Foraging for food: The summer has come to an end and you may be forgiven for thinking that the best of what nature has to offer has been and gone . . . but there is good news! Autumn not only provides us with beautiful views as the leaves change to a golden mosaic, but also with the fruits and produce that have been ripening throughout summer.

Food is all around us: The truth is that most, if not all, of BBOWT’s nature reserves have foraging potential. You only need to take a stroll through Sydlings Copse near Headington to find a trove of juicy blackberries, or Wells Farm in Little Milton to stumble across apples that have just fallen — it’s the perfect time to give them a quick dust-off and pop them in a basket for later. Not only are these treasures tasty, but also packed full of goodness, with the added bonus of being free from chemicals that are often part of the process of mass production.

You don’t even need to be in isolated patches of habitat.

Hedgerows, as well as providing great homes for wildlife, can provide you with many treats.

Elderflowers, for example, appear earlier in the year and elderberries later in autumn. You will also find a good source of sloes and even the occasional fruit tree along a road or footpath. But do make sure you have gained permission from the owner before accessing private land.

Benefits to wildlife: It is important not to collect on a large scale. Animals and insects also forage at this time of year, so try to collect from a few different areas rather than just one plant and leave some for them to find too.

You will often see insects making feasts out of apples and other fallen fruits, and dormice and birds can’t resist the odd berry.

Preserving produce: Never let your produce (and of course your hard labour) go to waste. Anything you do not use immediately can be made into jams, chutneys and even an alcoholic tipple such as wine or sloe gin.

It is simple and so satisfying to turn these free, tasty and nutritious ingredients into seasonal treats.

For example, sloes (that come from blackthorn) are too bitter to eat fresh, but make great jam or winter warming liquor when added to gin and sugar and left for a few months.

Be prepared A flush of fungi coincides with the transition into autumn. Mushrooms, such as Caesar’s mushroom, can have distinctive tastes and make great ingredients for many recipes.

With all that you forage, you should always be one hundred percent certain of what it is you are collecting; there are many famous examples of what can happen if you get it wrong with fungi especially.

For this reason, be prepared and carry an identification book with you. If in doubt always leave it until you have gained further advice: http://ispot.org.uk/ is a great place to start.

Alternatively, why not pop along to a BBOWT event and find out more about the wildlife around you including autumn fungi? Visit www.bbowt.org.uk to find out what’s on.