WIBU here?

[IfYouLoveSomebodyLetThemSleep]

Our drive has lots of blackberries growing on it, the children that live on the street were taking a big interest in me giving some to DS so I invited them to pick some theirselves (after checking for allergies and the usual speech about always checking with an adult before you eat wild berries). I gave them a bowl and told them to get picking.

Next thing I know one of their Dads is storming across the street shouting about them being poisonous, the kids were all crying by that point, thinking that I'd poisoned them.
I calmly pointed out that they are obviously not poisonous as they are blackberries, can be bought at most shops etc. He carried on shouting about not being so reckless in future, how I could have poisoned all the kids.

I apologised for upsetting him but really, there was nothing to be upset about. I still don't think I was being unreasonable for letting the children do something as normal as picking blackberries, or was I?

[KatyPutTheCuttleOn]

You have no idea if they have allergies or not though, and berries are quite common allergens. Better to ask than not.

[SomethingOnce]

How was he to know you know your berries? For all he knew, you could be completely ignorant and filling his children with deadly nightshade berries.

I'm not a cotton wool enthusiast but I think I'd be cross.

[Pozzled]

Yanbu. I'm shocked that people think blackberries are such a big deal. Any child old enough to be playing out is old enough to declare allergies and listen to/understand a talk about not eating other berries without checking.

[LadyBeagleEyes]

But everybody knows what a blackberry looks like surely .
People and kids have been eating them forever.

[EATmum]

I was the kid aged 3 who ate deadly nightshade rather than blackberries - so I figure knowing about them, what's safe to eat and what isn't, is rather important. Otherwise they'll just do it their own way - and end up yakking in hospital! YANBU

[jessieagain]

Yanbu

He should have been out supervising them. I would ignore him an next time the children talk to you tell them that they had better go home to their dad because he was upset last time.

[longingforsomesleep]

I regularly went blackberry picking with my dad when I was little in local woods and in my grandparents' garden. We thought nothing of eating them straight from the hedge unwashed.

I must admit though, I am slightly nervous about picking them now, in an urban area where they are exposed to lots of traffic fumes, but I presume if they're thoroughly washed then it's OK?

But I do think his behaviour was totally unreasonable - especially in front of the kids.

[livinginwonderland]

YANBU. My dad used to take my friends and I blackberry picking all the time and I loved it. How do people get to become parents without knowing what a blackberry looks like?!

[NeoMaxiZoomDweebie]

Sirzy Oh yes...because kids need an adult with them ALL the time....even when the neighbouring kid's mum wants to let them pick a frigging blackberry!

[cherrytomato40]

YANBU it's not like it was a random bush in the street it was your own blackberry bush in your own garden! Our elderly neighbour has loads of blackberries overhanging her garden wall into the street she always tells us to help ourselves.

My next door neighbour gave my kids a kinder egg each yesterday without telling me- now I don't mind at all, but I think I'd have more grounds to complain at them being given saturated fat than he does at his kids being given frigging blackberries!

[cherrytomato40]

I meant to add, it's very sad that we bring our kids up on unseasonal pre-packaged fruit with a gazillion airmiles such as blueberries etc but we are too scared to let them eat the free seasonal and tasty produce on our doorstep.

Reminds me of my friend who was disgusted that we ate eggs from our neighbour's chickens!

[daisychain01]

The father should have been grateful those children were getting an education in how blackberries grow on brambles. Probably before you came along, they thought they were cultivated in little black plastic trays in Tesco.

[paperclipsarebetterthanstaples]

They were old enough to be playing out unsupervised - they're old enough to pick blackberries. I think its sad that these lovely traditions are dying out because lots of parents don't bother doing this kind of stuff anymore.

None of the kids i teach (14+) in one class knew what paddling was, had never been sledging or picked blackberries / winkles

Op i wish you lived in my street - we could draw hopscotch on the ground and teach the kids skipping games too :-)

[saintlyjimjams]

What an idiot. He would have passed out at the wild food walk ds2 & ds3 did age 5 & 8. They were shown how to eat (raw) nettles & gorse bush flowers amongst other things. My mother claims to have lived on nettle soup post war.