As far as possible, I like to eat fresh fruit and berries from the garden, usually with muesli for breakfast. I’ve been self-sufficient for many years, mostly home grown but augmented with wild foraged bilberries / blåbær. From when the cellar stored apples are finished, usually in April to the first haskaps and strawberries are ready, we go over to rehydrated dried fruit. Currently these are the berries and fruit we are eating now in autumn as the first frosts threaten:
1. Elaeagnus umbellata (autumn olive; Japansk sølvbusk)
2. Rubus ‘Sonja’ (blackberry; bjørnebær) – the only blackberry cultivar I am aware of that is hardy enough for our climate, not freezing in winter. Productive with tasty berries too!
3. Ribes divaricatum “Worcesterberry” (Worcesterbær)
4. Ribes biebersteinii (Ribes petraeum var. biebersteinii) (black redcurrant; svartrips); isn’t truly black, more dark purple coloured; hang a long time on the bushes and don’t seem to be taken by thrushes (like blackcurrants)
5. Malus domestica (apple; epler) – eating the windfalls that won’t store long.
Tag Archives: autumn olive
Autumn Olives
The 3 autumn olive / Japansk sølvbusk (Elaeagnus umbellata) bushes at the Væres Venner Community Garden are now producing well. This is about 2/3 of the berries and I hope to harvest the remainder tomorrow. Apart from a few Aronia and Worcesterberries and apples we are near the end of the fresh fruit / berry harvest. See also my blog post “Late Fresh Berries” here: https://www.edimentals.com/blog/?p=29619
…and two pictures of the final fruit leather. Like sour cherries, they become sweeter on drying. Delicious!
Late Fresh Berries
I love the seasonality of fruit and berries and one group of berries that can be harvested in October and November are particularly valuable when you only eat fresh and, later in the winter / spring, dried fruit and berries. The blackberries (bjørnebær) are finished now and we will be eating fresh stored apples now until at least April. This week after the first heavy frost I was able to continue harvesting Worcesterberries (a selection of Ribes divaricatum) at the bottom of the picture, Aronia prunifolia (purple chokeberry) at left and autumn olives / Japansk sølvbusk (Elaeagnus umbellata)
1st November 2023: The Autumn Olive is really producing well now! Still some to havest in the community garden!