Hello Dear Reader,
Take a good look around you, and you may well notice the frothy and almost snowlike quality of Sloe and wild plum blossom. Sloe or blackthorn is close the ground and at hip or waist level. The wild damsons or bullaces as they are often called will require you to look up. Now is the time to remember where you see these trees and record that somewhere. In June they will be covered in green unripe fruit but as August ends and September is in full swing, they will be ready to pick.
You can also keep your eyes open from crab apple blossom, which is also at eye level. It will be mainly white but tinged with pink. It makes a great base for apple jelly, to which I add mint, or I use the crab apples for the pectin to set other jams or jellies.
So keep your eyes open for blossom, record where it is. Keep an eye on the fruit as it ripens and make sure you get to pick it and make jams and chutney before everyone else does. Keep it to yourself, most people don’t know what they are looking for, or even looking at. If you’re well prepared, you can keep yourself in jams, jellies and chutney for at least a year and the fruit will have cost you nothing.
Until tomorrow,
Love Froogs xxxxxx
I promise to do this. In the North East of Scotland we still do not have any blossom, despite this amazing weather, 22 degrees the last few days.
Elderflower and berries we did not have where we lived before, but have identified we have here.
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Tonight I opened a jar of apple sauce bottled from windfalls found last year on holiday. Layered with natural yogurt it made a gorgeous dessert AND reminded me of sunny days in Norfolk. Bottling fruit is like keeping jewels in a jar to enjoy later!
blessings x
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I had a lovely bullace tree growing in a nearby hedge providing us with bullace jelly until the farmer trashed it with his hedgecutter, very sad…
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I've got a couple of secret places where I'm just watching for the blackthorn to come out so I can make sloe gin again in the autumn. Think we are a few weeks behind you up in Derbyshire, the blossom isn't out here yet.
Tawney x
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your larder is the kind I love!
home made labels!
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Great minds….I do this every year and I also keep an eye on the bramble and elder bushes when they begin to flower.
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Sloe blossom! Huh!
Our local council trashed most of the Sloe (Blackthorn) bushes around where I live. I previously cycled past all of them and noted their ripeness.
When some paths were being widened, I was horrified to see they had just gone along with a large cutter and cut the lot off at ground level.
Raspberry Ratafia or Damsons for me only this year!
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Same here my area was being “regenerated” me its another way of sanatising nature and so no blackberry jam for us this season. The jam I made last year was just delish!. Sill will have to keep my eyes pealed for some goodies.
How goes the quilting froogs?
all the best
Rachel
Plymouth
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What a good idea to look now for the blossoms so I know where the fruit is later in the year! Never thought of that. I live in a very urban area, though we do often drive out in the country at the weekends and I have always wanted to have a go at making sloe gin.Thanks for the tip!
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very clever. I'll have to see what we have around here that is similar (or maybe no one will tell me their secrets!!).
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