Blackberries of the thornless variety are growing at either end of the raspberry wires with extra support from two wooden arches, hastily built a couple of years ago in a, ‘Let’s build an arch’ moment. Of all the soft fruit they are the last to ripen, so that by the time you pick the leaves are already turning red round the edges and crisp as you move them aside to find a ripe berry.
Blackberries grow long, sinuous and strong. Smaller branchlets are formed along the length of the main cane and this is where the pretty rose flowers open towards the end of each shoot in June and July so that resulting berries form singly on short stalks but grouped. Not all of the berries in a bunch ripen at the same time, as if pollinating insects visit the end flower first and gradually move back along the cluster towards the main shoot.
When you pick, the ripe berries are large glossy sweet fruits, unlike wild brambles which are hard and often bitter. For three weeks or so you pick every one or two days as the fruits develop in turn. Both the sunny and shaded sides ripen together, so this ripening process must not depend on the sun. Discard any misshapen or discoloured fruit to the birds or mice as you have plenty. Each berry is a fused collection of approximately seventy juicy droplets, each containing a hard seed. Count them and see. Take a box lined with a piece of kitchen roll and begin. Place the box on the ground. Pick with your eyes first. Use both hands, one to hold the stem fast and the other to pull each berry away. Picking one-handed often results in an unripe fruit being pulled away in tandem and being wasted. You will rarely pick more than a couple of berries from the same spray so move on swiftly. Resist all temptation to pick berries that are two-toned.
Wait, wait days, until the berry is all black. So many times, you reach for a berry, only to find there are still droplets that are purple and still turning. Don’t pick; let the flavour and sweetness develop. The stems are weak and hairy; ticklish almost. Concentrate, as it is easy to be distracted by the patterns and textures, by the ground beneath your feet or the clouds scudding by. When you have picked the whole row turn around and pick in the opposite direction. As the light moves behind you, you will notice all the ripe berries you have missed so begin again. It is not an arduous task; take your time and feel no guilt at the time spent picking.
Go blackberrying after supper, in the last of the light when it is soft and shadowless. The plant presents a serpentine puzzle for you to solve. Remember where the next-ripe berries will be tomorrow. Spend time looking low down, where brambles droop amongst the mint and feverfew, to reward yourself with borrowed astringency. Laugh at your purple stained fingers. Notice the first-fallen walnut husks, hard green leather-like cases, advertising next month’s crop and the bees on the lavender still working.