Most CSA members ordered mulberries this last week. They might be delicious, but they are very difficult to pick. Well, you could pick enough for one pie by hand without too much trouble. Picking enough for 40 CSA members is another story!
Most of our mulberry trees have been watched and taken care of very well all spring. All we have to do for these is put down a few sheets and shake the tree. You shake and shake and shake some more, and the mulberries fall gently to the ground. Then you roll the sheets together and put all the berries into containers. This sounds easy, and it is easier than doing it by hand, but there is more work to be done. You have to take out leaves and dirt chunks. You also have to get the berries into the container without squishing them. This is difficult when the berries are so ripe!
Of course, this method didn't quite get enough berries for everyone's order. We then got to climbing. From there you spend a few hours hanging awkwardly, one handily, while picking. This isn't too difficult for me, but Les looks a little silly like this.
The final result is having delicious berries to eat and purple hands for a week.
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