A popular bramble fruit, blackberries are often picked in late summer to autumn to make jams, jellies and pies.
Herbalists have recommended blackberry jelly, cordial or wine for its potent restorative powers. While Culpeper, who himself needs no introduction, praised the plant as a remedy for almost all ailments from wounds and ulcers to fevers and itching.
In Irish folk medicine, bramble leaves, roots and fruits were a common remedy for ailments such as colds, coughs and flu, because of the plant’s astringent and antiseptic properties.
Bramble was also used to treat sore feet, cuts, burns, ulcers, kidney problems and diarrhoea. There were various remedies from mixing bramble juice with butter to treat swellings and blackberry vinegar to treat fevers, colds, gout and arthritis.