The blackberries have just started getting ripe around my mountain holler. One day last week when Matt had to run home for something he picked a bowlful and brought them back to me at Miss Cindy’s. My they were good! Chatter and I scoffed them up in no time flat.
Friday I was so tired that at about 2:00 p.m. I announced I was going to bed. I slept hard for almost three hours. I likely wouldn’t have woke up then but my phone spontaneously started playing music and startled me.
Once I drug myself into the kitchen I learned I had missed some excitement while I slept.
A squirrel was eating our blackberries as fast as he could. Just holding on to the trellis and shoveling the berries in one by one. While I like squirrels just fine I don’t aim to share my garden bounty with them.
We love to eat blackberries out of hand and I love to make jelly with them—it’s by far our favorite jelly. We also adore pies and cobblers made with blackberries.
Blackberry juice has traditionally been used for stomach ailments in the mountains of Appalachia.
Last night’s video: First Time Back in the Garden.
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Sending love and prayers to all of you. Love watching your videos. I lost my mom February 4 this year so I know what you’re going through. I going to send Katie a rock I won at a car show very pretty and hope she can use. We I was young my grandma made the best blackberry cobbler and pour milk and sugar on it so good.
Wild blackberries are my favorite. I love them raw, in cobbler, but blackberry jelly/jam is most favorite! I’m afraid that I hate squirrels. I know all critters got to make a living, but they are always stealing more than their share of fruit! They are wasteful to, I find many an apple or pear with one bite taken out of it. I live near Gainesville, GA, and our wild blackberries are already done done for the year. With all the rain we’ve had, I didn’t get as much as usual.
My sister and I loved picking blackberries at our gramma’s place. To get the best ripe ones, we had to beat the birds and the dog, yes, the dog. Gramma’s enormous golden retriever loved blackberries. He’d wrap his big slobbery dog lips around one and—gulp! We learned the hard way to avoid the poison oak that liked to hang out in the berry patches. One of my best memories was from when my girls and I were visiting my gramma. As we passed her big garden on the way to my mom’s house across the field, we were picking as we went. Hardly more than half an hour later, we were eating fresh green beans and blackberry cobbler with the leftover biscuits I’d made that morning. It doesn’t get any fresher and tastier than that.
Well, this is ironic. I am one of the people who did not receive this post yesterday. However, last night I was reading the section talking about blackberries in Jim Casada’s book ” Fishing for Chickens”. I guess it was meant for me to read about blackberries yesterday and today. And then as I am reading this post I find myself eating local blackberry honey with some grass-fed butter on a delicious slice of homemade sourdough bread. Also, blackberry pie is my absolute favorite now and has been since I can remember. Thank you Tipper and Jim for bringing back the memories of blackberry picking and eating. Yum!!
I love blackberries . I been hankering for some blackberrie dumplings. There not ripe around here yet. Still aways to go. Still thinking of you all and praying. God Bless.
Catbirds guard “my” black raspberries from human gorging. I get some, but they are vigilant. I did get most of my strawberries and red currants this year so we all eat well from the garden.
I thought of your family yesterday. You are going through my life almost a month ago. Your emotions will go through a roller-coaster for awhile. I miss my mom every single day but when I start to weep I remember that she is in good hands and I’m crying for myself. I wish I could hug each of you because I know your hearts hurt. God bless and live each day full of happiness and hope. For this is the circle of life.
Those critters just know we are here for their benefit and have no business getting “their” stuff. The resident mockingbird claims all the fruit here; blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, sarvis and apples. It fusses when I pick them. Squirrels also love mulberries. But deer are the worst!
Squirrels. Yeah, those cute little varmints. Always ready for a free handout. When I lived in TN on rocky top, several had no qualms at helping themselves to the black sunflower seeds we put out to draw birds to the feeder for the senior ladies I was caring for.
Perhaps Matt will be able to protect your best producers into a 5 sided fence next spring & let the squirrels can go a distance for their bit.
Well now, I did not receive the email either and I wondered if Y’all made it through that horrible storm. Still lots of folks without power here. We have a genny so we’re good but others depend on power for their water wells. Shame on that squirrel. I’m thinking a roast squirrel stuffed with blackberries would be tasty.
I picked wild blackberries with my Grandma and we made jelly with them. The absolute best jelly we made, and we made all kinds of jelly and preserves! Blackberry, grape, apple, strawberry, peach, pear, pepper jelly that I can remember. I was young and Grandma would stand me up on a 5 gallon stand of lard so I could reach the counter top. And yes, the lard we made every year when we killed our own hogs. We also grew our own beef and fryers, and had our own garden. We had a milk cow and we sold butter we churned and eggs our hens laid and collards out of the garden. We were organic before organic was cool. I sit and remember those days with my Grandma and learning how to freeze, can and preserve all the bounty we had. It was hard work, but very rewarding and what I would give to do it with her again. Love and prayers to all of you.
I also love blackberries but I never heard of blackberry juice. I’ll have to make it sometime.
In Southern Maryland my family always made Blackberry Mush. Is that a thing in the mountains, too?It’s nothing more than blackberries cooked in some water with sugar and thickened with a flour roux. Simple but yummy.
A squirrel has got to eat too! LOL
I don’t blame you one bit. It’s probably that rascal that got your seeds next to the greenhouse. He’s just a watchin’ ya’ll!!
we got a few wild black berries, not many, I had put liquid miracle grow on them a few times , got a hand ful to eat the other day, they was good! God bless you Tipper, God bless your family in Jesus name
I’ve been picking blackberries for a couple of weeks. I only get a solo cup or less at a time. I tried fixing them like Mommy used to but it didn’t turn out too good. Since then I’ve saved up enough juice and am going to try to make some jelly. Wish me luck!
Tipper, I did not forget about today, I prayed for you and the family early this morning and will continue to pray for y’all in the days ahead.
For some reason I didn’t get your email today Tipper. I checked all my email folders as one did get marked spam last week but it wasn’t there either. Your posts are a part of my morning routine so of course I had to come find ya! I hope the service went well for miss Cindy. Still praying for y’all
Blackberries and Squirrel? Reminds me of a story I will tell you sometime about blackberries, guinea eggs and cornbread.
Ed-please do share that story 🙂
I remember as a child picking blackberries that grew wild. I think I ate more than I had to carry back home but mama would make the best blackberry cobbler. You can’t beat a good cobbler. I sure wish I could find some wild ones too. That squirrel knew what was good, but I sure didn’t know they liked blackberries.
I sure enjoyed your video last night. It was so good to see ya’ll back. Thinking of all of you today and praying for continued strength and comfort.
Squirrels are nothing but a rat with a bushy tail! I’m not a squirrel fan, nope, not one bit. They eat all our good yummy garden goodies.
Your family remains in our thoughts and prayers this day. Thank you for sharing the song and lyrics of “What Can Jesus Do” yesterday. We have need of those blessed reminders at all times.
Hearing precious, eternal promises through hymns help provide comfort, light, peace, encouragement and strength for the present day.
We’ve tried growing blackberries but with little success. We “feed” squirrels around here with a few sunflower seeds at times but this year they dug up all my parsley shoots & demolished the rest of the area where the seeds were planted. Right now I’m not happy with my squirrels. I’ll try parsley again next year. Hugs!
The biggest problem I have with squirrels is they love my pecans.
Ron, my squirrels also love my pecan tree and will eat my black walnuts too. In my earlier comment I mentioned the squirrels knocking off the power. They climb the poles and trip the breaker on the transformers.
Randy, we had that problem too, years back. The electric company put up a squirrel guard about 30 years + ago and no more problems from those varmints. We have a lot of trees & the run off the dirt road was like an expressway for them.
I can hardly believe how easily we used to pick blackberries and wild strawberries. The blackberries are still prolific and even tried to come up through my rhododendrons. With a need to keep the yard under control I cut them back. It seems all blackberries now are difficult to get to, and I have lost my spirit of adventure where I would pull off anywhere and just start picking. I will be thinking of your family today, as you lay one of your own to rest. I truly believe the old saying, “What don’t kill you makes you stronger.”
When I think of picking blackberries, I think about my sweet grandmother. She had many strokes that inhibited her driving and motor skills. I had just started driving and would go pick her up for outings or grocery store runs. One of her favorite things for us to do, was to stop by a blackberry stand. She would have me pick the blackberries and then we would go back to her house and she would make the best blackberry cobbler. She’s been gone 24 years now and every time I pass that blackberry field I remember those precious memories and the joy that brought her.
Praying for all of you today Tipper.
I’ve been eating blackberries off the neighbor’s hillside for a few weeks. I will “sneak” over and pop a few when I’m blowing off the driveway -and it’s my personal reward- or that’s how I’m looking at it. You should see the neighbor’s hillside. It’s a HOT MESS full of weeds and he NEVER works on the yard. Since it’s WV, I try to worry about my stuff and not mind his so much. He rocks his hill his way and I help myself to his berries. He doesn’t know or care they are there. BTW, he’s probably 35 and sorrier than death. Lol Tipper, sometimes I close up the joint (house) and go to bed even before sunset. It doesn’t happen much, but why fight the feeling? I’d say you need rest with all your traveling, blogging, gardening, caring for others and losing Miss Cindy. You just pull a Rip Van Winkle and hop on in that toasty bed! God bless ya and hail to the blackberries! I remember living in NYcand eating big raspberries up there, but I will take either and be glad and thankful to the Lord I got ‘em! Squirrels are adorable, but they are high wire and tight rope walkers and will pull every gymnast stunt they can come up with to get tasty nuggets!!! I’ve hit ‘em with rocks or just whatever if they are stealing my bounty. All is fair in food and war. I ain’t a killer, just a stunner. Lol
I love blackberry jam. I bet Miss Katie will deal with that squirrel.
I also love blackberries. I wish I lived near some wild ones.
Blackberries was a very important food for us when growing up. A blackberry cobbler pie made in a deep side enamel pan was a special treat. These pies would be juicy and have dumplings in them. They blackberries we used grew wild and sometimes the neighbors would get together and make a day out (party) of going through the neighborhood fields and pastures picking blackberries. The older folks around here also believed in blackberry juice or homemade blackberry wine for upset stomachs. Squirrels don’t cause many problems except for knocking the power off every now and then, but the deer sure do.
I have many memories of picking blackberries with my family as a child-and especially the wonderful cobbler my mom made. She would make a homemade pie crust covering the bottom and sides of 9×13 pan, fill it with her wonderful blackberry filling and add a crisscross pattern of pie crust on top. It was beautiful, as well as delicious. My favorite way to eat it was in a bowl with milk. Yum!!!