How To Gather Blackberry LeafTo harvest blackberry leaf, gather the young leaves, and tips of new shoots, in the spring, while they are tender and before the plant flowers. It is advisable to wear thick gloves as the thorns also grow on the underside of the leaves.
Don't try to break off tough stems, the tender tips will be quite easy to break off. I have to confess, I don't wear gloves when gathering blackberry or nettles, I use my long nails to pinch off the tender stems. Of course a small pair of scissors would be just as effective. Give each stem a good shake before you place it in your basket or tub, this will dislodge insects, which seem to like to hang out amongst the prickly leaves. The leaves can then be rinsed thoroughly dried, fragmented and kept in an air tight jar or washed chopped, and frozen. |
I like to dry my blackberry leaves by tying them into bunches, and hanging in a dry place. The picture shows some of my bunches of blackberry ready to be hung and dried.
First of all I give the sprigs of blackberry a good shake to dislodge insects, then I give them a good rinse under the cold tap, trying not to bruise any of the tender leaves. This is to dislodge yet more insects and to clean the leaves. I check the leaves for bad ones, and signs of disease, I snap those off and throw them away. |
Then hang my tied bundles in a dry place, like my airing cupboard, south facing window, or on my tree branch sculpture that I have hanging in my lounge.
I guess the bunches could also be hung outside in the sun, on a washing line, or hanging from a tree would be good places. It's good to have a bit of air circulating while the leaves are drying. Check on your leaves daily for signs of mould, they may need moving to a dryer area...the leaves should take about a week to dry properly. When dry just remove them from the stem, keep the leaves whole (until use) and store in an air tight jar. |