettle stings, bramble scratches and sunburn. Ow. I don't even really eat them myself although blackberry vodka at Christmas is nice. I'm convinced there is some weird evolutionary thing where I see them hanging there and have to get them.

Why do I do this to myself?

That's fantastic. Google elderberry syrup. Find a basic recipe and then add some warning spices to it. Ginger, cloves, a bit of cayenne.

It's wonderfully antiviral and costs £10+ for a tiny little bottle in the shops.

Add brambles and rosehips when you're making it.

My kids love to drink it warm as cordial but I keep a bottle hidden in case anyone has something viral. It's brilliant for winter bugs! The trick is to get in quick with it before the virus can multiply too much. It's most effective then.

Blackberry picking has been ruined for me. I am covered in bites (30 and counting!). My research has concluded it's probably almost-invisible harvest mites larvae that attach themselves to unsuspecting humans. Very smug that my hedge came out in a wonderful crop this year, and as tasty as the crumble was I am now regretting my actions.

Agree elderberry syrup /cordial is literal joy!

My dogs used to pick there own while I sat on a bench just watching 😁

Same. Got to grab them while they are here.

Over lockdown the brambles took over our garden. We got pounds of them and jammed/pied/crumbled and froze them.
We've now got rid of the brambles and have to go elsewhere, but we do still like them.

Pear and blackberry galette or crumble is always good

They are really early this year. I must admit to travelling with ziplock bags in my car. This year we have taken on an overgrown allotment so plentiful supply as we cut through the spiky growth

Blackberry and chilli jam... just saying!

Amazing on scones

@nothernexposure
You pretty much cannot hull them like raspberries unless they are over ripe and soggy.
I pick them wash them then simmer gently then sieve - then add sugar to make blackberry jelly . Keeps for ages can mix it with apple to make blackberry and apple pie.

😂😂😂

This is so true.

But then I was a child of the 80's where everything was stored in an empty ice cream tub.

I don't even remember eating that much ice cream 👀

I've got my dad's folding walking stick, and when I got it out of my backpack bit by bit, so it clicked together as it came out, my granddaughter was mesmerised. Wow, just like Mary Poppins, she said! Great for pulling down the high branches.

Highly recommend blackberry clafoutis. It's usually made with cherries but absolutely next level with blackberries.

Mine are totally not ready yet in Scotland, and hard to imagine they’ll be good in a few weeks, what I see are small and shrivelled. Poor things had about ten minutes of sun all summer!

My breakfast at the moment consists of blackberries and nettle seeds picked and eaten

.. NETTLE SEEDS?!
Is this a food now? I am very confused

Ahh yeah, there's something so 'the good life' about picking blackberries! I love it, me and my dc do it every year

My favourite spot has just been closed off due to a local development :( so I will have to resort to my back up places. We have loads of jam left but I need to clear more freezer space so I can stock up on frozen berries.

Blackberry liqueur is a winter treat - a third of a bottle of berries, top up with brandy, leave for 3 months then strain and sweeten to taste.

Where are all these blackberries of which you speak?

All the ones near me are nowhere near ready. We've had to resort to picking rowan (mountain ash) berries as MIL does a grand job of turning them into jelly (very nice with roasted meats).

The hills are still smothered with blaeberries though, but they are more work for less return.

The last two dog walks I’ve come back with scratches all over my hands and a massively full poo bag.

DH looked horrified the first time I wandered in with an overloaded poo bag that seemed to be dripping blood. I think he thought one of the DDogs had finally shat themselves inside out.

On the subject of marigolds, you can eat the traditional marigolds (not modern tagetes, but calendula officialis). Even the flower heads.

Horse used to pick his own. He liked rose hips too, just straight from the bush.

I used to have a secret blackberry patch in some woods. The bramble canes were as thick as my wrist and so old I could lift them and walk into the middle of the patch and stand upright.

My DGran always carried secateurs and a couple of plastic bags in her handbag this time of year - she loved foraging/scrumping so it must be genetic! Going blackberrying makes me smile and think of her. She was always looking out the car window trying to find edible treats. She had me climb down a ditch and through a hedge once for some particularly fine looking wild apples growing by the side of a field.

@UnaOfStormhold lovely. We make damson gin the same way. Can you do blackberries with vodka or gin or does it have to be brandy

@Breadcat24 I know you didn't ask me, but we make bramble gin it's so good (slightly less sugar that with damsons as the blackberries are sweeter)