Foraging forumagers

Is ground elder worth eating? Heard it’s quite ok as a salad leaf. Anyone tried it?

Elderflower everywhere!

still loads of garlic out in Epping.

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Absolutely teeming with it here!

We have 3 types I’ve spotted now. 1) the regular type; 2) one tree with white berries; and 3) spotted today, a tree which has very thin leaves that look like a squashed flat samphire leaf. Not seen that one before. Everything else identical to a regular elder, shape of tree, bark, flowers etc.

Chicken of the woods?

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Yup

Need someone to help ID some local forage.

The little mini plum things going blue. I’ve been putting them in gin off this particular tree/bush/shrub for years, but are they sloes or damsons? They go completely blue and have a small stone in them. Tree/bush/shrub has no thorns, but none of what I’ve assumed were sloe bushes round here have thorns and thought they had big horrible long thorns.

The berries. This is a big bushy tree. Are they mulberries? Ripe ones taste like a cross between a blackberry and a raspberry but it’s more of a tree than a vine.

The other thing. There’s shitloads of them and I don’t think I’ve ever noticed them there before. Them’s those things I’ve seen on here you have to partially rot or something (bletting?) aren’t they? Edit: medlars, p.22?

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1st photo are medlars and yep you have to blet them

2nd look like damsons to me

3rd are mulberries

Top one is definitely a Medlar, we have them in the community orchard in Butterfield Park in N16.

Bottom one looks like a type of Mulberry for sure.

edit - Ha! Beat me to it!

First lot are medlars (pick them and set them aside until they blet {https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mespilus_germanica} and make the most amazing 'cheese' (which is a set jam and so good), super nice. Second lot I'd say almost certainly damsons - have a massive crop likely around here. Third lot, mulberries Nom. What a haul! Well envious :)

Nice one, thanks. Going to feast on mulberries now I know what they are. So what’s the easiest way to tell the difference between sloes and damsons?

Sloes are half the size and much more round, plus have the thorny branches.

Thanks all!

Hedgerow five a day is shaping up nicely... apples, damsons, sloes, blackberries, greengages

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Wait, is @mespilus named for the medlar?

Yep and is the forum authority on his namesake.

Damsons are perfectly good as a sloe substitute in gin, just cut down the sugar by about a third.

Yep,
the most exotic outdoor fruit that grows in the UK.

Fantastic blackberries by Hackney Marshes on Monday—just peeping over the tops of the gabions. I’d have filled a carrier bag if I’d had one with me.

Yep and is the forum authority on his namesake.

You are too kind!
I just try to spread the word about the inedible fruit
that blet into a coarse stewed apple like texture with hints of cinnamon
and an earthy sweetness.

Noted on the Damson tip, thank you.

Spotted these whilst out running, both look interesting.

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woah!

Exactly, stopped me in my tracks. They're Fairy Inkcaps I'm told. There was another smaller patch nearby.

The lone one above is a Rooting Shank I've since been told.

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Any ideas what this boletus is? Doesn’t stain blue when cut but we have an oak in our garden.

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Tawny and Iodine boletes both have that yellow tinge are rarely go blue after cutting. Both associated with oaks as well. (Tawny is rare though and on the red list).