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Blackberries may just be everybody’s least favorite, yet most tasty, bramble. The thorny nuisances seem to spring up whenever you’re not looking and, before you know it, backyards are turned into ruthless battlefields. Man versus nature in its purest form.
Blue Lake Park is yet another casualty in the ongoing war against the bothersome shrubbery. Portland Fruit Tree Project has a simple attack plan to take back Blue Lake: Can’t beat ’em? Eat ’em!
On Aug. 16 and 17, PFTP volunteers will pick blackberries from the canes, carefully avoiding any poke-related injury at the Can’t Beat ’Em Eat ’Em work party. Those blackberries are then used to feed the people harvesting as well as food insecure people, or in jam workshops. The trimmed blackberry canes will then be brought to the Oregon Zoo to help feed elephants. Elephants can weaken the thorns on the cane with their saliva and crush down the spikes with their ever-helpful molars, making them safe to eat. Work equipment is available for anyone who registers in advance. As long as they bring safe clothing and a can-do attitude, anyone is welcome to join the fight against the creeping menace.
“I think it’s just a really fun and different way to think about restoration and dealing with an invasive species but also look at what it may have to offer in addition to the problem it presents,” Heather Fornes, PFTP’s executive director, says. “In this case, it happens to offer food for humans and animals, and that’s pretty cool.”
Last year, PFTP took its first whack at abolishing the rapidly encroaching vegetation, but an unfortunately timed heat wave left most of the blackberries shriveled up beyond recovery. That, in combination with the group only having one day to spend at the park, means there’s still plenty of blackberry left to conquer. Even with those constraints, the couple dozen volunteers still managed to fill up a whole dump truck with blackberry canes. This time around, the weather is right, and Portland’s loyal defenders will be spending two days in the field.
PFTP chose Blue Lake Park because its blackberries haven’t been sprayed with any man-made chemical. This ensures the blackberries are safe for human consumption.
The pick-and-clear event was inspired by how visually obvious the blackberry invasion has become in Portland. “Can’t Beat ’Em Eat ’Em was really brought about by walking around town and being like. oh my gosh, these blackberries are gonna eat the city, but at least they taste good,” Fornes says.
GO: Portland Fruit Tree Project’s Can’t Beat ’Em Eat ’Em Blackberry Harvest and Removal at Blue Lake Park, 21224 Blue Lake Road, Fairview, portlandfruit.org. 11 am–2 pm Friday–Saturday, Aug. 16–17. Free; sign up at website.