Foraging for Jams & Jellies

Foraging is not just about collecting plants for herbal remedies. You can forage for fruits and berries that you can turn into delicious jams, jellies, or syrups. Huckleberries are hands down the most popular wild fruit to forage in our area. It is so popular here that each family's favorite foraging spot is a closely guarded secret. Our family likes huckleberry jam, but we enjoy having a variety of flavors to fill the pantry. A few of our favorites from foraged fruits are mixed berry (consisting of whatever blend of berries we happen to have on hand that year), serviceberry, and Oregon grape.


Mixed berry jam and lilac jelly

Fruits and Berries

Here is a list of fruits & berries you might have growing wild in your area that you can forage to make jams, jellies, and syrups. There are many more possibilities, this is just a sampling!

  • Huckleberry
  • Blackberry
  • Wild Raspberry
  • Wild Strawberry
  • Serviceberry
  • Thimbleberry
  • Currant
  • Gooseberry
  • Elderberry
  • Oregon Grape
  • Apples
  • Wild Plum
  • Rose Hips


 
Oregon grape and serviceberry foraged from our property

We have yet to try thimbleberry jam. We haven't ever foraged enough of them to be able to make a batch of jam yet. Nonetheless, I am eager to try it.

Flowers

You can even forage flowers to make jellies. Here are a few ideas:

  • Rose Petals
  • Lilac
  • Dandelion


How do you make jelly out of flowers? The simple explanation is that you first make a tea from the petals and then use the tea to make jelly. Check out our "Three Flowers You Can Forage to Make Jelly" article on our website where we have links to recipes you can try.


Foraging Notes

Be sure to review the foraging laws in your state to identify areas where foraging is allowed. Laws can vary by state. If you find a spot on private property, be sure to get the owner's permission before foraging. 

Remember to always properly identify any plant before you harvest and to pick responsibly. Happy foraging!


Comments

  1. Laura's Daily LogJuly 23, 2024 at 12:33 PM

    We have been living on the west side of Puget Sound for a couple of years now. I have discovered Oregon Grape, Salmon Berry, Red Huckleberry, wild strawberry and Thimbleberry. The last one was a new one for me. Never knew it existed. I have made Elderberry jam and syrup but we don't have any here at our "farm". Since our berry bushes are thin and almost non-existent, I have been trying to clear out scrub from around the Red Huckleberry bushes to give them more sun . I would love to move them this fall and keep them close together. Would you move them closer or keep them where they are?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Prepped LivingAugust 22, 2024 at 3:59 PM

    I have blueberry bushes that are separated by a decent amount of space and they don't seem to do as well as my friend's bushes that are much closer together. Based on this and the fact that you see huckleberry bushes rather close together in nature, it would make sense to move them closer. I know this can shock the plants a bit and might set back production, so you could always keep an eye on them where they are, as you suggest, for a year or two and see what happens.

    Where are our berry experts? We would love to hear your thoughts!

    ReplyDelete

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