We Went to Pick Mulberries

... weeks ago and I completely forgot about it until today when I was looking through the pictures. Ok, so we went to pick mulberries a couple of weeks ago. Maybe it isn't all that long ago, but it sure feels like it.

I remember that we had big mulberry trees growing wild in the Volga-Don region. Picking mulberries was just about the only fun thing to do in a summer camp. So I sort of assumed that mulberries are well-known in Russia. Turns out, that so many of my Russian friends, particularly the ones from Siberia and up north (Moscow, St. Petersburg) don't know what a тутовник is.

Well, luckily, we do have wild mulberries in Raleigh. The challenge is to find the one with a) low-hanging branches and b) close to the road so you don't have to wade through waist-high poison ivy. Last few year we would go to the art museum and walk along the nice paved road in their park and pick from a few large mulberry trees. But this year they must've trimmed the trees 'cause all the low branches are gone (or maybe trees had a growth spurt since last spring).

Still, it's a lovely park and M and I went on a stroll there one day. Surprisingly, M wanted to go into the woods and walk on the trails. I'm all about that since it's much more pleasant in the deep shade than in the blazing sun. Plus the woods are just the best place to be in the spring because everything is blooming and the air smells so sweet and clear, you really image you are out in the middle of nowhere exploring.

And whadda ya know? As we were walking along the narrow hiking trails, noticing all different birds (the place is terrific for bird-watching) and frogs and a few rabbits, we found a few mulberry bushes near the gravel road on the far side of the meadow.