Thursday, June 28, 2012

the wild world of strawberries

Wild strawberries are considered by some to be a weed.  Their runners snake through flower beds and the grass, and they give the lawn an uneven look.  But if you are patient and just leave them be, you will be rewarded with a tiny treat.  The most lucious, flavourful bite of heaven, nothing like those hard, bred to travel the continent commercial berries.
On the left is a normal size strawberry, and on the right is the biggest wild berry I have ever seen - about the size of a big blueberry. 
I have a special stash of a wild patch in the hedgerow behind my house.  The berries are there for the picking, but for the mosquitos, who I swear defend the patch furiously by swarming and stinging any exposed flesh.  And there's another enemy - slugs.  This guy is just one of a legion of slugs which eats a hole in the berry and then hollows it out.  I grab a berry that looks ok, only to find it collapses in my hand.
After posing for the picture, this guy was dispatched with a shake of salt.


No comments:

Post a Comment

I love hearing from other bloggers!