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Forage
Aug 27, 2015 17:11:57 GMT -5
Post by claude on Aug 27, 2015 17:11:57 GMT -5
I took my walk today and noticed some rose hips on some bushes...humm...I'll have to ask..it might belong to the house nearby.
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Post by davidjp on Aug 29, 2015 13:13:15 GMT -5
On a recent walk came across a good patch of these wild plum relatives called "sloes". Very tart but great for making a christmas liqueur called sloe gin Found them at the end of a nice shaded footpath between two hedges This was in southern england in the grounds of an old castle, very atmospheric
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Forage
Aug 29, 2015 19:59:41 GMT -5
Post by claude on Aug 29, 2015 19:59:41 GMT -5
Cool tunnel pathway! What was the size of those plums, golf ball?
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Post by davidjp on Aug 29, 2015 20:53:49 GMT -5
Cool tunnel pathway! What was the size of those plums, golf ball?
No they are much smaller than that, about the size of a small marble I'd guess. Although they do vary depending on how good the location soil is. Also there is a very similar plant called bullace that has slightly larger fruit. Its very common, the parent plant is called blackthorn and is a quite vigorous small tree that has some pretty good spines on it. Plant that together with hawthorn, which also has some good spines and then practice the ancient art of hedge laying you can create a pretty efficient livestock proof hedge that is alive and renewable. In the days before barbed wire it was the standard hedge in that part of the world. So its very common although nowadays people rely on barbed wire more than they used to as its quite labour intensive and skilled work to create an effective barrier.
Interestingly when I was attempting to learn Latin at school we were assigned Caesars belgic wars to read from the original Latin. It was basically a campaign diary written by Caesar as he conquered what is todays Belgium but the tribes their were directly related to the tribes occupying southern Britain at the time. He was quite interested in their customs, rituals and how they lived before he then slaughtered and sold most into slavery. He mentions that many of the tribes constructed sophisticated hedge barriers of blackthorn and hawthorn around their villages to prevent being attacked by neighbours so it has a long history in that part of the world. I doubt they stopped a roman legion for long though.
Here's a link to the plant description. Pick those sloes, prick each individually cover with some sugar and them immerse in gin you end up with a pretty nice winters drink. It needs a few months though before its ready and was always something we did for Christmas, 4 months or so was the minimum required, leave for another year to marinate gets you a much richer drink. I once had a 5yr old one that was quite something. My own efforts I drank before I could get to that time. You can buy a commercial version buts its pretty poor in comparison in my opinion.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prunus_spinosa
And how to make your own, might be worth a try with damsons or other similar fruit www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2011/oct/12/how-to-make-sloe-gin
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Forage
Aug 30, 2015 5:19:34 GMT -5
Post by ahntjudy on Aug 30, 2015 5:19:34 GMT -5
the ancient art of hedge laying How interesting! Thank you for sharing that knowledge! What an outstanding photo of the footpath!
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Post by binnylou on May 10, 2022 14:14:59 GMT -5
Found my first morel mushrooms of the season. They are probably my only mushrooms of the season. I brought them in and they are soaking in salted water. Hoping the soak makes them more edible looking.
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