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Can I eat these wild berries?

Richard.jones89Richard.jones89 Posts: 59
in Fruit & veg
Potentially stupid question, but I'd rather err on the side of caution before potentially poisoning myself eating wild berries....that said, can I eat these pictured berries? Been hesitant to try them. 

There's loads of these around (and I mean LOADS) so keen to know if edible or not? 
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Posts

  • Joy*Joy* Posts: 571
    Yes they are blackberries. Just make sure that any you pick are out of range of where dogs can wee!
  • josusa47josusa47 Posts: 3,531
    Very tart and very pippy.  You could bake them in a pie, with plenty of sugar, or add them to apple pie or crumble.  But I think the best use is to make bramble jelly.  I tried and it wouldn't set, so we called it bramble syrup and mixed it with plain yogurt.
  • Joy*Joy* Posts: 571
    Brambles are low in acid and pectin so if you want jam, add some baking apples or if you want jelly, add lemon juice. I too would make crumble - stew them and sieve to get rid of the pips if they are small, then mix with some baking apples, yum!
  • LynLyn Posts: 21,372
    I always put them in a dish with some salt water, a maggot crawls out of almost all of them😱
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • B3B3 Posts: 24,463
    Put them in bowl containing water with a little salt and any bugs or maggotty things will float to the surface
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • LynLyn Posts: 21,372
    Snap! 😀
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • B3B3 Posts: 24,463
    😀
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • Richard.jones89Richard.jones89 Posts: 59
    Awesome, thanks all!! 
  • mikeymustardmikeymustard Posts: 495
    Take 500g of blackberries and tip into a 2-litre Kilner jar, or divide between two smaller jars.
    Add 250g sugar and 1L of white rum then seal the jar. Shake well. Once a day for seven days, give the jar a good shake. Store the jar in a cool, dark place and leave for two to three months.
    Line a plastic sieve with a square of muslin set over a bowl and strain the liquid through it. Decant into clean, dry bottles, then seal and label.
    Store for as long as possible - it's drinkable by Christmas but better the next two Christmases after!

    Nicer than slow gin (IMHO) 
  • Joy*Joy* Posts: 571
    Rather than the salt water treatment, I have picked enormous quantities over my lifetime and have simply spread them out on trays in a single layer, and waited to see if anything crawls out. If you do see any creepy crawlies you can pick them off. Careful washing also works if they have been spread out for a while. When we were children we picked them and ate them off the bushes without thinking and never came to any harm. If they are very very grubby I would ditch them. You are just as likely to get grubs in the ones you cultivate.
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