Once May passes into June, there's food to be foraged for. Stinging nettles are extremely nutritious, the earliest crop. Not much in terms of taste (think winter greens) however. A goodly accompaniment to a main course, chopped and boiled. Take care when picking! They contain vitamins A, C, K, plus thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), folate (B9); calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus and manganese, as well as phytonutrients with antioxidant properties, and roughage. Cut, rinse, simmer in minimal amount of water - and serve.
Next up - sorrel. I have more growing on my działka than I had thought at first - sorrel is much tastier than nettle leaf, but don't over do it (too much oxalic acid can result in kidney stones). And harvest and eat before the sorrel goes to seed. This plant (below) is just right. Prepare in a similar way to nettles.
First fruit - wild strawberries (poziomki), followed soon after by (sweet) cherries - czereśnie, as opposed to wiśnie (sour) cherries. And here they are - the first cherries of the year - and the annual contest to see how many can be saved from the starlings!
Strawberries - the quintessential fruit of early summer - are available from roadside stands set up by the sides of roads, and prices are plummeting. My first bulk purchase of an entire kilogram łubianka (large punnet) cost 20 złotys, the second 13 złotys, the third 10 złotys; today's cost a mere 7.50 złotys. What can't be eaten I turn to smoothie in my juicer.
Wild strawberries take a lot of time and effort to pick; a handful (you can't see the digital display on this photo; it reads a mere 34g - less than half a portion). These go well with natural yogurt.
This evening, I noticed that the first berries on one of my ten blackcurrant bushes (planted at the end of February) are starting to darken (until now, they look like miniature gooseberries). Will be ready soon!
From mid-June to mid-November, when the last of the apples are picked, I can forage for food, adding two or three portions of fresh fruit and veg a day to my diet free of charge. There's something about knowing exactly where your food comes from.
Familiarity, revisited
Russia's going home
This time 16 years ago:
Sun and zenith rising
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