As someone brought up around the marshes of The Wash, 5A was a seasonal delight we could gather by the bucket load.

Thanks to Falcon and Shuchi.

Yes, it was gentle and your blog has appeared early on in the IST zone.

I finished left bottom, left top and right bottom in that order. So you know which quadrant proved a little tough.

I solved 18ac first – without even looking for any clue at 22.

I liked 25ac to 28ac – among many for their smooth surfaces.

At 21dn JOKING, JOCUND came to my mind before I discarded them for the right answer!