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Apple · Chokecherry · Mulberry · Peach · Persian walnut · Plum · Rose · Strawberry · elderberry
🗓 Season: August · September · October · November · July · May · June · April
🔍 When is it ripe?
Apple: Background colour changes from green to yellow or cream (variety determines final colour). Seeds inside should be brown. Flesh yields slightly to thumb pressure. A ripe apple releases with a gentle upward twist — no pulling. Check the ground for natural drops.
Chokecherry: Small clusters ripen from red to very dark purple-black. Intensely astringent until fully dark; seeds and leaves contain hydrocyanic acid — cook or dry before eating in quantity. Best for jams and syrups.
Mulberry: Ripe when fully coloured (white, red, or black by species) and falls at a touch. Spread a sheet and shake the branches. Extremely perishable — process or eat immediately.
Peach: Background skin colour shifts from green to yellow; red blush is variety-dependent and not a reliable indicator. Fruit yields to gentle pressure near the stem end. Fragrant aroma at the base. Harvest when it detaches with a slight twist — no tugging needed.
Persian walnut: Green husk cracks and turns brown-black when ripe, exposing the shell. Shake branches — ripe nuts fall freely. Gloves essential. Cure in a single layer for 2 weeks before storage.
Plum: Colour fully develops (purple, red, or yellow by variety) and a waxy bloom appears on the skin. Softens slightly at the tip. Taste-test for sweetness — European plums are better slightly soft; Japanese types can be harvested firmer.
Rose: Rose hips (swollen seed pods) ripen to red or orange after flowering. Pick when fully coloured and slightly soft. Remove the seeds and hairs inside (irritating). Very high in vitamin C; excellent for syrup, tea, and jelly. Leave some for birds in winter.
Strawberry: Uniformly red with no white or green at the tip or shoulder. Strong strawberry fragrance even from a distance. Cap leaves (calyx) are fresh and green. Completely red flesh inside when cut. Wild strawberries are smaller but more intensely flavoured.
elderberry: Dark blue-black clusters when ripe. Cook thoroughly before eating — raw berries are mildly toxic. Ripe when all berries are dark and clusters hang downward.
Homestead National Monument of America is a National Park Service historic site. The natural areas within this park offer unique foraging opportunies with in the natural areas of the park throughout the year.
The park also has a small fruit orchard with plum, peach and apple trees that visitors can pick when the fruit is ripe.
There is a one gallon limit to all foragable fruits, nuts and berries.
There is a three gallon limit when collecting hedge apples.
Park building hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. weekedays, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. weekends and the grounds are open and accessible from dawn until dusk.
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