Berry Crazy

From the country...

Black berries

Yellow fall bearing raspberries

Saskatoon Berries

Haskap Berries

 When we were young this farm was a pick your own operation. I remember waking up in the mornings in the spring to our farm filling up with customers heading out to the field to pick strawberries. My dad had school bus seats fastened to a wagon and would pull loads of people back to the fields. As a kid I loved it- I would ride that wagon back and forth all day.

That seems like a time long ago and things have changed around here but growing fruit is something I have always wanted to try. So this year I am going to take the plunge and try my hand at it. There has been talks of fall bearing raspberries (red and yellow), Saskatoon berries, Elderberries, day neutral strawberries, the newer fan-dangled Haskap berries (blue honeysuckle) and some grapes. I have been researching like crazy (pacing fields, looking at varieties, listening to advice, looking up equipment, planting techniques...).

So far we have a plan to put in 150 raspberry plants, 25 black berry plants, 100+ haskap shrubs, and some more rhubarb. I am trying my best to not blow the budget though- time will tell as to what finally makes it into the soil this year. This endeavour might take a few years though as I slowly plant up my newest orchard garden.

I also have many more plans for more asparagus, more apple trees, horseradish root, more Jerusalem artichokes... not to mention more livestock.