Blackberries: Foraging, Taming & Preserving
Few fruits come as freely given as the blackberry: in the wild it sprawls along forest edges and hedges, while in the garden it reliably bears fruit year after year on a trellis – on request even without thorns.
Foraging in the wild
- Season: late July to September – the berries on one cane ripen over several weeks, one after another
- Only pick deep black, easily detaching berries; red ones are unripe and won't ripen further
- Pick higher up: below knee height, wild animals may have left traces (keep fox tapeworm in mind). According to the Bavarian Health and Food Safety Authority (LGL), always wash wild berries thoroughly before eating; heating above 60 °C is safest – freezing does not kill the eggs. So pick berries you plan to eat raw from higher up
- Sturdy clothing: wild bushes fight back
- Remember good spots – a strong stand bears fruit every year
In the garden
- Thornless varieties (e.g. Navaho, Loch Ness) make harvesting a pleasure and spread less aggressively
- Trellis or fence: tie the canes up fan-shaped – this saves space and gives the berries sun
- Pruning is everything: blackberries bear fruit on second-year canes. Cut spent canes to the ground after harvest, tie up young canes for next year
- Location: sunny to partial shade, undemanding regarding soil
Harvest
- Fully ripe berries almost detach on their own – best to pick through every 2–3 days
- Blackberries don't ripen further once picked and stay fresh only 1–2 days: process or freeze quickly
Using the harvest
- Jam & jelly: the classic – because of the seeds, the strained jelly version is worthwhile
- Freezing: pre-freeze on a tray, then bag up – keeps them separable. Freezing does not make wild berries safer: fox tapeworm eggs survive it (LGL)
- Syrup, liqueur, vinegar: from the last, smaller berries of the season
- Young blackberry leaves, dried, make a mild tea base
Sources
- Bavarian Health and Food Safety Authority (LGL): Fuchsbandwurm, accessed 5 Oct 2026
The sources support individual statements in this article. The organisations named have neither reviewed nor endorsed it.