It All Started With Juneberries…
It was kind of a hot afternoon when my spouse and I wandered into a field scouting for Juneberries. With the amount of moisture this spring, the word was out that there would be an abundant crop this year, and the information was accurate. When I was a kid there were several tree rows that would yield Juneberries, but not every year. The amount of rain we received would have a direct bearing on the crop of berries that we could expect.
Sure, there were several other factors that included avoiding a late frost, or even one of those summer thunderstorms with hail that would literally knock the green berries right off of the bushes.
This year there is an abundance of Juneberries, but the challenge we have this year is the hot weather that tends to ripen the berries quickly. Perfect Juneberries look a lot like their blueberry cousins, and it a perfect year they truly would start to ripen at the end of June. Still, we picked a couple of ice cream pails full with intentions of using them for eating-Juneberries and cream, baking-Juneberry Kuchen (topic for another article), or freezing for winter use.
There is another challenge for Juneberries, that being that the birds are just as fond of them as we are. Once they, the birds, have discovered what we have, that the Juneberries are ripe and ready to pick, they become competitors for the larger and perfectly ripened berries. It’s not unusual to have a robin withing a foot of where you are picking letting you hear their displeasure with you taking what is theirs.
Take What You Are Given
My Dad used this comment quite a bit, and I as I think back, he was using it to accurately describe our life in North Dakota. Take for example, apple trees. Most are not native to North Dakota, and the success of a good apple crop from a tree like the one in our back yard depends on good spring moisture, the right amount of spring breezes, and pollination of the blooming flowers at just the right time. Last year, the tree was loaded. This year? Not so much. In fact, I have yet to discover even one green apple on the tree.
Another northern tier fruit is the Aronia Berry. Our friends at Wolf Creek Winery in Coleharbor use these berries to produce a great wine. Even though they do grow wild, most of the Aronia Berries used for wine in North Dakota come from producers. Still, we used to pick Aronia Berries when we would discover them in tree rows near where I grew up. Not nearly as sweet as Juneberries, but a handful was always a treat.
There is so much in North Dakota that falls under the “take what you are given” category. Last night we watched as thunderstorms were building after a very hot day. We had the opportunity to tour some of the fields near where we were picking Juneberries. They look really good. But who knows whether the storms that approached would bring hail and high winds. A good field can turn into a hailed out field in a hurry.
And then there are those who enjoy the sport of fishing on area lakes. Sometimes fishing is good and sometimes you are doing no more than drowning worms. Another case of taking what North Dakota gives us.
I would guess that in every corner of the United States it is certainly the case to “Take What We Are Given.” But it doesn’t necessarily pertain to only food products. It could be scenery, like the badlands of North Dakota, or the great lake shores of Minnesota, the mountains of Montana…and I could go on forever. I am from here, and I do take time to tell everyone about what is special in this area. Our neighbors on Minot Air Force Base need to hear it from us. We need let them know what is special so that they, too, can Take What They Are Given. Whether it be for a short time, like 2 years, or a lifetime once they retire and choose Minot as their permanent home, let’s help them Take What They Are Given.
Best Kept Secrets
North Prairie Farmer’s Market is now open, this year with 2 locations. On Broadway near downtown Minot from 11 AM to 2 PM on Saturdays across from Planet Pizza, and watch for announcements on a second location, Tuesdays, near Trinity Health’s new campus.
Today’s Chuckle: Rock Therapy
A young lad was on the lake shore looking for what he described as the perfect rock. I asked him “The perfect rock to skip across the water?” He said “No, to kick all the way home so I have something to do when I am walking.”
