JUNE BERRIES

JUNE BERRIES

June berries are another name for the Saskatoon berry which is slowly becoming popular with gardeners all over UK. At present there is only one commercial grower down in Worcestershire called Pershore Juneberries and this is a relatively new undertaking producing fresh berries in season and frozen fruit as well as numerous Saskatoon products.

Saskatoon berries

June berries grow naturally along the north west of Canada right up to Alaska so in their natural habitat they enjoy warm summers and very cold winters. My best ever crop was in 2011 after the severe winter of 2010 when my bushes just loved the cold weather. Although they seem to need a good winter chill I got a massive crop last year when the previous winter was relatively mild. This year following a very mild winter my crop is lighter than usual but picking date still the same from mid to the end of July.

Saskatoon pie

Native Americans have been using the fruit for hundreds of years, eating it fresh, using it in soups and cakes, and mixing it with dried grated buffalo meat and fat to make pemmican. This is dried and stored for use throughout winter.

June berries were growing prolifically along the banks of the Saskatchewan River and when the town grew up at this location it was named Saskatoon after the anglicized version of the Cree name.

Harvesting over on the Canadian prairies is done by machine, hand pickers and nearly half the crop by pick your own, as people love a day in the country picking native fruit.

The fruit is high in iron, magnesium, potassium, calcium, vitamin C and very high in antioxidants.

Saskatoom bloom

The berries can be eaten fresh during the picking season of nearly one month and used in jams, compote, pie fillings, yoghurt, and makes a brilliant wine and liqueur. The berries freeze well for future use. Combine them with rhubarb which adds some acidity to balance the sweetness of the fruit for jams and compote.

The bushes are quite dense with a strong root system, making them perfect for landscape planting in shelterbelts, hedges, urban and edible landscapes and on slopes viable to soil erosion. The bushes sucker quite freely so chop these out annually otherwise the rows would get too wide to manage.

Growers started selecting the best varieties and propagated these to produce the superior varieties Smoky and Pembina many years ago. Smoky was the main variety used in the first orchards established about forty years ago. Later as demand for this new fruit exploded micropropagation techniques were used to bulk up other varieties including Thiessen (this one has the largest fruit size), Northline, Martin and Honeywood.

Saskatoons or Juneberries tolerate a wide range of soils from acidic to those with a high pH, clay, sandy, loams and are very easy to grow.

Saskatoon wine

For garden cultivations plant single bushes about 6 to 8 feet apart, or 3 feet apart for hedgerows.

Left without pruning they would grow into small trees but in gardens they need pruning to keep the height down for picking and netting as birds just love these fruits. Cut out a one or two tall shoots every year right down to ground level in winter. These will regenerate with fresh new shoots which keeps the bush young and wont need pruning for another five years.

They will produce 6 to 10 lbs fruit per bush and crop for over twenty years

Wee jobs to do this week

City Road Allotments Open Day Sunday 30^th July 2017

Visit the City Road Allotment Gardens Open Day (entrance at junction with Pitfour Street) and see  allotment life, enjoy a coffee or tea with fresh baking and select from our fresh fruit, vegetables, jams, chutneys and garden plants, including saskatoon bushes, grape vines, geraniums and fuchsias. There is plenty entertainment for the kids, so bring them along and cultivate their interest in plants and the land.

Free parking along City Road, free entry to our Open Day starting at 11am and open till 3pm.

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BERRY PICKING TIME

BERRY PICKING TIME

The berry picking season is now well underway. Early strawberries ripened up at the end of May with the help of some polythene tunnel protection, and then mid season Elsanta kept us in strawberries till July when the later Symphony showed a very heavy crop. However the wet weather in June and July caused a fair bit of botrytis rots, though there was always more berries than we could use so there was plenty for the freezer. The perpetual Albion (an autumn variety) started fruiting in June and hopefully will continue till autumn, but it lacks a true strawberry softness.

Strawberry Symphony

My new Colossus strawberry variety put on a poor show as the expected huge berries described in the catalogue just did not live up to expectations. Not nearly as big as Symphony.

Raspberry Glen Fyne and Glen Dee have been outstanding but we could do with more sunshine to sweeten up the berries. Autumn fruiting varieties are all growing very strongly but cropping is still a few weeks away.

Currants red, black and white are all having a great year. Again Ben Conan is the star performer, but Big Ben in its third year gave us 6 pounds from one bush with very large and sweet berries. They

Redcurrants

were perfect mixed into a yoghurt dessert, as well as eaten fresh off the bush.

Gooseberries have all got branches almost broken with the weight of crop, so straw had to be placed under the bushes to keep them off the soil, and last winter I had pruned off all the lower branches.

Cherry Cherokee is now a few years old but still not too tall, so it was not difficult to cover the tree with netting to keep the blackbirds off them. The dwarfing rootstock Gisela 5 keeps the size down but so does some summer spur pruning. This has been a good year for my cherry and so far no sign of blackfly which often infest the young growing shoots.

Saskatoons, aronias and blueberries ripen up towards the end of July but are best picked in August once they have fully ripened as this increases the sugar content. Birds will eat the saskatoons and blueberries so it is necessary to cover them with netting, but usually the aronias are safe as the fruit is somewhat astringent and less attractive to eat.

Nikki Jennings with new raspberry selections

The James Hutton Institute is currently working on improving the qualities of blueberries, blackcurrants and raspberries through plant breeding. Varieties of blueberries are being assessed to find those suited to Scottish soils and climate as well as size of fruit, flavour, colour and texture.

Blackcurrant breeding looks at varieties that can flower and fruit following mild winters as they normally require a period of winter chilling to initiate fruit buds. Berry size, sweetness, evenness of ripening is also important as commercially they will be picked in one operation by machine. As much of the commercial crop goes into Ribena production flavour is very important as well as a high level of anthocyanins to keep us all very healthy.

Raspberries have different needs as today raspberry root rot is widespread so tolerance to this disease is important. Commercially raspberries are grown under the protection of polythene tunnels and a lot is hand picked so berry size is important making picking easier and breeders also include  flavour and colour. Having the fruit available over a long season is assisted by using autumn fruiting (primocane) varieties, but leaving the old canes on to get two crops. Many primocane selections had fruit ready to pick in June almost a fortnight ahead of the normal summer fruiting (floricane) varieties. Although Glen Ample is well established as the industry favourite, Glen Dee with large sweet fruit is becoming very popular, but soon others will be released.

Lettuce Lollo Rosso

Wee jobs to do this week

There is still time to sow some lettuce such as Lollo Rosso for autumn use as with general crop harvesting from mid summer onwards there is always some spare land needing utilised before the end of the growing season. A sowing of winter lettuce such as Hilde can be made at the end of July to grow outdoors in a sheltered spot and will provide the first lettuce next spring.

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NO TIME TO RELAX

NO TIME TO RELAX

Gardening activities are very much determined by our weather and after a long dry and warm spring, the heat wave which predominantly affected areas south of the border, did assist our Scottish climate to reach seasonal highs for about a fortnight. It was very enjoyable and just as we were getting ready to complain of the drought, the heavens opened up and the honeymoon was over. June and early July were somewhat damp to put it mildly. Down at ground level crops and weeds had a field day with anything green reaching rapidly up to heaven. While this is brilliant for cabbages, kale, lettuce, courgettes and turnips, other crops took a different view as continual damp weather took its toll.

Onion white rot

Gardening jobs may be numerous but small at this time of year as we are supposed to be on top of tasks which gives us more time to relax in the sun on the patio, occasionally getting up to dead head a geranium or spent rose. However gardening opportunities have been few and far between as we dodged rainy days to catch up with lots of very wee but essential tasks.

Slugs just thrive in the moist undergrowth and strawberries, impatiens and French marigolds are under severe attack so pellets were essential. Then mice invaded the strawberry patch. They are getting very clever. They manage to spring the mouse traps, gobble up my best cheese, then tuck into a few more strawberries before heading home. Strawberry Colossus is proving to be a hit, but I wish they would leave one for me to sample. The strawberry patch is well netted so no bird problem, but now I need to put nets on my saskatoons and redcurrants to keep the blackbirds away.

Cherry Cherokee

Nets were also necessary on a recent planting of cabbages and cauliflower for autumn harvesting. I had just got them planted when the rains came so thought I would net them next day hoping the sun would be shining. Pigeons had an early morning start on my fresh young green leaves, but I think they will survive and grow now the nets are in place.

I am keeping an eye open on my gooseberries absolutely laden down with a heavy crop of berries, as in previous years it attracted the attention of our allotment site resident fox.

Cherry Cherokee also had to be netted otherwise our resident blackbird family would take the lot.

Potato Casa Blanca

Weeds just love the wet weather and have to be picked off as there is not enough sun to shrivel them up after hoeing. They germinate and grow very fast just now.

White rot on onions and root rot on raspberries is becoming a menace with the wet weather. Onions like it warm and dry and this wet spell has taken its toll. Root rot on raspberries is also spread by soil moisture and infected soil can easily be transported on boots, in compost and tools. Remove any infection as soon as it is found. Clubroot on a row of rocket salad leaves virtually wiped them out as it spread easily in the moist soil.

Summer harvesting is well under way for many crops. Pick peas, lettuce, rocket, spring onions, turnip and the first early potatoes. They may still be small but only lift enough for a few days needs.

Spray chrysanthemums

Sowings of turnips, parsnips, beetroot and salads for late summer use will now be germinated so thin out to give seedlings plenty of room to grow. I usually thin twice, initially to a couple of inches apart and then later select the strongest and thin out the rest to allow full growth.

Chrysanthemums grown for cut flower always need support as they will grow about four feet tall depending on variety. Those grown as sprays are just left to grow and flower, but the decorative, incurve and reflex types grown for single large heads will need disbudding. Once the top flower bud is obvious, start to remove all other buds and sideshoots from each main stem so the plant can put all its energy into developing a large head. Extra feeding helps to increase flower size and maintain a healthy vigorous plant. Always disbud from the top down just in case of any accidents.

Wee jobs to do this week

Poppy Ladybird

Dead head annual flowers, perennials, roses and keep some of the seed heads from favourites like Poppy Ladybird as these will come up again next year from the fresh seed.

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SUMMER COLOUR

SUMMER COLOUR

Dublin Bay in June

The recent heat wave enjoyed (or endured) in the south of the UK, may not have quite reached us up north, but this year our Scottish climate has still been outstanding for warmth, sunshine and dry weather. This followed a mild winter and a very pleasant spring so it is no surprise that our gardens have been a riot of colour month after month. I thought colour had peaked with a massive show from the tulips, but that was followed by the show of dazzling azaleas, then the bearded iris, and now the summer roses climbing up my walls continue the show. Every time we walk around the garden there is another plant having its moment in the spotlight. Two weeks ago I wrote about all this colour in the garden, only to find that a fortnight later the colour has not diminished but there is a whole new group of plants seeking attention.

Just where do you begin and just hope it continues through summer and into the autumn.

At the moment it is the climbing roses that catch the eye as well as my two shrub roses Ispahan and Rosa mundi.

Rosa Mundi

 Over the years I have grown numerous bush and shrub roses only to dig them out after a few years due to the ravishes of mildew, rust and blackspot. I am now down to about twenty which all have reasonably strong foliage able to withstand rose diseases. My red climbing rose Dublin Bay grown on a south wall is spectacular and every year never fails to impress, though I am fussy with the winter pruning even tackling those shoots beyond the top of my twelve foot ladder.

Another very tall shrub having its moment is my Philadelphus virginal. Catching those long arching sprays of pure white flowers against a deep blue sky make a brilliant picture and the scent is unforgettable.

Delosperma and Senecio

Coming down in scale to my dry border I have a few shrubs well adapted to a south facing bank with good soil but with a four foot retaining wall to hold it back it has always suffered from lack of moisture. A selection of those plants adapted to maritime conditions seems to work well. At this moment my large Senecio greyii is a mass of yellow flowers and growing alongside it clambering over the wall is a Delosperma cooperi with purple flowers. A perfect match and adding to the display is my pink Erigeron ground cover and taller evergreen shrub Cistus purpureus with

deep pink flowers. This group was never planned, but over the years I found a plant to fill a gap to suit the dry conditions and just so happen they all decide to flower at the same time. Sometimes you just get lucky. Another piece of luck was the visit to RHS gardens at Wisley last year when Anna picked up a packet of Sweet William seed which we had never grown before but Anna recalled them from childhood days and wanted to try them out. We didn’t have a special place for them so they went into every spare piece of soil in rose borders, herbaceous borders and our allotment flower border. They have been fantastic and added colour to other plants all around them.

Peonia Doreen

Over on the herbaceous border the latest star performer has been Peonia Doreen, one of Anna’s prize purchases from Gardening Scotland a few years ago. Every year it gets bigger with more flowers and now really catches the eye. Then again our massive group of deep blue delphiniums continue to perform every year, but need serious staking due to their size and strength.

Tubs and hanging baskets are growing well and are quite colourful, but this is not their time yet as they still have to come into full flower probably from end of July onwards. However the pink and red geraniums have been outstanding. I kept pinching off all the flowers from winter till the end of spring to build up strong growth. This has paid off as now they just can’t wait to get their flowers up into the sunshine. Petunias alongside them are also enjoying the warmth putting on plenty colour.

Wee jobs to do this week

Salad catch crops

Harvest vegetable crops as they ripen such as turnip, lettuce, rocket, spring onions, peas and early salad potatoes. This releases land for another quick growing crop of salads, beetroot, autumn and winter cabbages and cauliflower. There might also be time for another pea crop using a dwarf early variety such as Feltham First, Meteor, Kelvedon Wonder, or sugar snap peas.

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SUMMER FRUITS

SUMMER FRUITS

We are now beginning to reap the benefits from this warm summer, as the first strawberries ripened up at the end of May. My main crop Elsanta has come to the end of its useful life so will be replaced in the autumn. Colossus my new strawberry with huge fruit is living up to its name, but then the first berries from Symphony and Florence were also huge. Large fruit seems to be in fashion as my perpetual strawberry Albion which I rely on to fruit well into autumn also has massive berries. Just a pity they are so hard and lack sweetness. If they don’t improve they are destined for the compost heap to be replaced with some other autumn fruiting variety. Now that fruit picking has started it is a good time to review the crops and make notes for future action.

Picking fresh rhubarb

Raspberries are now starting to colour up so if you are troubled with the raspberry maggot now is the time for the first insecticide spray, then give another spray a week later. Both summer fruiting Glen Fyne and Glen Dee are heavy with berries ready to turn red. Looks like a good year for raspberries. Autumn fruiting Polka, Autumn Bliss as well as Autumn Treasure are all growing strongly so an autumn crop of berries looks assured.

Blackcurrant Ben Conan and Big Ben both have many branches weighed down with berries and should start to colour up soon. Most of the tops of vigorous branches were plagued by greenfly as growth has been soft with the warm wet weather, but rather than spray I just cut back the shoots to healthy leaves. This got rid of the pests and let more sunshine in to sweeten up the fruit.

Gooseberries also suffered a severe attack of sawfly maggots when I wasn’t looking, so they needed a spray which quickly wiped out the pests and allowed the bushes to grow fresh leaves. This is another crop that is just loaded with berries waiting to ripen up.

Fig Brown Turkey

Rhubarb may officially not be a fruit, but it is used as a dessert in stews, compote and is brilliant mixed with saskatoons for jam, as they add some acidity. The Saskatoon crop may be a bit lighter than last year as the winter was so mild that shoot ripening to initiate fruit buds was a bit lacking.

However I should get bigger berries and harvesting at the end of July is on target. It was interesting to see that the Saskatoon crop grown down south at Pershore Juneberries commenced in mid June.  They needed a mechanical harvester to pick the berries.

Great to see success with the first commercial Saskatoon plantation in the UK.

Bramble Helen has finished flowering and now we just wait for this early variety to ripen up for picking in August. However the new bramble Reuben is flowering on the shoots grown last year. This primocane type flowers and fruits on canes grown in the same year, so last years canes should have been removed after fruiting, but with flowers appearing in November they had no chance. New shoots growing this year are three feet tall and looks like they will flower this month. Can’t wait to see if Reuben will fruit this year and live up to its terrific catalogue description.

Thinning apples

Apples are ready for thinning but I will wait till after the June drop before the final thinning.

Cherries are turning colour but the tree needs netting otherwise the blackbird will take the lot.

My Peach Avalon Pride lost a third of its leaves to peach leaf curl, so the diseased foliage had to be removed. The tree was none too happy so it dropped my twelve potential peaches and has left me with just one. I give it one more year to acclimatise to Scotland or it gets the chop.

Grapes and figs are having a great year with much needed warmth and sunshine so good to see the fruit swelling up and we should soon get our first fig.

Peas and beans

Wee jobs to do this week

Peas can grow very fast in this warm damp summer climate so make sure they are all well supported. Even the dwarf varieties can grow two feet tall and are better for something to cling on to. I use both shrub prunings if tall enough and weldmesh wire held on posts driven into the ground.

Plastic pea and bean netting is quite cheap and very easy to use but make sure it is held up with a strong framework of posts and wires.

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