Mulberries: Free for the Taking

A sheet, a stick, and two colanders. That's all it takes to harvest one of the sweetest berries around this time of year. Chicago's rife with mulberry trees, and if you have a neighbor as generous as Claude, you just gather your tools and a couple friends and walk on over.

Claude's garden,
reminiscent of Monet's

The tree is heavy with fruit,
for now and the next time we visit.

A couple sharp thwacks with the stick and the berries rain down into our linen.

Picking out twigs.

One of two colanders
we filled in no time.

Right now Bruce is putting a mulberry tart in the oven, same as last year. I'll opt for mulberries and cream myself, a perfect celebration of the summer solstice, unless he's sharing...

Mulberries

They're not grown in SIPs, much less on a rooftop. Heirloom? I have no idea.


There's something appealing about walking over to a neighbors house (Thanks Claude!) and shaking her Mulberry tree for dessert. The only real work involved is picking out a few twigs from the takings.

They are delicious eaten plain, topped with yogurt, or in a simple tart.

H2 and I spread out an old bedsheet under the tree and Art shook the branches with a pole.




On a related note, I'd like to thank Art and Chel at Pleasant House for reminding me that Juneberries/Serviceberries are edible. Add to that bit of info the fact that I've got one growing in my sideyard...........