The Living Landscape: Blackberry pickin' time!
- Kathleen Scavone
- Posted On
“You ate that first one and its flesh was sweet
like thickened wine: summer's blood was in it …”
– from Seamus Heaney's 'Blackberry-picking'
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – After so many of us were evacuated due to the massive LNU Lightning Complex (or other) fires and then, by the grace of God – and the firefighters – allowed to repopulate, I viewed a scene which calmed me, as a black-tailed deer browsed the blackberry bushes near my home.
The blackberries are thriving now along creeks, roads and disturbed areas practically everywhere.
They are prolific and delicious, but most likely what we are all making pies, jams and cobblers out of are invasive Himalayan blackberries.
The berries native to California, Rubus ursinus once thrived here, but the introduced Himalayan blackberry is more prevalent now, due in part to California's own master gardener, Luther Burbank, who mistakenly took seeds that he thought had been collected close to the Himalayan Mountains.
The seeds turned out to have been from Armenia, but the name stuck, and the plants thrived partly due to birds feeding on the plump berries, and partly because of the plant's deep roots that make eradicating efforts very difficult.
Blackberries are not technically a berry, but an aggregate fruit made up of numerous tiny fruits that each contain their own pit.
The rich, purple beauties are packed with nutrients such as vitamins A and C, along with potassium, magnesium, iron and calcium.
According to the health website WebMD, chemicals in blackberries may have antioxidant properties as well as provide protection from certain cancers. Nutritious powerhouses, blackberries are loaded with dietary fiber as well.
These versatile plants and their fruit have been drawn on throughout history for a variety of medicinal purposes. The ancient Greeks thought the plant's leaves made a suitable tea to aid in sore throats, mouth sores and for ailments like thrush and diarrhea.
Historically, many California Indian groups made use of shoots of young spring plants or the dried, ground berries as the base for a medicinal tea.
Early settlers put the plant to use for help in easing stomach aches, common colds or congestion.
Today, some folks prefer to concoct a special blackberry brandy for their own “medicinal purposes.”
For some mouth-watering recipes like Humble Bumble Crumble bars, blackberry frozen yogurt or berry-beet salad visit Taste of Home's website.
Kathleen Scavone, M.A., is a retired educator, potter, freelance writer and author of “Anderson Marsh State Historic Park: A Walking History, Prehistory, Flora, and Fauna Tour of a California State Park” and “Native Americans of Lake County.”