I’d followed KVANN (Norwegian Seed Savers) member Per Hofsli on social media for some time for his interest in nut trees and I’d learned that he was even grafting for sale, not the easiest of genera to graft as the process needs warmth. I was therefore pleased to be given a tour of his garden in Asker (Oslo) on 20th August when I was in Oslo for KVANNs herb seminar at Linderud Gård. Although most are still young trees, it was truly impressive to see all the nut trees in his garden including many varieties of walnuts, heartnuts, buartnuts ( ), chestnut, hazel and almonds. However, most impressive was his amazing collection of fig varieties and my visit was perfectly timed to be able to sample some of the best tasting figs I’ve ever eaten, in particular one (Campaniere) that had a rich honey taste. He grows them in large pots and brings them in for the winter as outside they freeze back to the roots and don’t then manage to ripen by the autumn.
There were also a number of varieties of aubergine and a wonderful “family” pear tree, to which he had grafted on 15 varieties!!!
I came away with a dwarf walnut created by Lars Westergaard: Mini Multiflora #14, grafted by Per (thanks!), a variety I believe I saw when I visited Westergaard’s nursery in 2016: https://www.edimentals.com/blog/?p=6438
I didn’t take many pictures as it was raining a bit. I hope I will be able to revisit in 10 years to see how this place has developed :)