| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| Islay |
Anyone else not got many sloes and damsons?I don't know if it's a local problem, or even a one-footpath problem (I haven't looked anywhere else yet), but I literally got three damsons this mornng on a one hour walk, and not a sloe in sight, despite there being half a dozen of each tree along the path.Is anyone else finding this, or am I just looking along a particularly unfortunate path? |
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| sean |
There are tonnes of 'em here. Last year we didn't get any though. Did you have a late frost? | ||||
| welsh lamb |
We have had loads of Damsons this year - best crop for 5 years 
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| marigold |
Too many foragers? | ||||
| Ixy |
got a bumper crop of each this year here 
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| Mary-Jane |
Ditto here. |
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| colour it green |
lots here. did notice they have been stripped around public footpaths though.. foraging is ever popular - luckily we have enough sloes in our own hedges.. but maybe you should look elsewhere in case they have just been had | ||||
| Rob R |
Be a bit brave and ask a few farmers for the right to pick on their land, I bet there are loads you never see, and they will never pick. | ||||
| welshboy454 |
And here - brilliant crop of sloes |
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| jema |
Sloes are looking good here 
We probably have about 5-6lb so far. |
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| PeteS |
Picked 5kgs (11lbs) of sloes so far. Down here in and around the New Forest I have never seen (or seen signs) of anyone else picking sloes. | ||||
| cab |
Loads here but they were early; a lot of the damson trees have ripened already and gone over. | ||||
| ksia |
Damsons a go-go, sloes a no-no. | ||||
| oliveoyl |
Just try a different patch. I went out collecting sloes yesterday and in some places the bushes were covered in fruit, and some were extremely sparse like last year (I don't think they'd already been picked over... if they were the person must have brought a ladder along!). | ||||
| melchizedek |
More Sloes than I can shake a stick at here (near Scarborough). Over the past three weeks I've picked in excess of 20lbs. And only last week I discovered another dozen new bushes, all gagging to be stripped. I also found five new damson bushes, too, so I've a busy day ahead of me tomorrow
But last year, all my favourite bushes were bare. So I guess they're making up for it this year. I've picked bags and bags of cherries too this year. It's been the best year I can remember. |
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| Islay |
So clearly it's just me! It was quite a busy footpath, so perhaps it had been picked over already. Going to my (v rural) cousins next weekend and they assure me that they've still got loads, so there's hope for my annual sloe gin yet! | ||||
| mochyn |
An excellent year for all the prunus this year: unlike last which was a complete wash out! Just bottled a good bucketful of damsons and made 3l of damson cordial and have I don't know how many pounds of plums in the freezer ready for doing something with, all from my neighbour's 'garden'. | ||||
| lottie |
All plummy things have done well here this year---just started picking my Marjories Seedling----if only they didn't trim the hedges here just when the sloes are ripe---still got enough for several bottles of sloe gin though.
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| Rob R |
For anyone short of sloes, we can help this year with the Downsizer-famous Rosewood Sloes | ||||
| KILLITnGRILLIT |
I`m in agreement, I foraged (well my wife, sister-in-law, daughter & boyfriend did) enough wild damsons and gages for 7-8 large parfait jars of jam and mixed fruit/veg chutneys. Then my sister had a glut of Damsons, gages and plums and I managed more jam. To cap it all when sniping a bunny for the ferrets last night I spotted a few bushes absolutely laden with sloes and this morning I removed over a gallon and it looks like I hadn`t touched them. Strange things the old sloes eh ! |