Donal Hickey: The blackberries are only mighty this year — don't delay picking them

September 29 is Michaelmas Day and there’s an ancient belief that Michaelmas eve is the last day on which fruit can be picked

Blackberry season is in full swing — traditionally all fruit had to be picked by Michaelmas Day on September 29

It’s a long time since I’ve seen such a bountiful crop of wild blackberries.

Given the weather we had this summer and early autumn, lines from a Seamus Heaney poem are apposite: