Happy Fourth of July everyone. We are not celebrating or going anywhere today because we think the best thing to do is to stay home and not contribute to crowds at lakes and parks. So I was happy to be able to take a morning walk with my daughter today.
Earlier this week my daughter told me about a patch of wild black raspberries that she had found along a park area in her neighborhood. She also found a big mulberry tree on her daily walks that was also full of steadily ripening berries.
This morning I enjoyed some
Urban Foraging
with my daughter.
I discovered that the black raspberry patch was even bigger than I expected, stretching along a park area for almost a full block. We slowly ambled down the block in the steamy morning heat, picking and munching as we went. I was so surprised to find wild black raspberries along a park area in Bloomington, Minnesota. We used to have a wild patch of them on my grandfather’s farm in Iowa, but I didn’t realize that they flourished in the wild this far north. The black raspberry bushes that I bought to plant in our back yard were a special cold-tolerant variety (or so I was told).
All I can say is “Mmmmm, mighty nice walk.”
The mulberry tree’s lower branches swept over the sidewalk in the front of someone’s home, but it didn’t look like anyone had been picking its fruit as the sidewalk underneath it was filled with fallen smashed mulberries. We picked and munched on a few mulberries before continuing our walk. It reminded me of times when as a child, my mom sent me back into the “grove” to pick mulberries from the tree that grew there.
Sweet Imaginings
Combine those sweet sweet mulberries with some tart cherries and you’ve got the makings of an amazing cherry-mulberry cobbler. Picking and eating perennial fruits isn’t common in most urban neighborhoods.
But it could be.
Imagine a city that intentionally planted perennial fruits and vegetables in it’s common areas. And imagine home-owners who practiced perma-culture in their front and backyards. If more people are able to work from home and spend more time at home, we could see this kind of urban “farming” take root.
Speaking of magic
During our walk I mentioned to my daughter that she always seemed to find magic wherever she lived. Her answer brightened my day. “It’s not hard to find magic,” she replied, “when it’s all around you everywhere.”
Here’s to finding magic everywhere, sweet imaginings, and urban foraging.
Hope you have a safe and joyful Fourth of July holiday!
May you walk in beauty.
Blooming in my backyard today
Wild black raspberry patch
The sky just after sunset last night (seen from my living room window)
My backyard blueberry bush (picking 4-5 berries each day)
Seen on our walk this morning
My black raspberries aren’t ripe yet
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