Picking Pitangas

Ethan came home from school early last week and said, "Mom, we need to go to Zaleski and buy some pitangas.  I love 'em!"  I had not heard of pitangas, but I am always excited to try something new.  Well, after talking with a few people we learned they are a native berry here that is ripe right now.  However, you cannot buy them at the grocery store, you just have to find a tree and pick them.  We went to the local park, which has a nice trail and easily found several pitanga trees.  They boys had a great time picking and eating them.  Ethan and Owen loved them, but Isaac did not like the taste.  It reminded me of when Isaac and Ethan would pick mulberries from our neighbor's trees in Bettendorf.

 Isaac and Ethan worked together to pull down the limbs and pick the berries.  We probably should have washed them, but that would have totally ruined the experience.

 Owen got right into the action, too.  He loved the pitangas.  It was an absolutely beautiful afternoon to be at the park.

 Ethan was the most into the experience.  He was so serious about picking every red one he could find.

Here are a couple of the pitangas in Ethan's hand.  The redder the berry the yummier.