In late summer of 1968, my maternal grandmother, Bertha Fritsch, would visit our small lakefront cottage on Lake Michigan to pick raspberries.
Dressed in her floral housedress (older German ladies did not wear shorts), she trekked into the large empty field behind our house to pick through the spiky vines for the perfect wild berries. She returned to the house with a few cuts and mosquito bites, happily concluding, “Now we make jam!”
The raspberries were then carried carefully into the kitchen, washed ever so briefly and dried on a clean tea towel. There was no time to waste, since the berries would lose their flavor and freshness in a few hours.
At that time, I was in high school, and I was thinking more about the boys on the beach rather than cooking jam. But looking back, I now see that the culinary heritage she brought from Germany in the 1920s was much more about preserving the bounty on our property.
And now I, too, comb the local farmers markets for fresh berries and stone fruit to create compotes and jams. But I do now wish for a berry crop I could call my own.
Growing your own berries
Since I live in a rental property, my notion was to seek out a berry that could move with me if I moved. While shopping at Anderson’s La Costa Nursery in Encinitas, I was pleased to work with Julie Werts, one of the horticulture staff, who pointed out that blueberries actually grow best in containers.
“The soil here in Southern California is not acid enough to produce good berries,” she said. “So, we amend our container soil with lime-free soil, and add fertilizer every eight weeks.
“It is a little late to start blueberries, but if you buy them now, they will stay dormant until spring and you will have a new crop. A few of the berries we have on hand are still producing their last harvest.”
According to garden manager Steven Froess: “My favorites are the Jewel and Misty varieties, but any Southern variety with a low chill factor will work.” Find Steven and the other horticultural staff at Anderson’s La Costa Nursery, 400 La Costa Ave, Encinitas, 760-753-3153. They will also special-order most fruit and berry products.
A complete guide to growing blueberries in San Diego can be found on the Master Gardener website at www.mastergardenersd.org/delicious-and-nutritious-blueberries.
Recipe for berry conserve
Now, the question is what to do with your fresh fruit? A conserve is made with whole fruit, as for jam, but the fruit is steeped in sugar before cooking, only briefly, so the final set is softer with more intact fruit.
This recipe comes from a lovely English cookbook, “The Jam Maker’s Garden,” by Holly Farrell. She says: “Growing and preserving should complement each other — two cycles perfectly in sync. That which we grow but cannot eat gets preserved to be eaten later when the plant is no longer cropping; we avoid waste and extend the harvest.”
This recipe works with all kinds of berries — blueberries, raspberries and blackberries.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 pound blueberries, stalk removed
- 1 pound granulated sugar
- 1 lemon
- Pinch of fine sea salt
METHOD
- Put the fruit in a large ceramic or glass bowl, then add 8 ounces of the sugar, the lemon juice and salt. Stir everything together well.
- Cover and leave to stand at room temperature overnight. Stir the mixture a number of times.
- Place the contents of the bowl into a quart saucepan and warm over low heat, stirring constantly.
- Once the mixture is warm, add the rest of the sugar and keep stirring until it is all dissolved.
- Turn up the heat and bring to a boil, then boil rapidly until it reaches the setting point (or 221 degrees in sugar thermometer).
- Take the pan off the heat and let stand for five minutes before placing in jars.
- The conserve will last two weeks in refrigerator or process according to Ball Jar recommendations.
These jars make wonderful gifts during the holidays!
Jano Nightingale is a Master Gardener and horticulturist who loves to preserve all sorts of fruit and vegetables. Contact her at [email protected].
