(Fill-in-the-Blank) Berries

Perhaps it is fitting that the June "My Year of Plants" entry actually takes place in mid-July. The pace of plant-related activities and responsibilities achieves a whole new level as summer hits full stride. There is watering to be done, before and after work, especially in this year of record drought and high temperatures. The Japanses beetles finally found my grape vines, so I have to spend time picking them off the leaves and brainstorming about ways to prevent their friends and cousins from following suit. And, not to mention the hours planting, transplanting, tying up, mulching, composting, and fixing fences. Who has time to write? Had none of these (wonderful) tasks infused my life, I would have dedicated June to berries, spurred partly by the picking and enjoying/eating that took place during that month in a friend's raspberry patch. Berries are clearly the hot topic nowadays in the media, for both our local varieties (an interesting push is occurring in Wisconsin about the chokeberry, Prunus virginiana) and for the many interesting tropical fruits touted for their impressive antioxidant levels and purported health effects. Sure, I consider health and vitality when popping a berry into my expectant mouth, but I'm more of a simpleton: the taste, the texture, the fact that often I have just picked this from some unsuspecting thorny cane, these are my motivators. I can't seem to get enough. Furthermore, berries are where my past meets my present and then shakes hand with my future; I find that I remember working in my grandmother's garden as a child and now try to re-live the recipes in my summer life. Not to mention the plans I have for jams and jellies, and frozen berries that make their way into smoothies, taking advantage of a new and powerful blender. I could go on and on, and, in fact, I will in this chapter of "My Year of Plants." The pending book will be your guide to berries, smoothie recipes, and insider scoops about weeding a strawberry patch in northern Wisconsin. You can't wait, can you?