All Around the Mulberry Tree

No bushes here. These babies are full-grown trees, and they mean business. I do believe these trees intend to feed the entire world, or at least their corner of it. Check them out:

See what I mean? They're HUGE. I've never seen so many berries in one place in my life. I don't know if you can see it, but the ground below the trees is covered - literally caked with mulberries (click on any photo to see it original size). So yahoo. Free fruit, right? Um...sure.

My first mulberrying experience was a little overwhelming. First, the trees grow enormously heavy branches that reach from around 10 feet up the trunk to almost brush the ground. You stand underneath them and it's like being in a green, fruit-scented cave it's so thick. Little bugs and teeny tiny spiders. I don't mind, they have to eat, too. The berries grow strangely, right up close to the branch in a V of the leaves. Look here:

And they were insanely ripe, so that I didn't even really have to pick them, I just held the bowl underneath and sort of brushed them with my fingers. They plop right into the bowl. The thing is, they were so ripe, that every time a branch moved - because I moved it with my touch, or a breeze blew, or it just got too darn heavy from all the fruit - berries fell off from above. That was what made it strange, it started raining mulberries in my green fruit-scented cave. Squishing in the fallen stuff on the ground ( I had to scrape my shoes off after, it looked just like preserves), berries in my hair, in my pockets, down my blouse...it was a whole lot of mulberry.

But here's what I brought in after 5-10 minutes:

It's hard to see, but that's a two-quart dish, about 3/4 full. Not bad for a few minutes of weirdness. They have tiny little stems that you don't even have to remove if you're eating out of hand. I couldn't believe how sweet they were. Next year, I'm going to cook & strain them to add to strawberry jam. The sweetness of the mulberries and the tartness of the strawberries should offset each other perfectly. No sugar, no fuss, just a little pectin and we're good to go!

Have I mentioned how much I love summer food?

Here's what's in season now:

Squash of all kinds
Lovely fresh peas (best eaten directly out of the pod while standing in the garden)
Cherries
Blueberries are hanging on
Onions
Raspberries
Broccoli
Garlic is fabulous
Cucumbers
Beans are coming
Carrots and peppers will be here soon

Our garden, like everyone else's in the area, has taken a beating this year. We've had an insane amount of rain. Not gentle summer showers, either, but massive harmful downpours. Our peppers are struggling, and our tomatoes had better learn the backstroke if they want to survive. The farmers are having a tough time of it as well, which means higher prices at the local markets and farmstands. We persevere, but are not very hopeful that we will be able to harvest enough to see us through the winter like we did last year. At least we have the luxury of a hundred grocery stores, but there is nothing like opening a jar of your own tomatoes in February - it's like you've canned a bit of summer!

Have a great one!