It does indeed! It’s amazing what prolonged summer rain does to the natural world. I’ve seen chanterelles popping up everywhere in places where I’ve not seen them before. In terms of porcini, the season already seems to have had its peak! I hope we will get another flush in September. Last week I was all alone on Millstone Hill where I found this beauty:
The path to the summit was lined with mushrooms, most of which I didn’t recognize. It was such a rich environment. I did bring a few tasty ones down to the bike and they later went into my meal:
With this abundance of food everywhere, there comes a point when I collect more than I can eat in a day. After finding a huge treasure trove of chanterelles, I decided to pickle them for when John comes home next week.
I have no idea what it will taste like, but if it works then it’s a great solution for dealing with a ‘glut’.
In the garden and greenhouse, some exciting things are popping up. I’ve harvested the first of the yellow courgettes and practically needed sunglasses looking at it:
In the same colour scheme, the rescued tomato plants are also doing their best to reward us:
I’m having tomatoes on toast for lunch every day now. Sometimes with some cucumber slices, as we have plenty of those, too! There’s a massive one lurking in the back of the greenhouse, which I’m going to keep to frighten John with 😆.
On my way back from picking gooseberries at Peterculter, I cycled past the retirement flats in Cults and couldn’t believe my eyes: a spectacular collection of Giant Polypore! This is one of my favourites as its so versatile with a texture of succulent chicken. As I got my knife out to pick some, I was very aware of all the net curtains and the elderly folk behind them! But who knows, it might have sparked somebody’s curiosity.
Last but not least, the cranberries have appeared in the hills. I walked up Hill of Fare yesterday and found lots of them near the summit. It seems very early, last year I didn’t find them until September.
It was soul-restoring to be up there, with a warm summer breeze and damp soil, the heavy scent of heather and peat, and the visually perfect combination of greens and pinks. I’ll leave you with a photo taken at one of my favourite places on this Earth:
The healthy forager 