We might be heading towards the end of summer, but I do love this time of year for the rich bounty of produce that comes in to season.  Maybe it is because I grow some of my own food (I have loads of courgette at the moment!) but just looking around when you are out and about – plums are ripe on the trees, apples are pairs are fattening on the trees, and the bramble pickers are starting their annual search for blackberries.

This isn’t just in the rural idylls – a couple of years back I went picking blackberries during my lunch time along a path near my office close to central Bristol (my colleagues thought I was mad picking them rather than buying them from M&S on the trading estate – I never got that).  And in Sheffield, a non-profit group (Abundance) have been on the lookout for city gardens with fruit trees, contacting the owners to see if they are making use of the fruit, and if not, with their agreement harvesting the apples, pairs and plums to distribute amongst the community.

So please – if you do have fruit or veg in your garden that you won’t be using yourself, share the love!  And do look out for what’s growing in public around your way – I get the feeling we’ve lost the gathering instinct but it would be great to revive.

I look forward to some offers of home picked and foraged blackberry and apple crumbles – happy to exchange for some chocolate courgette cake…