Getting in a jam

A couple of years back I made some jam, in fact I made just over 10ltrs of jam...and, I'm still eating it today. Well, it is a preserve. This year I've had a glut of Strawberries, oh the trauma I hear you sarcastically cry, but you can only eat so many bowls of strawberries and cream...can't you. Anyway, I thought I'd make some more jam. When baking/making I like to try and cut down the amount of sugar I'm using, so I cut out a third of the sugar, and increased the fruit by a third, of course altering the recipe radically. Then, I washed the fruit when I shouldn't have, making the mix far too liquidy. Yup, you guessed it, what should have been a simple exercise soon turned into a proper mare, what could wrong, did. I cooked and cooked, and still the mix was failing the wrinkle test, and I cooked some more. Then I turned my back, distracted by Geoff, and boom, it began to stick to the bottom of the pan. Luckily I got to it quick enough to stop it burning, but only just, finally, in my haste forgot to skim it (although that wont effect the taste or quality). As I said, everything that could go wrong had (and everything I could do wrong I did), though at the end of it I still had some jars of jam. Lady luck smiled on me today, and no mistake.  

Purple poppy

To me poppies epitomize delicate transient beauty. Intricate and fragile they shine for a day and them they're gone, no slow decline for them. This year they've been some gorgeous colours, deep rich reds through mauves and pinks to the most imperial purples. Always keeping on a prepping tip, and with an eye the countries slow demise, it's worth remembering that the poppy is also a useful and very potent medicinal plant. Even our British Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum) will produce low grade opium, effective enough as a pain killer if required. An understanding of our field and hedgerow plants medicinal, food and resource uses would have been commonplace in the past, and may well become invaluable in the future.

Breakhrough

A young Birch Polypore (Piptoporus betulinus) breaks through the bark of a truncated Birch (Betula) trunk, the top half of which has long fallen and lies rotting nearby. The young white flesh of the polypore looks tasty although it's not supposed to be that good to eat as it's tough, rubbery and bitter making it inedible really, although, it's far from useless, with plenty of bushcraft applications. This young example may be soft and bit squidgy though as they age they become firmer and firmer. It maybe inedible but the Birch Polypore (Piptoporus betulinus) is a medicinal miracle with antiseptic, anti bacterial, anti viral, anti-inflammatory, anti parasitic and anti fungal properties, it can also strengthen the immune system and that's just the beginning as new medical application are continually being identified, such as anti tumour and cancer fighting properties. It's usually consumed medicinally as a beverage. It has external uses too, thin strips of fresh skin from the underside of juvenile examples can be used as an antiseptic, anti bacterial and anti-inflammatory plaster. And it's not medicinal properties. When dried it's useful as tinder as it can take a weak spark, it'll also smoulder for a long time which makes it ideal for transporting embers. Birch Polypore was found with the body of Ötzi (the 5000 year old prehistoric man found locked in the Alpine ice) as part of his fire kit, although the multipurpose nature of the ploypore means he could have been carrying it for another use or for several uses. The tough upper surface of the Birch Polypore has traditionally been cut into strips, stretched and used as a strop to sharpen blades.  As you can see from my small description the Birch Polypore (Piptoporus betulinus), just like its host tree, has a cornucopia of bushcraft applications. Check it out, it's certainly worth knowing.

Give us today our daily wheat based products

Walking through bread basket fields today I had cause to think of how many of our daily ingredients we take for granted. Everything's changing and I don't think many people realize what that might mean. Climate change, falling bee populations, disease, all will have an effect on our food chain, it's reliability and productivity. Then I started thinking from a prepping angle. Take wheat here; we take wheat for granted, relatively new as it is (about 6000 years in these parts), it's a staple in many of our diets. Imagine it gone, or the systems which allow its industrial scale production being disrupted; no bread, no pasta and no pastry. What would people do, what would they eat? I thought, how would I grow wheat and how much would I need to grow? I have no idea about either. I then thought, even with my allotment and extensive foraging experience, how sad it was that I'm so removed from the food stuffs I consume and take for granted. So, next year I'm going to have a go at growing some wheat on the allotment, small scale obviously, but maybe a 4m square or something.

Jammin

I've been jammin, jammin, jammin, I hope you're like jammin too. Well, it is the season, for jam making that is. This year our allotment has so far produced bumper crops strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries and blackcurrants (with blueberries and blackberries still to come). We've eaten fresh of plenty but what better way of extending our enjoyment than making jam and I have. I've made strawberry, gooseberry, blackcurrant, raspberry and mixed fruits, I've made just over 10ltr of jam so far.  Preserving's a great way to make the most of surpluses you grow or forage, as well as prepping skill, preserving would be essential for maintaining a supply of food all year round. One thing that struck me whilst thinking down this path was how many of our preserving methods require large supplies of processed ingredients such as salt, sugar and vinegar, all things I'd imagine would all but disappear with the collapse of society. Something for me to think about when planning for social collapse or a zombie apocalypse (which ever strikes first). Still in the meantime, whilst it's there in bountiful quantities, I'm going to enjoy my jam.