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Guide to picking berries (10-12-2005)

Abundant rain in July makes for full buckets in August and September

• Alaska.

But keep in mind there are a bunch of options out there to suit a variety of tastes.

Some berries, like lowbush cranberries, are tart.

Others, like soapberries, are bitter.

The edibility of some depends upon the maturity of the plant. Highbush cranberries are tastier before maturity, while others, like northern red currant, are tastier afterward.

Crowberries and alpine bearberries are among the berries that look tasty all the time, but, in fact, never are -- at least not off the plant. Keep in mind that doesn't necessarily mean they aren't good to eat.

Crowberries, for instance, are good for pies and jellies, and bearberries can be mixed with other berries as an ''extender'' in pies. This is worth noting because crowberries, which grow on a low, green, shrub-like plant, are often plentiful and untouched in the Anchorage area. They are also said to be best when picked after a good frost.

Then there are berries like the Pacific serviceberry, which are quite tasty all the time, but not always found in great abundance. Locally, these berries are often mistaken for very tasty blueberries, given that they look a lot like blueberries. Their leaves are the giveaway. The serviceberry grows on a plant with a toothed leave. All of the blueberry plants have smooth leaves.

If you don't recognize these berries right off, Pratt's berry book -- organized by color -- is a handy guide. She covers berries many people might not even have thought about picking, like juniper berries.

These blue berries (actually cones) appear on the juniper bush, an alpine evergreen. Pratt says they can be picked, ground and used as a seasoning for meats or a flavoring for making gin -- although a favorite among home brewers and distillers is the trailing black currant, which makes a tasty liquer.

Meanwhile, Pratt says, the northern black currant -- found locally in wet woodlands -- makes a good jelly or jam, and when mixed half and half with blueberries really adds to the taste of a pie.