Saskatoon Berry

It has been a week since planting day, and I have returned almost daily to see the progress of my plants. While most of the trees are still dormant, the cherries are tentatively opening some buds. The winners in the race are my smaller fruiting plants- the bushes. There are signs of life from most of them, and several varieties have already been brave enough to unfurl a few leaves!

The real stars of the show are the Saskatoon berries. They have grown so rapidly I can almost see them grow. From a bare stick a week ago, they have shown a tremendous desire to thrive and survive. (The three pictures along the left are of the same plant a few days apart.)

Never heard of a Saskatoon berry?

 I have never heard of it being grown as a commercial crop, and had you asked me a year ago what they looked like I would not have had a clue what to tell you. It is the description from the nursery catalogue that pressed me into ordering 8 of these plants—but really after waiting so many years to have a chance at growing my own orchard, I had trouble not trying one of everything in the book!

Saskatoons make a good hedgerow, which is why my 8 plants are lined up with the neighbour’s fence, though far enough away that his horses can’t reach over and eat them! The plant is native to the prairies which makes it extremely hardy (up to Zone 2!) and the catalogue promises that Saskatoons are the easiest berries to grow, they will accept any type of soil! Perfect! Of course, now if the Saskatoons fail I will know that the problem is not my soil—it’s me!

As for flavour, I am not sure that Saskatoons are very palatable if eaten raw, but I am told that birds love them and this can be a useful crop for luring birds away from fruit that has higher market value.

How long before we can taste the berries? Hopefully these plants should be well established enough by next year to allow pollination of some flowers. A nice relief to have some plants that will bear fruit early. It is a shocking investment planting an orchard and then having to wait 5 years with your fingers crossed for good weather and low pest pressure before harvesting a decent crop!

 The star of the week, the lovely Saskatoon berry!