When we bought the
house in spring 2011 there was four older red currant bushes which were just
bursting with berries, unfortunately two of them were starting to show signs of
aging and most of the branches have died over the years and while they are
still alive it takes some years for new shoots to grow and begin to bear
fruits. Despite that we still have more than enough berries to make jam (or
jelly as it is actually called), cordial and to freeze for use over the winter.
Last year
(2018) was a particularly hot summer in Norway, while this summer (2019) has
been so far rather wet and grey in spite of the heat wave that has ravaged the
rest of Europe ? This has had a bad effect on some parts of my garden, but my
berries seem to have enjoyed the extra water and were plump and ready around
the beginning of the 3rd week of July.
Deciding
when to pick berries is an art as each year will vary a little, but for jam you
want to pick them before they are too ripe. A few more hot days and they will
be overripe and the jam or jelly will not set, albeit sweet mushy berries are
perfect for making juice and syrup.
Here is the
link to my tried and proven red currant jam:
Jam making tips: https://roland-designs.blogspot.com/2018/07/the-red-currant-season-jam-making-tips.html
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| Moumousse came to keep me company |
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| Loads of berries, and organic too ! You should have seen how many snails and spiders I had to remove.... |
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| Picking berries for over two hours will leave your hands a little pink.... |
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| No fancy equipment needed. |
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| The leftover berry mush (seeds and skins) went to the compost. |
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