Wild Grapes

We have wild grapes! We have probably always had wild grapes and I just didn't know it. We have a large grapevine on our old TV antennae attached to the back of the house, but I have usually cut it down every year. Last year I left it alone, mostly due to a lack of time and energy to deal with it. (Last year was the "year of the dogs" and a lot of things got "left".) 


This year I discovered grapes on it and the world of wild grapes opened up! It is covered with them, but there are even more growing and fruiting in a  back fence areas that I didn't know were there. 

At this time of year our back fence is unapproachable due to the goldenrod and wild raspberry bushes. With the hope of wild grapes in mind I blazed a path through the weeds to the fence and found several enormous vines filled with grapes!

Half are ready now and half still need to ripen another week or so. Next week on Monday morning I will go grape picking again. The grapes growing in sunny areas are all ripe now. It is the ones in the shade against the woods that need to ripen a bit longer. 

The picture at the top is what I picked now. I will probably get at least half that again in another week! This is about 13 pounds of grapes. We weighed them at 11 pounds, then I found about 1/4 of a bucket more and added those. So I am estimating it at about 13 pounds. I will make some wild grape jelly (recipe below) but we don't eat much of it so I won't be making a lot. Some wild grape jelly I will make in fancy jars and use for gifts. The rest of the grapes will be frozen until winter, when I have the time make wine.

We have truly been blessed with an abundance of wealth here on the land The Lord has given us! He continually amazes me with His gifts daily! There is just so much here in the way of herbs, fruits, mushrooms and wildcrafting abundance!

Wild grape jelly recipe:

3 lbs wild grapes, stemmed
3 cups water
4 1/2 cups sugar
1 (85 ml) package liquid pectin

• In large saucepan, crush grapes with potato masher; pour in water and bring to boil.


• Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes or until fruit is very soft.


• Transfer to jelly bag or colander lined with a double thickness of fine cheesecloth and let drip overnight.


• Measure juice (you should have 3 cups/750 ml) into a large heavy saucepan; stir in sugar.


• Bring to boil over high heat, stirring constantly.


• Stir in pectin.


• Return to full boil and boil hard for one minute, stirring constantly.


• Remove from heat and skim off foam with a metal spoon.


• Pour into sterilized jars, leaving 1/8 inch headspace.

Foraging

This year I began to forage over our property and the adjoining county forest. I am amazed at what I found growing here! We have been blessed with so much that we can use, right here at home, overlooked by most of society!

The medicinal herbs that grow here are astounding and are just growing wild in the fields! No one uses them, no one harvests them, many don't even realize what they are or how useful and effective they can be. I was one of these people until recently. Now I look at everything with new eyes. I research every plant I find growing here, if I have the time. The medicinal uses of the so-called "weeds" have been a bit of a shock. Now I have screens and armloads of them drying.




There are fruits growing wild here that I have used and will use to make pies, jam and wine, such as the wild grapes, wild red and black raspberries, wild blackberries, choke cherries (top picture), low and high bush cranberries, blueberries, buffalo berries and more.



There is a large colony of mushrooms here, shaggy manes, that are ranked very high on the list by professional cooks for their flavour. I am expecting these to make their yearly appearance any time now. I have the grass and weeds cut down to the ground in the area where they grow. I intend to cook and freeze them this year. I am also going to attempt to spread them to other areas, more accessible, on the property. They like disturbed ground and I have just the spot waiting for them.


Also, I believe I have found a few large colonies of ostrich ferns nearby! We will have fiddleheads in the spring! These have to be boiled for 15 minutes, then rinsed and drained a few times before they can be eaten. If eaten raw, they will make you sick. They are delicious! After boiling, I toss them in a skillet with garlic and butter and saute for a few minutes.


There are cattails growing in the ditch and I know that their roots are very good baked, as a starch, although I think we will skip that one in favour of potatoes and rice or pasta, for now. They will still be there, if we should ever need them. The new shoots and flower pollen can also be eaten. The pollen taste like corn, or so I have read.

There is also plenty of milkweed growing wild here. All parts are edible. The sprouts are steamed and the seed fluff is much like mozzarella cheese on top of a baked dish. This is what I have read, anyway. I have not eaten them, myself. 

I know we could survive here, on our own, self sufficient in a disaster or when society fails, and that is a comfort. We have medicine growing in the fields, room to grow our own food and plenty of wild food to harvest!

I don't know that anything will happen here anytime soon and I don't mean to sound like a doomsday prophet, I'm just saying...

We have been truly blessed!

Could you survive after a disaster or the fall of society?

(You know you have let go of material possessions when the thought of being self sufficient in a disaster is exciting. Is that a good thing? Hmmmmmm...don't know...perhaps not.)