St James The Great

​Old Milverton, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire

​Geoff's Eco Tips

​Geoff’s Hedgerow Harvest Eco-Challenge for September

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”   

Galatians 6:9

This month’s challenge is to get busy during ‘harvest’ and gather some things you may not normally think of harvesting – of course that doesn’t mean scrumping for apples!

Apart from harvesting flowers, fruit and veg from your garden, if you have one, collecting seeds from your plants is an easy and sustainable way to propagate plants for next year. Also you could collect and dry flowers such as Statice for house displays and lavender for freshening the air indoors during the winter months.

However, whether you have a garden or not, now is the perfect time to seek out wild food in hedgerows. Foraging for food in hedgerows is a great way to connect with nature. Remember though, that a lot of our wildlife relies solely on the bounty of nature, so be careful not to strip areas bare. Here’s some of the things that are on offer:

Sloes (the berry of the blackthorn) – Sloe gin is very easy to make as a special liqueur to drink at Christmas. It keeps for several years and improves with age. You can also make wine from sloes.

Hazel is a lovely UK native hedgerow plant. It has large leaves with jagged edges and a distinctly pointed tip. From September, hazelnuts set in their little green cups, start forming in small clusters. Birds tend to eat them before they ripen, but you can pick them when still green and ripen at home in a warm dry place. Eat them as a snack or use in salads or cooking.

Rosehips, bright red or orange fruit of the wild rose stand out in hedgerows in September. Like sloes, they are said to be best after the first frost, when the leaves drop off the stems, but you can pick them when ripe and freeze them which has the same effect. Rosehips are very high in antioxidants and vitamins, so are very good for you, but require cooking to make them suitable for making into syrup, wine, jam or jelly, which are all delicious.

Common beech either as individual trees or as a plant is recognised by its beautiful large copper coloured oval shaped leaves that sometimes stay on the plant until well into spring. The fruit of the plant ‘beechnuts’ or ‘beechmasts’ are only produced every four or five years. They are triangular in shape and are housed in bristly husks. After discarding the husks, the nuts can be eaten raw, but they can be bitter owing to tannins and so roasting them helps improve flavour and breaks down some toxins that they contain.

Bramble, or blackberry, is a great plant for wildlife as part of a mixed hedge. This year the fruit seems to be prolific. There are so many things you can do with brambles, such as bramble jam, jelly, coulis, cordial or wine. Blackberries are enjoyed by blackbirds, thrushes and fieldfares, as well as squirrels, mice, badgers and foxes, so it’s important to leave plenty.

Elderberries are ripe now, but hopefully may continue through to early October. Make sure the berries are ripe before you harvest. You can use them in crumbles and pies, jams, jellies, wines and more. Elderberries are tart, so work best when cooked with sugar. They make really good wine when combined with brambles.

This year challenge yourself to harvest some things that you haven’t tried before and really enjoy being outside and just connecting with nature.

With love,

Geoff  ​​​