this post was submitted on 06 May 2024
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Anyone else finding these? Small but delicious.

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[–] henfredemars@infosec.pub 21 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I remember my first wild strawberry. The sweetness was unparalleled. It's something everyone should try once.

[–] GingeyBook@lemm.ee 9 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (4 children)

Maybe I just had an unripe one once, but it was completely red on the outside like in OP's images but when I bit into it, it was completely white and bitter

Wild blueberries on the other hand...

[–] habitualTartare@lemmy.world 24 points 6 months ago (2 children)

There's a plant called false or mock strawberries that looks incredibly similar but tastes like you described/very bland. They have yellow flowers and a few differences but otherwise are pretty similar.

[–] brygphilomena@lemmy.world 3 points 6 months ago

I just learned about this yesterday. I have a mix of a real strawberry plant and false strawberries in my backyard. The false strawberries also have mush smaller leaves. I'm planning on ripping them out so the real strawberries can grow and fill the space.

[–] GingeyBook@lemm.ee 2 points 6 months ago

TIL, thanks

Now I will be on the hunt for the real deal

[–] henfredemars@infosec.pub 6 points 6 months ago

My grandfather relocated a bunch of wild blueberries into his yard and cultivated them. I learned many years later that they were actually called Sparkleberries.

[–] imPastaSyndrome@lemm.ee 3 points 6 months ago

That's what I've always run into

[–] downloadingcheese@beehaw.org 1 points 6 months ago

Depending on where you live, it could’ve been a mock strawberry

[–] mle86@feddit.de 9 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (2 children)

Yes, very delicious!

And they also grow great in a pot on the balcony, just dig out a plant in the woods, they'll multiply like weeds


edit


Just wanted to add: If you are in an area where tapeworms or similar parasites are prevalent, be sure to give any wild berries a good rinse before eating

[–] LibertyLizard@slrpnk.net 7 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Oh damn I did not know about this! Does rinsing make a significant difference in safety? Doesn’t seem to be super common or well-researched. I wonder what the level of risk is with foraging.

To be honest I’ve been eating unwashed wild berries my whole life so hopefully not too risky haha.

[–] mle86@feddit.de 4 points 6 months ago

Same here, never had any problems so far, but every so often I hear or read that one should be careful πŸ˜…

From what I know rinsing should be good enough, however I have literally no way to back this up, so do your own research. Whenever I have access to clean water I rinse anyway, if it might not help, it certainly won't hurt.

For instance, this German article says that it is likely a myth that wild berries are an infection vector, since there have not been many / any cases traced back to this source conclusively, but that it is hard to definitively link it to a certain source, since it takes a lot of time from contact to the first symptoms.

Even so, the infection rates are going up in the last few years, but that may be completely unrelated to wether people pick wild berries or not

[–] arin@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago (2 children)

How are the worms getting around? Cats?

[–] FooBarrington@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago

Probably, most cats I've met love to shit in fruit fields

[–] mle86@feddit.de 2 points 6 months ago

In my area (Central Europe) mostly wild animals, foxes in particular

[–] TheGiantKorean@lemmy.world 6 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I'm jealous, those look so good! We have the annoying ones here that taste like nothing. I think they're called wood strawberries or something like that.

[–] LibertyLizard@slrpnk.net 3 points 6 months ago

Yeah those aren’t real strawberries, it’s a case of biomimicry! Luckily we don’t have a fake ones here. If you look carefully they are not too hard to tell apart though.

[–] pseudo@jlai.lu 3 points 6 months ago

It keeps raining where I am but I should check if it has affected the green cherries on my way to work.

[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 3 points 6 months ago (2 children)

Where are they native in North America? If they are?

[–] mihnt@lemmy.ca 5 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

Not sure on the accuracy on this image, but I can confirm that they grow in Georgia and not in Michigan that I've seen.

There's very few maps of their range that I can find that shows the whole of North America. (Were harder to read though or had no legend.)

[–] Bye@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago (1 children)
[–] acockworkorange@mander.xyz 1 points 6 months ago

South America too, mostly in milder climates like mountains.

[–] MxRemy@lemmy.one 3 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Are these vesca or virginiana? I've only had vesca which is definitely super delicious, way better than any store strawberry lol

[–] LibertyLizard@slrpnk.net 4 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I actually don’t know, I just know they are strawberries and tasty.

[–] MxRemy@lemmy.one 3 points 6 months ago

I bet, they look tasty!

[–] LunchEnjoyer@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago

Wild Strawberries are such a treat to find, truly a wonderful thing to find!

[–] notthoughtsjustcrabrave@sh.itjust.works 2 points 6 months ago (1 children)

The kind around here taste like nothing. I'm assuming it's the false one. Cool find.

[–] LibertyLizard@slrpnk.net 4 points 6 months ago

Yeah in certain areas the fake ones are a common lawn weed, way more common than true strawberries. But as far as I know, true strawberries are always delicious!

[–] Pappabosley@lemmy.world 1 points 6 months ago