[goosey]

I should have been Christmas shopping or making mince pies, but it was dry!!! So I just had to get out for a couple of hours, I used wanting to collect some fir cones and twigs for decorations as my excuse for not doing something more productive. It was still quite frosty and the mist was lifting over the distance and very cold. By the time I had finished collecting, my fingers were like ice.

I saw these thorny bushes stretching into the far distance. Each berry was about 2cm. I was wondering what was putting on such a colourful display.

[black]

Hi Goosey,
its called Sea Buckthorn - Hippophae rhamnoides, we have it along certain coastlines here in the UK. The berries are a rich source of vit C. One of our outdoor enthusiasts on TV called Ray Mears collected a load of berries on one of his programmes squidged them into a paste, put them through muslin to seive out the bits before drying the resulting mixture into a sort of chewy stick.

[ericrovve]

You can also make a jelly out of them: vit C galore!! or eat them like that. They are one of the last shrubs before the sea

[paul m]

Getting on to one of my hobbyhorses ... this is one of those cases where it is very good to get the proper, scientific, Latin name of a plant. Buckthorns in general are toxic to some degree or another (as in Rhamnus cathartica - vomit-inducing buckthorn ) and no way related to this species ( .... rhamnoides - 'looking like buckthorn') which is actually very good for you!

[goosey]

Thanks all!
Black, these Sea Buckthorn were found in a sand dune area that makes up part of our National Park on the North Sea coast, so you are quite right when you mention coastlines.

I can't believe that people aren't out there collecting them to eat if they are free and edible! I don't know if I would be brave enough to test any jelly or chewy sticks on my family - willing guinea pigs can pm me

[ericrovve]

Well I was eating some this year on the north Norfolk coast - straight off the bush - a strong orange flavour

[paul m]

Another example YouTube - Long-eared Jerboa: extraordinary desert creature - lots of press reports about this long-eared jerboa but using the term 'jerboa' which, of course, is a common enough animal ... I've not yet been able to find a reference which gave the specific name ...

Originally Posted by paul m

Getting on to one of my hobbyhorses ... this is one of those cases where it is very good to get the proper, scientific, Latin name of a ................

[black]

According to one source Long-eared Jerboa - Euchoreutes naso

[Tanny]

Not long ago I watched a survival programme and the guy collected a bucket load of the berries and it was a long process before he was able to get enough for a glass of the liquid, and even then after tasting it he screwed up his face at the flavour. I suppose in a survival situation the vitamin content of the drink would be very beneficial. Keep it in mind you might have to put that knowledge to your own survival.