Friday, July 24, 2009

Picking Blackberries

For those of you who are new followers to my blog,
the following pictures will tell you why I call my site
Writing in the Blackberry Patch.

I haven't been blogging a lot lately, because I have either been in the garden or among the blackberry vines.

We have canned 61 quarts of greenbeans, and we're not canning any more!
I think that should be more than enough to last us until next summer.


My blackberries are ripe!

I was in this jungle today for at least 4 hours picking.



I love picking blackberries!


There's a lot of the berries drying up and dying, tho, and that makes me sad.
It's not from the weather, the vines get diseases and that's what happens.




I wish they all looked like this little section.
Aren't they pretty?



They love to hide inside and behind the leaves.
I have to stretch, stoop down, crawl beneath,
tip toe, and duck my head underneath the canopy
in many places.
That's why the day after I usually take advil for all my aches and pains.


There's little spider webs everywhere!
I come out of the patch paranoid, thinking
little spiders and bugs are crawling all
over in my hair.




July and August are sweet
with the taste of berries.


They are a luscious treat
topped with sugar and milk.

Cobblers with their delicious crust
are a delicate summertime dish.

Freeze them for a winter surprise
of fresh baked pies.

I picked 10 quarts today.
I'm sorry, make that 11 quarts, I think the heat got to me today,
and I can't count.

Got Milk?




10 comments:

  1. are you sure you don't leave around the corner from me :), we have blackberries as well, alot of them, they are just starting to come on, slow, but then we will be barmbarded, everyday either dh or I pick about a cup full soon we will be barmbarded :) we have to fight the birds off. I hand pie pans to distract them.
    Happy Picking, love your blog
    ~Rhonda~

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  2. Hey Janet!

    I live in West Virginia too! Not far from Jackson County. I'm live in Putnam. I found your blog the other night when it was storming and I left a comment but the storms caused my satellite to go out and so it didn't get posted. I was looking for how to transplant blackberries and seen your blog so I clicked on it! lol It also seems that you also follow the Coloradolady just like me! Small World! lol

    Now, since you have those gorgeous blackberries, will you let me know your secret to getting those blackberries to grow in your yard? Two years ago we were in blackberry heaven with so many around here that I was baking pies and I froze a bunch to. Last year wasn't good because of the drought. This year we have a new neighbor who put up a fence and now we can't get to the biggest stash of blackberries there is around here. I suppose we could walk but it is way way back there! lol On a gas well road. We do have a few that have popped up here close by the house but I want to get more here so we won't have to worry about not having any next year. I've only been able to get about a cups worth this year. sigh...... My 5 yr old boy loves them and he remembers us picking them and he wants them and I can't get to them and I'm going nuts! hehehe

    Any tips, suggestions, directions would be greatly appreciated!

    Sorry for the long winded and crazy comment!

    Hugs,
    Angela

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  3. Hey Anonymous and Angela. thanks for your comments. I don't have much trouble with the birds, they'll peck at a few and that's it. Angela, my blackberries are the tame ones. I lot of people don't like them, they aren't as sweet as the wild ones are, but they make great cobblers, pies and crumbles. You can start berries by putting the tip end of a vine into the ground and it will take root. I think I'm going to put a row in my garden next year so I won't have so much trouble with the weeds. Having berries in your yard is a lot more work than people think, you have to take care of them. It's not like going out and picking the wild ones, where all you have to do is go and pick. But if you like them, it's worth all the hard work. Hope you find you a big patch somewhere.

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  4. Oh how I wish we had a good spot to pick berries. We used to go right down the road from where we used to live and pick them. You just had to be on top of them so that you didn't end up the last to make it to the patch before they were all picked.

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  5. You sure have been busy. That is a lot of green bean stringing and canning. The berries look good. I want to pick wild blackberries but haven't went looking yet..I noticed some by the road were still green. Maybe, on my day off this week, I will check it out. I've missed your posts but figured you were busy with berries and garden.

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  6. I remember picking blackberries in the hills of West Virginia. We would bring back bucketfuls. Mom's cobbler was the best. Sometimes she would give us a bowl of blackberries with a little sugar sprinkled on top and milk poured on.

    Your berries are beautiful.

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  7. I'm so jealous....green beans AND blackberries! blessings, marlene

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  8. Beautiful berries Janet!! The blackberryies haven't done as well as usual around my house this year. Not sure why. But I'm glad you've got such a bounty!

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  9. Wow - that's a lot of berries!
    We inherited some vines when we moved here. They are doing better this year. Not half what you have though. We've had to try and keep the beetles off.

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  10. The wild blackberries are almost gone around here. They didn't do too well this year for some reason. My Mother-in-law has some of those tame ones and they are still producing. They planted them in memory of my Dad, who used to pick blackberries and boisenberries for them. In turn, she would make him a blackberry cobbler. He loved them.

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