Every Autumn we spend two or three days in Hagley park foraging for sweet chestnuts.
The best time to do this is in the morning after a windy night because people who know will be at the best trees early.
Wear gloves and good shoes because they are prickly and you can use your feet to open the husks and your hands to pick out the nuts.
My dad used to take us to collect sweet chestnuts every year, I was only a baby but my older sister’s say that he would boast that he knew the best tree, and they remember it as an Autumn-time family tradition.
He died the Autumn before last, and I managed to slip a few chestnuts into his pocket for him to take on his way.
Needless to say, the chestnut collecting expeditions will continue for me!
Kerry and our youngest ones collecting chestnuts.