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I'm about to embark on a batch of Hedgerow Jelly, which I've always made in the past with apple, damson and elder, but this time I've picked rowan, which is suggested as an alternative to the elder.

I have 1.5 k of lovely berries - and had a nice chat with a woman and her kids who wanted to know why a rather sweaty cyclist was snipping berries off a tree in their street!

Having got back and double checked my tree book and Google images, I think what I've got is Sorbus aucuparia Asplenifolia, or European Mountain Ash, rather than Sorbus Aucuparia which is our native Rowan.

Question is, will the fruits work the same? I'm guessing yes, cos all rowan are edible? I know the variety 'edulis' is s'posed to be best cos it's sweetest...but Hackney Council don't label their street trees, sadly.

Any thoughts welcomed.

Can't answer your question, I'm afraid - but I did once make Rowan jelly, and hated it - very bitter; whereas I love elderberry jelly... Might be ok in a mix, of course.

I went on a couple of organised forages at the Greenbelt festival last weekend and rowan jelly was mentioned. I think the method was to boil the berries then strain the juice and mix it with 7 parts of sugar to 10 parts of liquid. Apparently still bitter and not to everyone's taste but I'd love to try it sometime (and to hear the methods people have tried).

Wulf

I've made rowan jelly and quite liked it. I wouldn't call the flavour bitter as such, but it does have unusual kind of burnt overtones which you could either love or hate (for want of a better way to describe it! And no, I hadn't burnt it either).

Just as is often suggested it went very well with cold meats but my other half who is usually uber-conservative on the subject of food (and foraged stuff in particular) was quite happy to eat it on toast so it can't be that bad!