It's been a good year for Blackberries. And for
every quart we pick, we collect a pint of chiggers as a free bonus. Chiggers are
in the Arachnid family and could be any of a variety of larvae of several
species of mites.
They are a type of mite related to ticks.
Personally I'd much rather have ticks, since you can usually see a tick, even a
tiny one, and have a fighting chance to pick it off. Chigger larvae can scarcely
be see without a magnifying glass, (which really slows down blackberry picking!)
and by the time you feel the bite the chigger is long gone. ( 3-6 hours later!)
Chiggers love Blackberry plants or other foliage and wait there for a candidate
to walk by, then fall onto the person or animal to have their meal. There are
some ways to keep them at bay - if you don't mind smelling like rotten eggs,
dust in sulphur. If you don't mind smelling like a pickle, wipe vinegar on
before going to the patch. This might reduce the ratio of Chiggers to blackberries down to 1 cup to 1
quart! S
ince I read that they can't hang on well, a hot soapy shower as soon as
you get done might help. I think that would greatly reduce the time you dared
stay out there, and you couldn't bring a helper, as there'd be a fight over the
shower. ANYWAY, we're posting Blackberry recipes on Saturdays for this month, while we
scratch our way through July.
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