These amazing berry, nut plants will make wonderfully unique addition

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Opinion: Haskaps, also known as honeyberries, are beginning to create a stir in the home gardening world.

The blackberries of aronia have been called ‘super-fruits’. Photo by Minter Country Garden /PNG

One of the wonderful things about growing our own food is the diversity of flavours we can produce in a relatively small space. Of course, we grow the varieties we love best, but we should also be open to trying some older and some newer varieties — ones, perhaps, that aren’t yet well-known or aren’t typically grown in home gardens.

Cranberry plants are a great example. The most common perception is that they are bog plants and are only meant to be grown on a large scale. Related to blueberries, lingonberries and huckleberries, they produce tasty fruits and are welcome additions in food gardens, but they can also be useful as crossover plants. By this I mean, they also make excellent ground covers on banks or even on a flat, sunny, out-of-the-way spot.

Hardy to Zone 5, these tiny-leafed, low growing evergreens have rich green foliage in spring and summer that turns a beautiful burgundy in fall and winter. Hundreds of tiny white flowers, that cover the plants in April and May, turn first into large green berries, then mature into dark, burgundy-red fruits in fall.

Cranberry fruit is bitter — that is until late frosts spike-up their sugar bricks, making them quite enjoyable to eat. When fully ripe, it’s very nice to pick fresh berries from the garden to make a traditional cranberry sauce. In late winter, they also provide food for birds.

Haskaps, also known as honeyberries, are beginning to create a stir in the home gardening world. Native to Japan and Siberia and rated as Zone 2, they’re one of the hardiest of all berry plants and are easy to grow. A member of the honeysuckle family, they’re one of the earliest fruits, often ripening in June. Two different varieties are needed for pollination, and some growers are now planting two or more varieties together in one container to solve this issue.

Most haskap fruits are about the size of a blueberry and have a similar flavour, but with a hint of raspberry. They have become really popular for preserves, as well as for cooking and baking. When I was speaking to a group in the Selkirk Valley, a local grower told me they sold their entire crop to an Okanagan winery for making liqueurs.

There are many haskap varieties, but on the West Coast we need ones that can stand-up to our wet conditions. The Proven Winners Yezberry series is one of the best. Developed in Oregon from northern Japanese varieties by Dr. Maxine Thompson, this series offers some of the largest and sweetest berries. Yezberry Sugar Pie, Maxie and Honey Bunch are some of the most popular varieties, and Yezberry Solo is one of the few that is self-fertile. High in nutrients, haskaps are fast-becoming a garden berry of the future.

Seaberry is the hardiest fruit plant in the world. Photo by Minter Country Garden /PNG

Mulberries have become increasingly popular in the past few years. Native to Asia and the Middle East, some varieties are hardy to Zone 4. Black mulberry fruit is similar in flavour to blackberries and just a bit longer and thinner in size. Virtually all varieties are self-fertile, so only one tree is needed to provide fruit.

Mulberry plants can be a little hard to find. Illinois Everbearing is one of the most well-known varieties. Growing up to 35 feet and loving the heat, it’s truly a unique tree that produces edible fruit. The Pakistan variety has long, thin, three-inch fruits that have a complex flavour. Morus alba Contorta, a compact variety growing six to eight feet tall, is a unique ornamental tree that produces jet black berries. It’s a clean and fun tree to have in our gardens.

Undeniably, almonds are one of the healthiest and tastiest nuts. Almond trees are hardy to Zone 6, grow about 15 to 20 feet tall and have beautiful, fragrant pink flowers. In coastal areas, they must be grown against a hot, south- or west-facing wall, much like a peach or nectarine tree, to help prevent the leaf curl fungus. Hall’s Hardy is thought to be a peach/almond cross and is self-fertile, but it’s always best to have two different varieties for successful cross-pollination. They’re a novelty in this area, but you can grow beautiful almonds.

Often sold as a garden ornamental, aronias, also known as chokeberries, are fast becoming popular wildlife attractors, and we’re also discovering the value of their berries as wholesome edibles. Many varieties are available, but a new low-growing series, called Low Scape Mound, is, perhaps, one of the most important. It’s hardy to Zone 3, grows only 12 to 18 inches tall and two feet wide, and is particularly useful as a ground cover to beautify banks.

Aronia plants have masses of small white flowers that turn into red, then black berries that have been called ‘super-fruits’ because they’re high in vitamins and very useful as antioxidants. Although initially quite tart-tasting, after a touch of frost once or twice, their sugar bricks really pump-up the flavour and taste. They are very clean plants, and their fall colouring is out of this world. We are also finding them to be very heat and drought tolerant.

Gojis (Lycium barbarum), also known as wolfberries, are one of the highest rated antioxidants in the world. On the antioxidant ORAC scale, they measure over the top. Their tiny, sweet red berries are also rated the highest in protein. Because they grow very quickly to about 10 feet, it’s best to grow them on a trellis or, like raspberries, on a wire framework. Their light purple flowers open in May, and after three years produce orange-red berries until fall. They’re self-fertile, drought resistant and need full sun to perform their best. Gojis are hardy to Zone 5 and adaptable to a wide range of soils.

Another great high antioxidant plant is the seaberry (Hippophae rhamnoides), also known as sea-buckthorn. Its claim to fame is being the hardiest fruit plant in the world. Both male and female plants are needed for pollination. When its orange berries mature, they have a unique orange/passion fruit flavour and are great used for sauces, jellies and liqueurs. If you want a thorny hedge to protect your yard, plant seaberry three to five feet apart. Its silver-grey foliage is very attractive and disease-free.

These amazing berry and nut plants will make a wonderfully unique addition to any garden, and they offer great new flavours. Most are available now in garden stores and are well worth the investment.