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Friday, August 7, 2020

Aronia, Baby!

 I finally got a good harvest this year!

This is from just one aronia berry bush. I took them over to my parents where my mom will rinse out any stray spiders and the odd stem before freezing them. She uses them in muffins, cookies, smoothies... pretty much anywhere the fun purple color and boost of anti-oxidants are welcome.

This is a bumper crop. I don't remember how long ago I planted them, but this is the best yield I've seen. There are two more bushes to harvest but they won't be as prolific due to being shaded by the lilacs; I'm guessing another two gallons full.

If you are interested in growing these there are some good points: 

1. The rabbits don't chew on mine, even in the middle of winter.

2. The birds leave them alone. 

3. I haven't seen any fungi or disease signs.

4. No pits to deal with.

5. No thorns. (I'm thinking of you, gooseberry.)

Highly recommended. 

2 comments:

Mama Pea said...

The birds leave them alone! Wow, wonder why that is? These berries have been on our list to try for a while now and it's so great to read about them from someone who has actually had the experience with them. Our haskap berry harvest this year was very good, too, and we sure do love the syrup and jam I've made from them. Have you ever tried jam made with these berries of yours?

tpals said...

I haven't yet. There's always been just enough to keep my parents supplied. Maybe once their younger bushes start producing I will experiment more.