OUTDOOR CORNER: BLACKBERRIES RIPE FOR THE PICK'N'

It was late afternoon on one of those thick July days that make you daydream of September. After tromping through fields and rocky woods for half an hour, mu wife Mary and I finally reached the section of river where we wanted to fish, or at least to wade around and explore. We stopped to rest under a big sycamore and put on our old tennis shoes. The shade, combined with a gentle breeze, really cooled us off. Just as I began to get that satisfied feeling, she turned suddenly and gave me a wide-eyed look, blurting out, "You forgot our lunch!"

Not wanting to return to the car, and delay my chances to hang a Rapala or two in overhanging trees, I glanced around nervously. Then, at the edge of an old pasture, I spied what I was looking for: a big thicket of unruly canes, and yes, plump, shiny blackberries. . . thousands of them.

We made our way to the berry patch and ate our fill. In fact, probably more than our fill. Our hands were covered with telltale purple stains and a few scratches, but I was grateful because the berries saved the day.

Early July is usually prime time for wild blackberries in Missouri, but the timing, size and quality of the crop can depend on local weather conditions. Plenty of moisture is required for good crops of plump, juicy berries.

Actually there are several species of blackberries or brambles in Missouri, including high-bush blackberries, black raspberries and the lower growing dewberries. Most blackberries and black raspberries grow on woody, arching canes, or stems, with thorn-like outgrowths called prickles. Why do they have prickles? A primary reason is to discourage browsing by animals like deer and rabbits. Plants can't run away from animals that want to eat them, so they have evolved a variety of defenses to protect themselves.

The first year that the canes emerge, they don't bear any flowers or fruit and their leaves have three to five leaflets. In the second year, those same canes will fruit and put out leaves with only three leaflets. At the end of the second growing season, the canes die.

Some species seem to be sweeter than others, but all are tasty. Even within a single patch of one species, individual plants are often noticeably sweeter than other ones. It's easy to imagine how plants producing sweeter berries might stand a better chance of being eaten by birds and other animals and having their seeds dispersed to new areas.

Blackberries are a very important summer food for wildlife with documented use by over 50 species of birds and mammals in Missouri. The cane thickets also offer rabbits and other animals a secure haven from predators.

To gather your berries, you will need some kind of container, and, if you plan to gather a lot, you will also need something larger for storing the berries you've collected. The system I prefer is a pair of plastic milk jugs with their tops cut off. I tie these jugs together with a 4-5 foot length of nylon webbing or rope and sling them over my neck, thus leaving both of my hands free to pick berries.

Like forbidden fruit, these delicious berries aren't without their hazards. Wear insect repellent to protect yourself from chiggers and consider a long-sleeved shirt if you would rather be hot than scratched by prickles. Some folks wear gloves, but for me, that's going too far. Gloves are just too cumbersome, and I can pick faster with bare hands.

Once the jugs are filled with berries, I transfer my booty to an insulated plastic cooler in my vehicle. At home I wash and process them immediately. Even if they are kept cool, the berries can spoil fairly rapidly.

I make almost all of my berries into jam, because it's a little simpler than jelly and it tastes just as good. I crush them with a potato masher and cook them with fruit pectin and sugar in a large canning pot. Follow the directions on the package of pectin. If you want a little variety, you can use the juice to make jelly, or even pancake syrup. For both jelly and syrup, you need to first simmer the berries for a few minutes and strain off the juice, leaving the seeds and pulp.

One of the finest things you can do with wild blackberries, though, is to bake them into a pie or cobbler and serve it up a la mode. No frozen pie or one made from those insipid canned berries will even approach the sweet, rich flavor of the wild thing.

Some nearby Conservation Department lands that probably have blackberries are Apple Creek, Maintz, Castor River and General Watkins Conservation Areas. Regulations on these areas permit berry harvest for personal consumption. Look in sunny areas along forest edges and in areas that were once fields or pastures and have since grown up in brush. Forest clear cuts can be very productive areas.

~Doug Newman is a natural history regional biologist for the Missouri Department of Conservation.