Saskatoon berries - cultivation

Rosamunda · Post by **Rosamunda** » Mon Oct 15, 2012 6:56 pm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saskatoon_berry
http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marjatuomipihlaja

I have recently planted a few dozen of these and would be really interested in hearing from anyone wlse who grows them in Finland (or even Canada...). Ours are on a sheltered, south-facing slope, well-drained soil (previously used for growing wheat / oats) in southern Finland.

At the moment I need some first-hand tips on caring for them over the winter, in particular protecting them from rabbits and deer (we have planted ours in sapling tubes).

Would also be interested in getting any info on storing/preserving the fruit and/or cooking with the berries.

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Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Mon Oct 15, 2012 7:07 pm

Oh and moles too... You build a "box" out of chicken wire to keep them wabbits at bay. But rolling the protector along the trunk is recommended as well.

Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 8:58 am

Them bloody vermin ate one year my hawthorn fence and decimated the neighbours thuja/juniper/pine rock garden.

Rosamunda · Post by **Rosamunda** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 11:03 am

Moles aren't a problem but yes, those small rodents (mice, rats, voles???) that nest in the roots of trees are a real pain, We were told to bury broken glass around the root system.

These plants are VERY small (we got them from the MTT research place) which is why they are so vulnerable in the beginning. They are too small to tape at the moment. Chicken wire is probably a good idea but the area is quite large, we have 4 metres between the rows and IIRC 15 bushes in each row...

Rosamunda · Post by **Rosamunda** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 3:39 pm

My dh seems to agree with you. He's been googling and chatting on puutarha.net and it does seem that they survive pretty much anything and everything. I just hope we get fruit within 3-4 years.

Surprised you have blackberries. I have tried to grow them in Raasepori without any success (I planted a bush and then forgot where I put it, but since I can't find it anywhere I assumed it died). The cultivated ones don't taste as good as the wild ones but I am yet to find any growing in the wild around here (but just got back from the UK where they grow in all the hedgerows - not a great year though due to the rain and lack of sunshine). Did you plant them or are yours wild brambles?

tuulen · Post by **tuulen** » Sat Oct 20, 2012 12:54 am

In winter, small rodents might eat the bark from the berry bushes, up to the snow line and killing the bushes.

Rosamunda · Post by **Rosamunda** » Sat Oct 20, 2012 5:25 pm

I guess I should've uprooted a few from the woods around where my folks live in Somerset. They are so good to eat, especially in apple pie...

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