Harvesting Hops & Elderberry Droughts
This week while out scouting for elderberries, I was overjoyed to discover a batch of wild hops (Humulus lupus) peeping out of the hedgerow. Having never before seen “Wolf of the Woods” in the wild, I decided to do a bit of research. By all accounts it appears that hop picking in 1940’s Britain was a rather jolly experience for everyone involved, as this rather amusing newspaper article describes.
A scroll through the BBC archives also uncovered numerous reels of film showing whole families heading off on a sort of plant gathering “holiday,” with the sole aim of taking in the fresh air, meeting up with friends, and generally having a good old lark about.
Father, mother, children, the dog, the newest baby and piles of household goods all set out for the pleasant and profitable business of hop picking. The old phrase “caught on the hop” may have referred to the not so infrequent occasion of falling pregnant while engaged in the “work,” or perhaps because hops were used in the brewing of beer, it’s also come to mean getting caught in the act of having a sneaky pint.
It’s clear that the annual hop harvest in times gone by was a much anticipated communal event that brought everyone together - which set me to thinking how wonderful it would be to make my next foraging expedition a group affair.
On a less convivial note, this week I was also struck by the noticeable absence of elderberries….
Way back in June I made a batch of the most delicious elderflower cordial from a beautiful tree which grows at the bottom of my road. While gathering the flowers, a young man paused to ask what I was doing. Encouraged by his interest, I explained I was making elderflower cordial, but was stopped abruptly in my tracks by his response:
“So that’s what all those women are doing! I wondered what they wanted the flowers for!”
As I know my foraging turf like the back of my hand, I knew for a fact that behind our local primary school there was a row of elder trees laden with flowers. With a feeling of dread, I took a short walk down the lane and discovered to my horror, that every single tree had been stripped of all the blooms within reach.
What some folks don’t realise is that if you pick all the flowers, come Autumn, there’ll be no berries left to harvest. Lo and behold, my prediction has come true. Here’s what I found when I revisited the trees again this morning.
Nothing to see here but a solitary berry high up at the top of the tree. When this happens, it means that either all the berries have been picked, or there were no flowers left to flourish.
As a colleague mentioned in discussion:
“It can be difficult to find trees with enough berries at the right height to enable picking. Most are just too high or inaccessible. Perhaps I need an abseiling harness for future seasons.”
Since lockdown the “Instagram-ification” of foraging has turned it into quite a trendy pursuit, which has left me in somewhat of a quandary.
As an ambassador for the Herb Society and someone who has a deep passion for home medicine making, I have to wonder if I might have inadvertently contributed to this problem. In fact it’s one of the reasons I’ve moved away from social media and started this Substack.
At first I was unsure if I should put my most treasured recipes and foraging tips behind a paywall. After all, as an advocate for “medicine for the people,” shouldn’t they be free for everyone to access? After a lot of thought I came to the conclusion that:
A. Although a lot of people like reading about home medicine making, not everyone actually wants to do it.
B. People who are willing to pay for this knowledge are far more likely to give my projects a go, and in doing so, are likely more disposed to foster an attitude of respect for the forager’s code of only ever taking what you need.
This local news article perfectly illustrates how upset people get about greedy foragers. In this instance, the villagers even went as far as to set up a local patrol to catch whoever was “cutting all the garlic.”
As a responsible herbalist, it would be remiss of me not to make the point that if you are out gathering, please do set an example and leave enough for others (including birds, insects and even other humans for now, and later on in the season.)
Now I’ve said my two-penneth, this Monday paid subscribers can look forward to an epic post on all things Elder. This includes identifying the tree through the seasons, some curious folklore, and a few tried and trusted recipes made from the flowers, leaves and berries. Starting these projects now ensures you’ll be stocking your home medicine chest in preparation for the colder months ahead.
Thanks for reading right to the end. Until next time when I’ll be discussing plants and their bedtimes….
Yours in good health,
Sarah
