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Hedge cuisine - recipes wanted!
September 2008
Autumn hedgerows offer a wealth of delicious ingredients. That's why environmental charity and Hedgelink partner, The Tree Council is collecting recipes that use the wild food - from blackberries and crab apples, to rosehips and hazelnuts - which can be gathered from them.
"Hedgerows - and the trees that grow in them - are a great source of fresh wild food and we are gathering recipes which we can publish to highlight this important resource," said Jon Stokes, The Tree Council's director of rural programmes.
Ideas have already come in from The Tree Council's network of 8,000 volunteer Tree Wardens in England, Wales and Scotland. They are spearheading The Tree Council's Hedge Tree Campaign to get more trees growing in Britain's hedgerows. These volunteers are all part of The Tree Council's Tree Warden Scheme, run in partnership with National Grid and supported by the Government department, Communities and Local Government.
"We are now keen to hear from anyone else who would like to share a tried and tested recipe with others," explained Jon. "As well as the fruits and seeds that can be gathered in autumn, we'd also like to receive recipes using, for example, elderflowers or dandelion leaves which can be harvested at other times of the year. We're particularly interested to hear about regional variations - for example, is sloe gin made the same way in Cornwall and Cumbria, Pembrokeshire and Perthshire?"
The appeal for 'Hedge Cuisine' recipes marks the 10th anniversary of The Tree Council's Seed Gathering Season - which began life in 1998 as Seed Gathering Sunday and then developed into a month-long call to action, starting on 23 September (the autumn equinox) and continuing until 23 October.
"This is the time of year when we encourage people to gather seeds, nuts and fruits to grow new trees. Quite a few of these can also be used in delicious jams, pies and other dishes," Jon pointed out. "However, it's important to bear in mind that fruit is the property of the landowner, whichever side of the hedge it grows, so it should only be collected with the owner's permission. And any collecting should be done without causing damage.
"Thanks to initiatives like the Defra-funded Environmental Stewardship scheme delivered by Natural England, farmers are now increasingly maintaining hedgerows to benefit wildlife. This means there should be far more flowers and fruit in future. So, there is likely to be plenty to go round - both for wildlife and people."
Send in your recipes
Please send recipes, with your name and contact details, to "Hedge Cuisine", The Tree Council, 71 Newcomen Street, London SE1 1YT,
You can also email them to: hedgetrees@treecouncil.org.uk
Tips
If you are planning to collect ingredients from hedgerows, here are some tips:
- Fruit is the property of the landowner.
- Don't collect anything from hedgerows beside busy roads or on old industrial sites.
- Don't allow children to pick - or eat - from hedgerows unsupervised and make sure you know exactly what you are picking: some of the most attractive berries are poisonous and easily mistaken for edible ones.
- Wherever you gather your wild food, wash it well.
- Don't pick more than you need and don't uproot any wild plants - it's illegal.
you can read the full press release on The Tree Council Website.
