The Usual Suspects…

To keep things simple, we sell most of our plants in uniformed containers! Most of our fruit trees are sold in the 1 gallon container size, but we also utilize 2 gallon, 5″ tree pots, 9″ tree pots, and larger (for in-store purchases only) 5, 10, and even the occasional rare 15 or 20 gallon!

1 gallon containers are comparable to the 9″ tree pots as far as the age and development of our plants (we decide between the two based on how much the plants need, and how much space we have to utilize! We then size up for every 6-12 months of subsequent growth.

For our smaller plant friends…

When preparing some of our smaller plants, like Herbs, Succulents, or young (~6months) fruit plants like cane berries or blueberries, we’ll use these familiar 3.5 inch containers.

When purchasing plants in containers for fall, it’s typically OK to overwinter them in the container they arrive in, in preparation for up-potting or ground planting in the Spring. When plants are ready to size up or be planted, the roots will start to poke from the bottom, and the container will feel tight and full.

We hope this helps you in your understanding of plants, and the way we package them.

Happy Growing!

The post Understanding Container Sizes appeared first on One Green World.

Please note that our bare root availability list is always changing.  Use this guide to skim through what is currently available and avoid searching.

Click on the name of the tree to be linked to the product page >>>

Bare Root Fruiting Trees

Bare Root Berries

The post 2025 Bare Root Availability List appeared first on One Green World.

How to establish your Pawpaw plants

To successfully grow pawpaw fruit we must first understand a few things about its natural history. The tree grows primarily in river floodplains and shady rich bottomlands. They form dense groves, spreading clonally by underground runners and spend many years growing as an understory species until there is a break in the canopy and they can make their leap into the sunnier conditions provided by an opening in the canopy. It is only once they are growing in fuller sunlight that they produce significant crops of their delicious fruit. These are the conditions we must try to mimic in order to grow healthy paw paw trees that give us good crops.

Site selection

Rich, deep, well draining soils are ideal conditions for planting your new pawpaws in. Although they grow in river floodplains that may become seasonally inundated, the pawpaw does best when it has deep well-drained soil with a pH between 5.5 and 7.0. To mimic the understory conditions that the pawpaw needs for its establishment years you could plant on the north side of a fence where the pawpaw will be shaded while it’s young but receive full sunlight as it matures and grows above the fence line.

Another option is to establish a quick growing nitrogen fixing tree or shrub on the south side of where you plan on planting your pawpaw. Get this tree established the year before so it can provide adequate shade for your newly planted pawpaw tree. Choosing nitrogen-fixing species gives you a quick growing tree that will properly shade your pawpaw as well as providing fertility for the tree. The shade tree can then be cut down a few years later once your paw paw is established and the danger of sunburnt leaves and shoots is no longer a threat.

A third option is to plant quick growing annual legumes on the south side of the pawpaw while also building a simple bean or pea trellis over the top of the paw paw to provide quick shade, nitrogen fixation, as well as a crop from your leguminous shade-giving plants as you wait for your pawpaws to mature. Also, planting in a site that is as humid as possible is ideal for the pawpaw. Near a pond can be a great place to plant if you are in an area with dryer summers like we have here in the Pacific Northwest.

Transplanting

The paw paw can be a very difficult species to transplant. It has a very deep root system and does not like its roots to be disturbed or broken. For this reason we sell pawpaws while they are still quite small to ensure higher transplant success rates. While the plant is dormant, or in the spring just after bud break, is the best time to transplant. Be very careful not to disturb the roots. Water in well just as you would any other tree and keep very well watered for the first couple years.

Plant spacing

Pawpaws can be spaced relatively close together, even as close as 5 feet. Because you will most likely be planting grafted named cultivars, this is the best way to mimic the dense root suckering groves that paw paws form in the wild. It’s believed that pawpaws actively graft their roots together and share nutrients more readily than many other species, and close plant spacing helps to achieve this. Planting as close as 5 feet or as far as 10 feet apart, and planting at least three different varieties for cross-pollination, has been shown to be the most successful.

Pollination

Pollination can be the major limiting factor to getting good crops of pawpaw fruit. The flowers are protogynous meaning that the female organ, the stigma, ripens before the pollen does and is therefore not receptive when the pollen is ripe. This ensures that the flower cannot pollinate itself. The entire tree is also usually self-incompatible, meaning that pollen from one flower on the tree will not pollinate the stigma of other flowers on the same tree.

Therefore the pawpaw requires pollination from a tree with entirely different genetics to be successfully pollinated. This is why we always suggest purchasing many different paw paw varieties to ensure the most successful pollination. The more trees you have the more successful your pollination will be. Two varieties is the absolute minimum you can plant to get fruit but more fruit is produced with three or more varieties.

Finally, you must attract the pawpaw’s natural pollinators to achieve successful transfer of the pollen between flowers. In this case keeping honeybees will not help you out as the pawpaw flowers are designed for the decomposers of the world. They are a deep and beautiful reddish purple color and smell a bit like rotting flesh in order to attract various species of flies and beetles. One strategy for attracting these pollinators is to put road kill or rotting meat near your pawpaws when they are flowering to attract their natural pollinators. If this sounds too unappealing to you it is also possible to pollinate by hand, just be sure that once the tree starts setting fruit that no single branch is too loaded up with fruit or it may cause it to break or result in smaller fruits.

Checkout a more in-depth look into pawpaw pollination HERE.

Pests and Diseases

The pawpaw is relatively pest and disease free. If you have deer problems in your area then pawpaw trees are a wonderful choice. Deer avoid eating pawpaw leaves even in areas where deer populations are sky high. A few insect pests exist, but most are relatively minor.

The pawpaw peduncle borer (Talponia plummeriana) burrows into the flowers causing them to wither and drop and can even destroy the majority of blossoms, although this is rare. Other pests in the Eastern United States include the Zebra Swallowtail Butterfly (Eurytides marcellus) whose larvae feed exclusively on young pawpaw leaves. The relationship between the Zebra Swallowtail and the pawpaw is similar to that of the Monarch butterfly and the milkweed plant.

The acetogenins that are present in the paw paw leaves remain present in trace amounts in the Zebra Swallowtails body for the remainder of its life, making it unpalatable to birds or other predators. The incredible beauty of the Zebra Swallowtail and the minimal damage it does to the leaves make this insect not much of a concern. A blue stain disease can also infect paw paws but it is not believed that a microbial agent is responsible for this but rather it is a result of stress or trauma to the tree. In general pawpaws are one of the most disease and pest resistant fruit trees that you can grow.

Varietal selection

The best way to select your varieties is to contact your local agricultural extension agency and ask them which pawpaw varieties will grow best in your area. In general, we recommend the earlier fruiting varieties for areas where summers are not as humid as the eastern United States where the pawpaw is native.

Using the Pawpaw Fruit

The fruit is primarily used for fresh eating. It is extremely perishable and is amazingly delicious when it is perfectly ripe. It can be used much like you would use a banana. Try replacing bananas with paw paw fruit in a banana bread recipe or adding paw paws to a berry smoothie. For longer-term storage you can freeze the fruit and make ice cream out of it. Any recipe that requires adding heat or cooking the pawpaw is not recommended as the flavor compounds are extremely volatile and cooking can destroy the delicious pawpaw flavor, although it seems to retain a good flavor when mixed with flour and used as a baking additive.

            Let us know about your experiences with paw paws, which varieties work best in your area, what recipes you’ve found to use them in, and what strategies have been successful for getting them established, and enjoy the look and taste of this amazing tropical tree in your own backyard!

The post Pawpaw Growing Guide appeared first on One Green World.

To the amusement of our Horticulturist Sam Hubert, Kate quotes a 1912 newspaper article that declared “he who drinks beer, thinks beer. But he who eats pineapple guava thinks in pineapple, raspberry and banana, all at once”, truly a nod to the complexity of this magical plant. Pineapple guava have hypnotic, tropical looking white flowers with cupped, soft petals and crimson centers that frame showy , red stamin. Enjoy our interview with Kate, and be sure to add her book Feijoa- A Story of Obsession & Belonging to your must read list. Cheers!

OGW: Hi Kate! Thanks for taking the time to speak with us. Firstly, we’d love to know, how did your experiences with pineapple guavas influence the writing of your memoir?

Kate: When I was a child in rural New Zealand, my sisters and I would come home from school on the bus, walk up the driveway, chuck off our school bags and eat pineapple guavas by the dozen. I packed them in my school lunchboxes and with my Dad experimented making ice cream and muffins with them. When I moved overseas at age 18, if I managed to find a Feijoa, the smell would immediately trigger a kind of sensory flashback to my New Zealand home. But it was only when I moved back there, aged 30, that I started wondering why this South American fruit had such a powerful nostalgic hold on me. 

OGW: Can you share some of the challenges and rewards you encountered while cultivating pineapple guavas? How did these experiences shape your understanding of the fruit’s symbolic significance?

Kate: I moved around so much as a young adult, so it’s only in the last few years that I’ve been able to plant my own Feijoas – or rather, pineapple guavas I share with my family and my sister’s family, on the land we bought together. Planting them felt like a way of literally putting down roots in this new soil, of committing to living in one place and becoming a ‘somewhere person’ after many years as an ‘anywhere person.’

OGW: Can you share any favorite facts or anecdotes about feijoas that you discovered during your writing process?

Kate: I learned so many surprising things! Here are some: 

* The feijoa evolved 23 million years ago among monkeys, giant ground sloths and ‘terror birds’ in South America—but it is distantly related to New Zealand’s pōhutukawa and Australia’s eucalyptus. 

* The word ‘feijoa’ can ultimately be traced back to the 17th Century Spanish monk and philosopher Benito Jerónimo Feijóo, a feminist and myth-buster centuries before his time. 

* The oldest feijoa tree I found was located not in New Zealand or its South American homeland, but in the Hanbury Gardens in Italy: it is at least 110 years old. 

* In tropical Colombia, high in the Andes, the lack of defined seasons so confuses the feijoa that it flowers and fruits all year round—meaning you can garnish your fresh fruit smoothie with a blossom from the tree. 

* Feijoas have been in California longer than they’ve been in New Zealand, are widely planted, and were once predicted to be the ‘fruit of the century’ there. 100 years later, the fruits sometimes rot on the ground as many people aren’t even aware they’re edible. 

* The largest and most delicious feijoas I found anywhere in the world were grown by a solitary Tākaka breeder on a divine mission to create the perfect feijoa. 

* Feijoas aren’t a “super fruit” — they’re healthy and delicious, but don’t contain outrageous amounts of vitamins or iodine. They may, however, help reduce inflammation, and one study is currently investigating whether they can tame blood glucose levels in diabetics—something traditional Afro-Brazilian communities in the feijoa’s heartland already know. 

OGW: Can you describe any unique insights or lessons you learned from growing pineapple guavas that you incorporated into your narrative?

Kate: Ha I’m certainly no gardening expert! But… pruning stimulates flowering, and space in the tree allows pollinators – mostly birds – to reach them. (It’s the sweet petals they’re after – you can eat them too.) So give them a good prune in winter. Also make sure you get more than one so they can cross pollinate. 

OGW: What surprised you most about the process of writing this book?

Kate: The fact that I actually pulled it off! There were many times over the decade it took to write it that I doubted it would ever happen. Luckily my partner and a few other friends believed in me, and I’m really stubborn once I start something, and in the end I found a dream publisher in NZ’s Moa Press. 

OGW: Do you have a favorite feijoa cultivar of all the many you’ve tasted?

Kate: Nigel Ritson’s many incredible selections in Takaka that unfortunate don’t tend to be commercially available. 

OGW: Favorite recipe or new use for feijoas you discovered while writing this book?

Kate: Feijoa fizz – chuck the skins in a jar with water and sugar, push the skins under the surface with a glass, leave for 3 days – delicious. 

Also Colombian style smoothies with Feijoas, milk and sugar, put in a little bit of skin for color. Yum! 

OGW: What do you hope readers take away from “Feijoa,” and what message or feeling do you most want to convey through your work?

Kate: I suppose it’s the idea that the smallest objects can be bristling with surprising stories. That becoming curious about a specific thing can lead to unexpected journeys, insights and lessons. One of the things that surprised me was how delving into the pineapple guava’s story made me reflect on what it means to connect deeply to landscape and nature in a colonized country as a non-indigenous person. I don’t think I found the answers necessarily, but wrestling with the question through the lens of this beloved plant was rich, sometimes awkward, but meaningful territory for me. 

Plants and humans have a long, deep, powerful relationship, and it was an honor to tell the story of just one of them.

Thank you Kate! And if you still can’t get enough of the Pineapple Guava, we’ll have an upcoming blog post featuring Feijoa, which will include a simple Feijoa curd recipe!

The post “Feijoa- A Story of Obsession & Belonging” Interview with Author Kate Evans appeared first on One Green World.

There are many advantages to planting fruit trees in containers. You might be renting and want to take your tree with you, or you don’t have the right space and soil conditions, or maybe you want to try planting something outside of your cold hardiness zone. Planting in containers allows you to help insulate you plants through the winter, as well as easily move them to suit your space. There are some considerations to make when choosing to plant in containers and we’re going to walk you through the basics to help you get started!

Which Trees to Plant in Pots

When choosing which trees to plant in pots, you should be looking for dwarfing or semi-dwarfing varieties. Below are some great fruit tree options, and we recommend searching through our catalog of these trees to find the one that best suits your climate and taste! Be sure to look at pollination requirements for your fruit trees to see if you will need two varieties to produce fruit. Information regarding USDA Zones, pollination requirements, rootstock, and yield will be listed near the bottom of each individual plant’s page.

• Apple
• Apricot
• Cherry
• Citrus
• Fig
• Pear
• Peaches and nectarines
• Plum

Choosing the Right Soil and Pot

Soil and Fertilization

Potted plants will need well-draining soil that is not susceptible to compacting, which will make thorough watering more difficult. It is important to research each varieties general soil needs to make sure you are meeting those as well. Fine propagation mix is great for starting seeds, but for trees and shrubs and vines, a coarser mix containing bark and pumice will help prevent root rot. Another consideration is soil acidity. While most plants are happy in regular potting soil, Tea and Blueberries like a more acid soil. Look for potting soil made for Blueberries and other acid loving plants like Rhododendron and Camellia. There are many citrus mixes that are a great option for other fruit trees as well due to being very well draining.

Fertilizing should be used during the growing season and applied according to the directions given by individual fertilizers. If you are living in a cold area and will need to help your plant through the winter, it is recommended to not fertilize during the fall. This way the plant does not begin lots of new growth that will be susceptible to cold damage as the winter settles in.

Different Containers and Potting-Up

When people are planning on growing potted trees, they often jump to looking for a large pot that would support a fully grown tree, but when you’re starting with a small one-gallon tree, you want to increase pot size incrementally. Too large of a pot will hold on to too much moisture and can lead to root rot. Once the tree has grown to the limits of a pot, you should pot it up 1/2″-2″ in diameter, depending on how fast the plant is growing. Selecting your container largely comes down to budget and aesthetic choice. The one thing that all pots should have is drainage holes to allow for airflow and prevent rotting. When your tree is young and growing quickly, it may be easier to stick with simpler cheaper pots until your tree is more established and doesn’t need to be potted up as frequently.

Pollination Requirements During Winter

Some plants bloom during the winter time, and this can make it difficult for them to be pollinated due to a lack of pollinators during the cold months. You might be overwintering your plant indoors or outdoors depending on your plant’s needs. Most citrus are overwintered indoors in cooler climates, and typically bloom in the winter. Regardless of if your plant is indoors or outdoors, due to the lack of pollinators available in the winter, you may want to play bee and help move pollen from flower to flower.  You can do this with a small brush and the appropriate buzzing sounds. 

The post Container Growing Guide appeared first on One Green World.

The zones on this map are determined by the average annual extreme cold temperatures of an area. The zones start at Zone 1 which has an extreme low of -55°F and go up 10°F with each number. Each zone is divided into subzones of 5°F increments, labeled ‘a’ and ‘b’. Subzone ‘a’ representing the colder half, and subzone ‘b’ representing the warmer half. For example Zone 7a includes temperatures 0°F-5°F, and Zone 7b includes temperatures 5°F-10°F

How to use this map:

The zones represent the average coldest temperatures throughout the last 30 years. The most current map represents the averages from 1991-2020. It is important to note that these hardiness zones are based on the average coldest temperatures, therefore on occasion the temperatures in one’s area may drop lower than the zone indicates. It is also important to be familiar with the space you are planting in, and any microclimates that exist there. Microclimates are small areas that may experience temperatures different from the larger surrounding area due to elevation, sun exposure, soil moisture, etc. 

As stated by the USDA, here are other factors to consider when planning your landscape:

Light: To thrive, plants need to be planted where they will receive the proper amount of light. For example, plants that require partial shade that are at the limits of hardiness in your area might be injured by too much sun during the winter because it might cause rapid changes in the plant’s internal temperature.

Soil moisture: Plants have different requirements for soil moisture, and this might vary seasonally. Plants that might otherwise be hardy in your zone might be injured if soil moisture is too dry in late autumn, and they enter dormancy while suffering moisture stress.

Temperature: Plants grow best within a range of optimal temperatures, both cold and hot. That range may be wide for some varieties and species but narrow for others.

Duration of exposure to cold: Many plants that can survive a short period of exposure to cold may not tolerate longer periods of cold weather.

Humidity: High relative humidity limits cold damage by reducing moisture loss from leaves, branches, and buds. Cold injury can be more severe if the humidity is low, especially for evergreens.

How do I find my zone?

Now that you understand what the zones mean, how do you find yours? 

1. Go to the USDA’s Zone Map website: https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/ 
2. Enter your zip code into the search bar at the top of the map, press enter, and click the city that pops up under the search bar.
3. Explore your area using the Zoom buttons on the left side of the map, and use you mouse to move the map.

How to find a plant’s zone on One Green World’s website:

1. Find the plant you’re looking for on our website, either by using the search bar at the top left, OR by selecting the “Shop” drop down menu and clicking different categories to search through.
2. Once you have found the plant you are looking for, scroll down to the bottom of the page, where you will find in bold “USDA Zone” and either a range of zones or a single zone will be listed as the suitable planting zone. 

The post Understanding USDA Cold Hardiness Zones appeared first on One Green World.

A Relationship is Formed

Unlike other mushrooms that grow in decomposing organic plant matter, Truffles grow entirely underground through mycorrhiza, a symbiotic relationship within the roots of Oak or Hazelnut trees.  When a Truffle spore comes in contact with the root system of a tree, it produces mycelium which wraps around the tree’s rootlets where a connection is then formed.   This mutually beneficial process allows both the developing Truffle and tree to exchange and share nutrients creating a supportive partnership.  

The Champagne of Truffles

There are several different varieties of Truffles, however one of the most popular and known is the French Perigord Black Truffle.  This Truffle is considered to be the “Champagne of Truffles” for it’s superior earthy richness and chocolate flavor.  The Truffle Trees that we currently carry are inoculated with French Perigord Black Truffle Spores.  Since the Truffle spore is already present within the root system of the Oak tree, the mycorrhizal relationship will continue even after transplanting the tree and will eventually lead to the development of mature Truffles to be harvested and enjoyed.  Once planted, the development of Truffles can range between 4-7 years.

Be sure to read our helpful tips below to help ensure successful Truffle harvests ahead!

Truffle Tree Tips

1.  Plant in loamy, well-draining, alkaline soil.  Truffle trees prefer to be planted in alkaline rich soils with a pH around 7-8.   Drainage is also essential since they do not like sitting in overly saturated soils.  For poor soils it is recommend to amend the soil with Lime prior to planting to help increase pH.  Amending the soil with fertilizers and lime after planting is not recommend and can negatively interfere with the natural michrozial relationship within the soil. It is also important to weed and remove any grass around the perimeter of the tree to help limit competition from the developing truffles. It is also recommend to add a layer of mulch around the tree to further suppress any weeds/grass from growing.

2.  Plant two or more trees nearby to help support development.
Planting more than one truffle tree creates a larger underground mycorrhizal network to help increase the exchange of nutrients.  The fungi will have a stronger support system where they can communicate within a wider range of resources they need to prosper and develop.

3.  Keep trees regularly watered.  Keeping soil moist is essential for creating an optimal environment for Truffle growth.  Water is key to help the fungus stay alive and thriving.  Be sure to water the root system of the trees often enough to ensure consistent moisture within the soil.  This is also where knowing your soil comes into play because some soils may hold moisture for longer periods of time and overwatering can become an issue.  Implementing a drip system is recommended to help keep a steady cycle of water flow.

4.  Keep the four seasons in mind.  Each seasonal phase helps support the life cycle of Truffles.  Spring is when spore germination will take place and when the mycelium will spread and connect with the tree roots.  The fungus will then continue its process of developing the initial structures of Truffle formation in summer.  Metabolic activity then slows down with the onset of the colder months of fall as the truffle takes on its final shape.  Winter is when the growth process is finalized and the fruiting body continues to mature until harvested typically between the months of November through March. Since mature Truffles do give off a specifically pleasing aroma, a trained animal companion is always the best at locating truffles for harvest.

5. Chose the right Oak tree variety for your location. Quercus ilex, the Holly Oak, as it is an excellent, long lived and gorgeous evergreen oak well adapted to the West Coast. Quercus ilex prefers dry summers. For growers in colder climates, USDA Zones 5 and above, we recommend planting Quercus robur, the English Oak. Also a very stately and long lived tree the English Oak is deciduous, very cold hardy and will support your truffle growing for many decades.  

The post Let’s Talk Truffles! appeared first on One Green World.

Click link > Sea Berry Catalog

It is no secret that we are huge fans of the Sea Berry here at One Green World. The deliciously tangy and nutrient dense juice is what gives our crew the energy we need to get through the busy season as well as the flu season. Its uses are many and its presence in the North American landscape is relatively small, so we decided it was finally time to shine a bit of beta-Carotene drenched light on what is so special and perhaps even magical about this plant and its fruit. Follow along in this Sea Berry Growing Guide to learn a bit of history and gain a better understanding of this wonderful plant.

The Sea Berry, also known as Sea Buckthorn, is native to Europe and Asia where it grows along riverbanks, seashores, sandy dunes and mountain slopes from sea level all the way up to 12,000 feet. All parts of the plant have a long history of use in China and Russia where it has been wild harvested for centuries and more recently brought into commercial production. It has even made its way into a few myths and legends due to its many nutritious and medicinal qualities. The Latin name for its genus, Hippophae, translates to shiny horse in reference to its use in horse fodder. The leaves have such a high oil content that they were often mixed into horse food to produce a shiny coat on the animals. To this day they are still used in horse feeds and supplements. Some legends speak of farmers letting their old, decrepit horses out to roam the hills, thinking this far more humane than killing them. After a few days grazing on the wild Sea Berry plants that grew naturally on the hillsides, the horses would return to their owners and be mistaken for young, healthy colts with their newly shiny coats and returned vigor. It is also said that the mythic horse Pegasus feasted upon Sea Berries and it was these magical berries that gave him wings to fly. That’s about 4,000 years before energy drink companies were claiming the power of flight through their products, making Sea Berries the original energy drink! Obviously, we believe that Sea Berry juice is far superior to any other “energy” drink on the market today.

Cultivation of the Sea Berry has only come along relatively recently, beginning in Russia in the 1940’s. Scientists first began to research and discover what had long been known as folk medicine traditions. Some of the first commercially harvested Sea Berries in Russia were used in The Great Space Race, as they are believed to be very helpful in protecting humans from radiation. In preparation to leave Earth’s atmosphere, Yuri Gagarin was given an extraordinarily large dose of Sea Berries as well as a Sea Berry skin cream to protect against any potential radiation, thus making the Sea Berry the first cosmic berry!

Sea Berries were almost completely unknown to North American growers until it was introduced to Canada in the 1930’s by Dr. L. Skinner at the Morden Research Station in Manitoba. They were later planted out on the Canadian prairies by the Shelterbelt Center of the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration. These hedgerows provided much of the genetic material to early North American Sea Berry researchers. The Canadians continue to plant out large shelterbelts of Sea Berries for stabilizing erodible soils, but the major developments in named fruiting cultivars have come to us from Europe and Asia, specifically in Russia.

And this is where our very own hometown hero Jim Gilbert, the founder of One Green World, enters the Sea Berry scene. Jim, who is fluent in Russian, has taken many trips to Europe and Russia over the years to collect Sea Berry varieties from plant breeders who have selected the finest fruiting cultivars known to the world, and brought them back here to make them available to North American growers. Many farmers around the country have since grown out seedlings of these varieties in attempts to improve upon them but breeding programs in North America are still very much in their infancy.

Growing Sea Berry plants

As of now there are very few large-scale Sea Berry productions in North America so Sea Berry products, aside from in the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industry, are nearly impossible to find. Like so many of the finest fruits, if you want Sea Berries you’ll have to grow your own plants. Thankfully it is one of the easiest plants to grow, is incredibly vigorous, and is pest and disease free!

Site Selection for Sea Berry plants

When selecting your planting site the first thing to consider is that Sea Berries are very shade intolerant. As a pioneer species that is adapted to colonizing disturbed areas it requires full day sunlight to reach maximum productivity. It is possible to grow Sea Berries in half day sun, but anything below six hours of direct sunlight and productivity begins to decline drastically.

Good drainage is essential as well, otherwise plants will die from root rot. They prefer a sandy loam, but even growers with heavy clay soils have successfully grown Sea Berries if they are planted on a slope that drains well. Coastal growers will also benefit from Sea Berry’s tolerance of saline soils. They often grow on coastal dunes and slopes where the ocean spray makes it impossible for larger saline-intolerant species to grow up and shade out the Sea Berries. This adaptation is also especially relevant for urban growers who might receive salt build up in their soils from road salt used in winter road maintenance.

If you can meet these two broad requirements of full sunlight and good drainage, then you will likely have no problem growing Sea Berries. As a nitrogen fixing species it can tolerate some of the poorest nutrient deficient soils, and we have thoroughly tested this, planting in gravelly parking strips, post construction backfill, rocky outcropping where nearly no soil has formed, coarse sandy soils, etc. and the Sea Berry plant thrives where most other species wouldn’t stand a chance. Sea Berry plants will actually improve soil conditions over time. It has a broad pH tolerance, from 5.5 to 8.0, although it should be noted that the symbiotic root nodule-dwelling Frankia bacteria that are responsible for the Sea Berry’s ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen prefer a pH of 5.5-7.0. Plants will survive temperatures from -45 degrees Fahrenheit to 105 degrees Fahrenheit but typically set better crops below 90 degrees, and they are relatively drought tolerant.

Although they can tolerate nearly any well-draining soil conditions, there are a few nutrient deficiencies you may run into when growing them at home. Any yellowing of the leaves may indicate a deficiency in nitrogen or potassium. Marginal chlorosis, shortened stem internodes and death of the terminal bud may be due to a phosphorus deficiency and delayed opening of the flowers and leaf buds in spring or small chlorotic leaves may indicate a Zinc deficiency. These deficiencies are rare but worth noting.

The ability of Sea Berries to thrive in poor soil conditions and colonize rapidly might raise a red flag for those concerned with invasive species. It is true that Sea Berry plants will sometimes sucker from the root system so be sure your maintenance plan accounts for this. Mowing the suckers down is sufficient to keep them fully contained, though some may enjoy digging up the suckers and planting them elsewhere. Another strategy is to come in with a sharp spade once a year and cut any runners from around the root base. Sea Berry has not demonstrated the ability to spread rapidly by seed here but it is worth keeping an eye on if Sea Berry plants have no previous history in your area. The plant’s extreme shade intolerance also makes it unlikely to be a problematic species, especially in regard to its ability to invade healthy woodland ecosystems.

Sea Berry Orchard Design

Typically, Sea Berry farms are oriented on north-south rows to maximize sunlight penetration to every plant in the orchard. It is important to note that Sea Berries are a dioecious species meaning they produce their male and female flowers on separate plants, so in order to receive fruit you need to have a male plant in the vicinity and larger plantings require the correct proportion of male to female plants. One male plant for every eight female plants is a good ratio. For larger plantings one male planted every fifth plant and repeated every fourth row has proven to be one of the most productive male to female patterns. Flowers are wind pollinated so it is worth noting the direction of your spring winds when laying out your plantings.

Within the rows plants are typically spaced 3 to 5 feet apart with 16-20 feet between each row. Home orchardists can use wider spacing between plants if a more ornamental or spreading form is desired.

Young plantings require irrigation, especially where summer rainfall is low, and in Mediterranean or desert climates the plants may always need irrigation for optimum fruit production.

Pruning your Sea Berry plants

This may be the most confusing aspect of growing Sea Berries for many home orchardists as well as production farmers. Typically, the plants are so productive that even a lazy or sloppy pruning job will still give you an abundance of fruit, but proper pruning techniques will give you a more manageable shrub as well as long term productivity and larger crops.

Before getting into the more detailed Sea Berry pruning, know that general fruit tree pruning techniques can be applied to Sea Berry plants as well. Removing dead wood, downward facing branches, overlapping or crowded branches and heading back long, overly thin branches will benefit your Sea Berry plants. The goal is light penetration throughout the entire canopy, just as it would be with any other fruit tree.

The goals for Sea Berry pruning are:

• Improve branching habit
• Maintain an optimum number of new and young fruiting branches
• Remove old, weak & non-productive branches
• Increase light penetration
• Maintain an annual bearing habit.

The first thing to do with your young plants, if it hasn’t been done at the nursery already, is to remove the terminal bud as well as any superfluous lower branches. Removing the terminal bud will create a more bush like habit rather than an upright one by sending energy to lateral buds rather than the terminal bud.

Keeping trees at a height of 8-9 feet greatly reduces the shaded interior of the plant and keeps them at a much more manageable height for pruning and harvesting. In general downward facing branches are the least productive, upward facing branches are typically over vigorous and produce mainly vegetative growth and horizontal branches are the most productive and heavily laden with fruit.  Plants are pruned in late winter or early spring before buds begin to open.

Eighty percent of berries are born on second year wood, so maximizing the amount of second year wood on a year to year basis is the goal. One of the issues with this is that one of the most common and effective ways of harvesting Sea Berries, especially on a smaller scale, is to cut off the entire fruit-laden branch and freeze it before popping the frozen berries off. This is due to the lack of an abscission layer in the berries making them very difficult for hand picking. So again, you need to be sure that you are maintaining a healthy amount of second year branches each year to maintain a high level of fruit production.

Harvesting Sea Berry fruit

As previously mentioned, the harvest of Sea Berries can be somewhat tricky and may be one of the biggest reasons why there aren’t more large scale Sea Berry farms. The lack of an abscission layer and the small size of the berry, as well as its tendency to “pop” when picked make it very difficult for hand harvesting. Sea Berry plants are also somewhat thorny, hence the other common name sea buckthorn, and this adds to the difficulty of hand harvesting. It takes roughly 1500 labor hours per hectare to properly harvest an orchard! So in that situation the laborers are either being paid very poorly or the product ends up costing a lot, or perhaps a bit of both.

On the small scale the most efficient harvest method we have found is to cut off the entire fruit laden branch and freeze it. Freezing turns the berries from little water balloons that often explode into solid berries that can easily be popped of the branch with a fork or shaken off. Berries can then be stored frozen for the long term and thawed out as needed for juices, jams, sorbets, smoothies, or any of the endless recipes you might incorporate Sea Berries into.

Mechanical harvesting has also been shown to be profitable although it is not very efficient so very large plantings are required to make this economical. A few different tools for hand harvesting have also been created that cut the berries at the stem, though this is also very time consuming.

Though we often focus on the berry, Sea Berry plants are also valued throughout the world for their oil which can be pressed from the seeds, as well as for medicinal components found in all parts of the plant. The easiest of these to harvest is the leaves which can be dried and made into a lovely herbal tea that has many of the same nutritional qualities that the berries. The leaves have a surprisingly pleasant flavor, similar to nettle tea. Harvesting leaves for tea will also give you a use for your male plants besides pollen.

Nutritional and Medicinal Value of Sea Berry plant & fruit

The nutritional qualities and medicinal value of the Sea Berry plant and its fruit have long been valued throughout many parts of the world. To really understand the many properties and components of this amazing plant we could fill an entire book but we will touch on a few of its wonderful qualities here.

The first thing people notice about Sea Berries, especially when making juice out of them, is the incredibly high amount of carotenoids that give the berries their deep orange color. Carotenoids boost the body’s immune system and carotenoids in Sea Berries are especially easy for our bodies to absorb because of the oil content that is present in the fruits.

Sea Berries are also a great source of omega fatty acids, including palmitic fatty acids, palmitoleic (omega 7), oleic (omega 9), linoleic (omega 6), and linolenic (omega 3) fatty acids.

Concentration of vitamin C in Sea Berries is much higher than those found in oranges, strawberries, or kiwis and concentration of vitamin E is higher than those found in wheat, maize, or soybean.

Other vitamins include vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, B9, B12, D, and the trace minerals potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, manganese, copper, iodine, iron, chromium, selenium, and zinc. A 2010 report by Food Research International stated that Sea Berries contain 18 out of 22 known amino acids!

In the cosmetics industry the oil has long been valued for its use in decreasing wrinkles, as an antimicrobial, antiseptic, and for its ability to regenerate tissue. Many medicine traditions have also used the oil as a pain reliever and for its anti inflammatory and antimicrobial properties. Reports show Sea Berrys consumption may improve the bodies abilities to inhibit tumor development and eradicate free radicals. Sea Berry consumption also improves cardiovascular activity and immune system functioning.

For more detailed information on Sea Berry’s nutritional and medicinal components check out some of the amazing articles and websites listed in the resource section below.

Other Resources:

Li & Beveridge. Sea BUckthorn Production and Utilization. NRC Research Press. (2003).

Li, TSC. “Sea Buckthorn: New Crop Opportunity.” Hort.purdue.edu (1999) http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/proceedings1999/pdf/v4-335.pdf

Sabir SM, et al. “Elemental and nutritional analysis of sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides ssp. turkestanica) Berries of Pakistani origin.” PubMed.gov (2005)

Bal LM, et al. “Sea buckthorn berries: A potential source of valuable nutrients for nutraceuticals and cosmeceuticals.” Food Research International (2010)

Goel, HC, Bala M. “Seabuckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) as a Radio-Protector.” Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (n.d.)

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Cane Berries or Bramble Berries, better known as Blackberries and Raspberries are top choices for the “grow your own” foodies across the US. Cane Berries are one of the world’s most delicate and delicious fruits. Get ready for stained hands and tongues because each berry is made up of a hundred individual fruit juice bubbles. These berries are bursting with juicy flavor and packed with nutrition. A fully ripe cane berry will melt in your mouth and leave your taste buds wanting more.

Why you should grow Cane Berries?

Often the berries we buy in the store are expensive and shipped from far away. Store bought berries are picked immature while firm and bland and all packaged berries are sprayed with fungicides. This is done in order to meet the commercial demands for transportation, refrigeration and shelf life. This includes organic berries which are sprayed with approved chemicals to prevent molding. Many of the unique and tastiest varieties never make it to the grocery store shelves because they are to fragile for shipping. So why not grow this delicacy at home and enjoy healthy, vibrant fruit at peak nutrition?

Do it for your taste buds and your body! They’re easy to grow, incredibly delicious and you can freeze or preserve the harvest in jams or even make fresh fruit pies to share with friends and family. Cane Berries are nature’s “Fruitamins”!

How can you tell Blackberry & Raspberry apart?

Cane Berries and hybrids are easily distinguished by how the fruit comes off the canes.

Have you ever stuck a Raspberry on your finger before eating? That hollow core is a perfect fit for finger tips, making it a Raspberry. On the other hand, Blackberries will have a solid white core which holds the juice bubbles together and gives the fruit a firmer texture.

It’s so much fun to grow and harvest bushels (and mouthfuls) of juicy berries so let’s cover some of the basics of Cane Berry selection and cultivation in order to optimize production.

Types of Blackberry plants

There are three types of Blackberry plants: Trailing, Erect and Semi-erect. The newest cultivars are Thornless Blackberry plants with giant fruits up to 3 inches long! Check out Triple Crown for thornless canes and 30 pounds of giant berries per plant. Plant classic trailing and thorny varieties like Marionberry which is popular for unrivaled flavor and high-quality fruit. You would think all Blackberries are black in color, however, there are hybrids with purple fruit and a new release that is completely white in color, called a Polar Berry!

Many folks here in the Northwest question why they’d ever cultivate blackberries when they’re already growing wild along seemingly every road and pasture in the state, but keep in mind the named cultivars are far superior in flavor and production. We’ve seen many blackberry converts after they taste their first Triple Crown or Tayberry. Varieties differ greatly in flavor, ripening time, ­fruit ­& ­seed­ size, ­appearance, shape,­ texture and flavor.­ All types are self-fruitful, so you need only one plant to get fruit. Most Blackberries produce on second-year wood but a few will make first-year fruit too. Some OGW favorites for taste and production are thornless and “easy to pick” like Chester and primocane fruiting Navajo varieties.

Types of Raspberry plants

Raspberries come in two types and many shades and colors. There are June bearing, or floricane raspberries, which produce on second year canes. The other being everbearing , or primocane types, which produce on first year canes. Primocane varieties will produce a moderate crop in June and a much larger crop from late August until frost. Primocane varieties can be mowed to the ground after harvest and require less trellising than June bearing varieties, though we recommend planting a few of each to ensure you have a steady supply of berries throughout the season.

The rainbow of Raspberry fruit colors range from yellowish gold to shades of pink, reds, purple and all the way to Black. So many to choose from and so many delicious decisions.

Planting Bare root vs Container Plants

Container grown plants will produce fruit sooner and can be planted at anytime of the year. Bare root Cane Berries starts more economical and are best for planting in the spring. When you receive your bareroot you should plant them right away. If dry from shipping soak the roots in water for an hour to hydrate. Prune the roots if needed and the tip leaving only 3-5 inches. If you can’t plant immediately put the bareroots in a big container or pile with sawdust and or soil and “heel” them in. For dormant Cane Berry plants keep them moist but never saturated with water. Plants without leaves are the most susceptible to rotting. When over saturated with water a dormant caneberry may never wake up.

Plant Spacing

Blackberries need more space between the plants than Raspberries. Plant trailing Blackberries like Marion and Obsidian at least 6’ apart. The semi-erect and upright cultivars like Triple Crown only need about 4’ apart. Raspberries in general do best with 2’-3’ of spacing between plants.

Site Selection

Cane Berry plants require well-draining soil, rich in organic matter. If your soil is oversaturated with water or has standing water in the winter you must mound up or use planter boxes. Both Raspberry and Blackberry plants are best grown in rows with supporting wires and T-posts. Cane Berry plants prefer to be protected from the strong prevailing winds. Most areas of the US are suitable for growing Cane Berries and cultivars have been bred specifically for each bioregion of the country. Check your local extension agency for the best varieties to grow in your region. In general, Raspberry plants are more cold hardy than Blackberries.

Cultivation Tips

• “After fruiting if the cane is green let it be seen if the cane is brown cut it down”. This mnemonic device makes it easy to thin out canes.
• Removing the growing tip of each cane is beneficial for Blackberries. Cane tipping at 6’ is helpful to increase flowering and control cane length. Keep the canes in check and “soft tip” by hand in the summer. Also, tip canes back after winter in order to remove freeze damage and promote horizontal growth and increase production.
• Cane Berry plants need one inch of water or more per week between June – September. Rain or irrigation is required to produce large sized berries and healthy plants.

• Cane berry leaves should look healthy and vibrant green. Fertilize with a balanced organic fertilizer in spring and add plenty of compost to feed the canes and suppress weeds. Provide top layers of lighter brown materials like straw to retain moisture.
• In general, full sun is best for Cane Berry planting. Blackberry plants prefer a warmer area of the garden and Raspberry plants like the cooler spots with a little afternoon shade.

• Blackberry canes will tip root and spread once they touch the ground. You can make new plants this way by pulling the rooted tip and cutting it off the cane.

• Blackberry plants are more tolerant of heavy soils than Raspberry plants however it is best to grow on a site with good drainage.

• Raspberries will fill in an area once planted. Make sure you plant them in a spot where you can control the runners.

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The Wedge Method

The first step is to collect your dormant scion wood. Scions must be cut while they are still fully dormant for the highest grafting success rate. Be sure to cut wood on new growth that is disease free and growing vigorously. The healthier and more vigorous your scion is, the greater chance of success when grafting and having a fast-growing young tree.

Once your scion is cut, label it and store it in the refrigerator where it will easily keep for at least a month until you are ready to graft.

Selecting rootstock is just as important as selecting what variety you want to grow. Most people think of height at maturity when thinking of rootstock, but disease resistance, vigor, lifespan, soil adaptability, suckering, and how well anchored the tree will be are other factors to consider. Most rootstocks are widely adaptable and resilient, hence their use as rootstock, but checking in with other gardeners/farmers in your area or your local extension agency can help you to choose the perfect rootstock for your location. And of course, trialing many different rootstocks for your location always yields valuable data.

We realized a few years ago in our grafting classes that using red fleshed apples is a great way for beginners to clearly see the difference between the pith, sapwood, cambium, and bark. The pith is that white spot in the middle, the sapwood is red in this case, and the cambium is the lighter layer beneath the dark red bark. The cambium is the most important part here as it is the layer that is lined up between the scion and the rootstock in order to get the vascular tissue to fuse and form a successful graft union.

Be sure to sterilize all of your tools before you begin grafting to avoid the potential spread of pathogens across plant material.

When choosing which piece of scion to graft onto which rootstock, it can be helpful to find diameters that are similar so that both sides of the graft match up, but this is not essential. Often the rootstock or scion will vary in size and if you can get one side matched up perfectly then you’ll have success.

The first and easiest graft that most folks start with is the wedge graft. The take rate on these grafts is typically pretty high and you don’t need to have that skilled of a grafter’s hand to have success with it.

First, make a split down the middle of the rootstock. It is important that the knife cuts the wood cleanly rather than having it split so that a more solid connection between scion and rootstock is achieved.

TIP: We often put our thumb on top of the blade and above the rootstock to ensure that the blade stops when our thumb hits the top of the rootstock. This ensures we don’t cut our other hand that’s holding the rootstock and keeps the blade from making too deep of a cut.

Next, cut the scion wood on both sides to form a wedge that tapers down to a very slim point. It is important to cut at a direct angle rather than “scooping” with the grain of the wood so that there are no air pockets between the cambium layers.

The scion should then fit neatly into the wedge you’ve created in the rootstock with no gaps between the two pieces of wood. It is better to line up one side perfectly than to put the scion right in the middle of the rootstock. Eventually as the young tree grows, it will fuse on both sides.

Once the scion is situated, wrap it up with grafting tape and tie a rubber band around to hold it tight so the rootstock is squeezed to the scion. Some growers will wrap the scion completely to keep it from dehydrating, but with apples it’s usually sufficient to put a small piece on the top like a little hat unless it’s a very old or dehydrated piece of scion that you’re trying to save.

The Whip and Tongue Method

Once you’ve gotten the hang of wedge grafting, you can try moving on to the whip and tongue method. The take rate is similar with both methods once you’ve mastered them, although, the whip and tongue has the advantage of lining up the two pieces in a more fluid way. It also has a bit more structural integrity for the young graft because of the interlocking wood.

To create a whip and tongue graft, you’ll make a cut about 3/4″ long from one end of the scion diagonally across to the other. After this cut, make the “tongue”, a little incision into the middle of the wood – usually right where the pith is. Create a mirror cut on the rootstock then interlock the two pieces together. The trick here is getting the two tongues on either side of each other. We’ve found the budding tool on grafting knives can be helpful for opening the tongues up a little more so they easily fit into each other.

The interlocking pieces will help the young graft be more resilient to anything knocking it out of place. Follow the same finals steps from above to secure it with grafting tape and a rubber band.

Final Steps

Pot up your newly grafted tree and put it in a frost-free location, but somewhere that is not too warm. We’ve found that for many of the more temperate plants, if they’re put into a warm greenhouse immediately the scion will break dormancy before the graft is fully fused and can then collapse. Other species such as figs and persimmons much prefer a hot environment while the grafts are fusing, but in the case of apples it’s best to either graft them after all danger of frost has passed or put them in a cool hoophouse or garage. The use of bottom heat can be helpful here too as it will cause the rootstock to begin growing and breaking dormancy more quickly while the cooler air above keeps the scion dormant. 

Grafting your own trees is a very fun and economical way to propagate young fruit trees. It is also an essential skill for orchardists, nursery workers, and anybody trying to conserve rare varietals. Experiment with different techniques, rootstock combinations, interstems, and materials and you just might discover a unique new way to propagate your favorite fruit trees.

Happy grafting!

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