to think these sloes are ready to pick? Photos

[SadCelticBunny]

I know it's only August, though it feels really Autumnal here in Wales.
However the blackthorns are loaded with sloes.
Should I pick them now and freeze them in readiness for making sloe gin?

By the way, I love the colour of sloes!

Give them a little squish. If they feel like a laundry pod then they are ready. If firmer you need to wait longer.

They should be the colour in the picture, but they are ripe earlier nowadays with warmer summers. It used to be said that you should wait till the first frost to pick them for sloe gin, but you can replicate that by freezing them after picking.

Thanks for replying.

It feels wrong to be harvesting sloes in "Summer"! It has always been part of the Autumn and the run up to Christmas.

I will keep checking them, and hoping no-one else gets there before me!

Oh I haven't been out looking for any yet. That said I obviously need to go to spec savers because I clicked on the thread wondering why shoes would need to be ready for picking 😂

Blackberries are ripe round here too (Wiltshire). It seems very early.

Yes to blackberries! And what a prolific harvest this year.
I am just going out to pick some to make blackberry and apple pie tomorrow.

The seasons are changing, for sure. The air smells of Autumn this evening.