The Long Weekend in August

The long weekend in August is Saskatoon Berry picking time. If the spring is warm and bright with lots of bees to pollinate the trees, the berries are plentiful. But the best years are years with good summer rains for big, plump berries. The Saskatoon berries hang like grapes from the trees and when fully ripe a little massage from the fingers will release the berries and they’ll roll right into your hand.

Years ago, we’d pack the kids and buckets into the car and head to our favorite berry patch across the highway. During a good year we could do quite a bit of picking up and down the roads close to the house. The day would end with purple mouths, purple fingers and a buckets of Saskatoons. We’d bring them home, clean them up and make a wonderful Saskatoon pie for supper as well as put a few bags in the freezer for pies during the winter.

It’s been a few years since we’ve gone berry picking. Yesterday while weed-wacking around the edge of the yard, something touched my head. I’m usually very leery about trees touching me (spiders and such) and I tend to back away and remind myself that that branch will have to come out later. (The penalty for touching me) This time I looked up, and there were the plumpest, ripest, purplest Saskatoons I’ve seen in years. Not quite enough for a pie from one tree, but more than enough for a handful for a sweet treat with plenty left over to mix in the morning’s yogurt.

All photos have a layer of Kim Klassen’s Aurora. Sharing with Texture Tuesday.