They definitely have thorns (some named varieties have fewer and smaller thorns), however one thing I've noticed this year in ours is that we have quite a few tiny little bird nests in our seabuckthorn. The main reason is the thorns. Smaller birds really need thorny plants to nest in, to keep them protected. So the thorns aren't just a nuisance while picking, they thankfully have a silver lining and benefit for wildlife.
I love sea buckthorn/seaberry. They are definitely an acquired taste. The weird thing though, is the more I eat them, the more I enjoy them raw. I think a big part about that is just how healthy I know they are. A true miracle food, possibly the healthiest berry on planet Earth. The flavour profile of these is incredible though, and I think they go a long way in cooking. They add a really nice fresh citrus taste that is truly unique to them.
Great great great video! Love the thorns and everything about this plant. I have areas in the front of my orchard that have sidewalk access No joke I have found people sleeping in one of the chicken coops on the property with used substances at their feet since then I planted many many many rose bushes in the open areas haven’t had any of that since but as I remove and add long term fruit producing trees and shrubs in place. Plants like this are PERFECT the suckering and thorns is ideal to keep those areas “non trails”
Lovely plant. Had one for years until it grew so tall I needed to prune it yearly. Runners started growing everywhere throughout my lawn and flower gardens. Sadly I needed to eradicate it because it became way too invasive!
I purchased 3 Sirola Seabuckthorn in one gallon pots this spring, hoping I had at least one of each sex. They weren’t labelled and no one at the garden Center knew the difference. They did not flower and as they’ve grown over the past 3 months I suspect they are all the same sex, male or female, as the leaves look exactly the same on each tree. Oh well! Amazon mistakenly delivered a bottle of Seabuckthorn oil instead of a double hose connector, yes, truly. I was told to keep the oil. My neighbour, an esthetician (sp.?) says high-end skin creams contain Seabuckthorn oil. So I’ve been mixing a few drops with my moisturizer and spreading it on my face. It gives quite the orange glow…very Trumpian 😊.
I cleared all the lower dead twigs in my little seabuckthorn grove and planted two pawpaws in the shade of their canopy. So far they seem to be ok there. Eventually, in a few years I will cut the seabuckthorn shrubs down and allow the pawpaws to take that space. I'm picking their berries tomorrow and plan to try them in my juicer.
We grew Sea Buckthorne for most of 2 decades, but we had trouble keeping the males alive. 2 of my neighbors have had the same problem. I like the berries, even though our female was one of the first ones available with tiny sour berries. I'm planning on some adjustment to my south edge, and may try them again. We made a really wonderful mixed fruit jam with them and plums.
I don't have the freezer space to attempt that method, so for picking, I found it works decently well to cut the branch off, trim it of leaves and twigs, and then literally cut the berries off with a knife into a bin. Yes, a picking tool to pinch the berries off would work but unless you have a variety with exceptionally large berries, such methods of picking pristine berries is going to be a lot of effort.
I Have an unnamed variety that I am currently stratifying. Supper excited to get some of these plants growing. Fingers and eyes crossed. Lol. Im in 5B, so they should love my sunny yard.😁
I have been meaning to research this plant more, so thank you for the video! I have a male and a female plants and neither look very happy. I planted them two years ago and they, especially the female, seem to have done hardly any growing at all. My soil is sandy ("sandy" in fact probably is too good a description - straight "sand" is a more accurate one), we have pines growing all around us. The plants get plenty of sun and I mostly have left them alone. I realize two years is not a very long time in perennial gardening terms, but still, I must admit I was expecting them to at least grow a bit. I guess I just need to be patient :)
I hear a lot of talk about the seaberry, but it seems like no one likes to eat it fresh. I appreciate the honest assessment. I feel like it is an interesting plant, but goumi and autumn olive are similar nitrogen fixers that actually taste good fresh.
Good info. I do like the berries fresh with no sweetener. It might be an acquired taste, I don't Usually use processed foods and added sugar. As mentioned they sucker a lot and are very thorny. This makes an excellent boundary plant where I might like a fence or a wall. This is cheaper, the thorns are a bonus :) This is the first year I have a bumper crop. Wondering how to know when they are perfectly ripe/ easier to pick. So far I'm mostly pruning off some branches since the majority of the varies grow at the tips and the interior of the plants have died back. I think this method of picking / pruning will result in a more compact growth
Thanks Angela. Sounds like an awesome addition. Can you provide any info on how rampart the can become (aside from suckering). Have a lot of small birds and was wondering how bad could they spread from seed in bird droppings.
That’s a good question. I have not found any birds here go for the berries. Perhaps because they’re so hard to get to? So I have never lost any noticeable fruit to them and never seen any volunteers. Any seeds can’t germinate or grow in any shade, only open sunny spots. However, I know it can be invasive/aggressive in open poor soil, but I’m not sure if that’s more from suckering v birds planting the seeds. I wish I had a more confident answer!
Planted a couple very small seedling ones this year. so far they are doing ok. They get 8-10 hours of sun so should be good. I haven't tried the fruits but I eat choke cherries so I figure I will be good.
I have a self-pollinating variety on my nursery wishlist because I have a small garden and did not want to use up space for an additional male. But your remark about the fruit size made me look again and I think I will nix a dwarf male that tolerates a bit of shade plus a female producing big berries. Thank you for another very helpful video, Angela. Much appreciated. Oh, did you ever try to make a seaberry-ginger jam? I loooove it.
Thank you for this interesting post ! A rare, prized, unique fruit for its many nuritional, medicinal qualities and great for our skin. You are fortunate to live in a temperate climate to have sea berries !. Would love to grow these, and need to research to find types that could survive winters.
Hi Angela. Have you ever experimented with other fruits that you are growing with the Seaberry? Im curious to see what might mix well with it. Black Mulberry as an example. Thanks. Great video by the way.👍👍
Nice video. I just ordered 3 F and 1 M from One Green World, planting this past Summer. Interesting study of this plant doesn't reveal a lot of sources for info, but plenty to view and read about. The links were very helpful. Have you purchased the harvesting tool or do you harvest by hand ?
I wonder if it will grow in zone 4b? The thorns on a grapefruit tree are very dangerous, about 3 inches long and very irritating when they scratch you. Just read through you blog and see that it will grow in my zone. I also have high winds here. Thanks.
I have 3 and 2 year old plants planted 5 and none are really growing. Any advice on establishing these plants. Heavy clay, seasonally wet, full sun site.
They definitely have thorns (some named varieties have fewer and smaller thorns), however one thing I've noticed this year in ours is that we have quite a few tiny little bird nests in our seabuckthorn. The main reason is the thorns. Smaller birds really need thorny plants to nest in, to keep them protected. So the thorns aren't just a nuisance while picking, they thankfully have a silver lining and benefit for wildlife.
I love sea buckthorn/seaberry. They are definitely an acquired taste. The weird thing though, is the more I eat them, the more I enjoy them raw. I think a big part about that is just how healthy I know they are. A true miracle food, possibly the healthiest berry on planet Earth. The flavour profile of these is incredible though, and I think they go a long way in cooking. They add a really nice fresh citrus taste that is truly unique to them.
Great great great video! Love the thorns and everything about this plant. I have areas in the front of my orchard that have sidewalk access
No joke I have found people sleeping in one of the chicken coops on the property with used substances at their feet since then I planted many many many rose bushes in the open areas haven’t had any of that since but as I remove and add long term fruit producing trees and shrubs in place. Plants like this are PERFECT the suckering and thorns is ideal to keep those areas “non trails”
Wow! Thanks for the link to the picking tools! Mine are loaded this year and I’ve been looking for a painless way to pick them.
Lovely plant. Had one for years until it grew so tall I needed to prune it yearly. Runners started growing everywhere throughout my lawn and flower gardens. Sadly I needed to eradicate it because it became way too invasive!
So do you think the heavy pruning was the reason for the runners to appear?
I purchased 3 Sirola Seabuckthorn in one gallon pots this spring, hoping I had at least one of each sex. They weren’t labelled and no one at the garden Center knew the difference. They did not flower and as they’ve grown over the past 3 months I suspect they are all the same sex, male or female, as the leaves look exactly the same on each tree. Oh well!
Amazon mistakenly delivered a bottle of Seabuckthorn oil instead of a double hose connector, yes, truly. I was told to keep the oil. My neighbour, an esthetician (sp.?) says high-end skin creams contain Seabuckthorn oil. So I’ve been mixing a few drops with my moisturizer and spreading it on my face. It gives quite the orange glow…very Trumpian 😊.
🤣😂😆🤣😂
'Sirola' is a female variety, according to the description of the online nursery I trust.
Good advice to do research and to make sure what we plant is something we will enjoy eating!
I cleared all the lower dead twigs in my little seabuckthorn grove and planted two pawpaws in the shade of their canopy. So far they seem to be ok there. Eventually, in a few years I will cut the seabuckthorn shrubs down and allow the pawpaws to take that space. I'm picking their berries tomorrow and plan to try them in my juicer.
We grew Sea Buckthorne for most of 2 decades, but we had trouble keeping the males alive. 2 of my neighbors have had the same problem. I like the berries, even though our female was one of the first ones available with tiny sour berries. I'm planning on some adjustment to my south edge, and may try them again.
We made a really wonderful mixed fruit jam with them and plums.
My male is huuuuge and sends up so many more suckers than the females do. I dunno what I’m doing right, but he’s super happy!
I don't have the freezer space to attempt that method, so for picking, I found it works decently well to cut the branch off, trim it of leaves and twigs, and then literally cut the berries off with a knife into a bin.
Yes, a picking tool to pinch the berries off would work but unless you have a variety with exceptionally large berries, such methods of picking pristine berries is going to be a lot of effort.
Thank you so much for sharing where to get the plants! I have been interested in Sea buckthorn since I learned they are good for skin!
As a guy who loves sour stuff ima be inhaling these things xD
I Have an unnamed variety that I am currently stratifying. Supper excited to get some of these plants growing. Fingers and eyes crossed. Lol. Im in 5B, so they should love my sunny yard.😁
I have been meaning to research this plant more, so thank you for the video! I have a male and a female plants and neither look very happy. I planted them two years ago and they, especially the female, seem to have done hardly any growing at all. My soil is sandy ("sandy" in fact probably is too good a description - straight "sand" is a more accurate one), we have pines growing all around us. The plants get plenty of sun and I mostly have left them alone. I realize two years is not a very long time in perennial gardening terms, but still, I must admit I was expecting them to at least grow a bit. I guess I just need to be patient :)
I need to check and see if these would do well in my sunny Oklahoma yard!
I hear a lot of talk about the seaberry, but it seems like no one likes to eat it fresh. I appreciate the honest assessment. I feel like it is an interesting plant, but goumi and autumn olive are similar nitrogen fixers that actually taste good fresh.
Good info. I do like the berries fresh with no sweetener. It might be an acquired taste, I don't
Usually use processed foods and added sugar.
As mentioned they sucker a lot and are very thorny. This makes an excellent boundary plant where I might like a fence or a wall. This is cheaper, the thorns are a bonus :)
This is the first year I have a bumper crop. Wondering how to know when they are perfectly ripe/ easier to pick. So far I'm mostly pruning off some branches since the majority of the varies grow at the tips and the interior of the plants have died back. I think this method of picking / pruning will result in a more compact growth
Thanks Angela. Sounds like an awesome addition. Can you provide any info on how rampart the can become (aside from suckering). Have a lot of small birds and was wondering how bad could they spread from seed in bird droppings.
That’s a good question. I have not found any birds here go for the berries. Perhaps because they’re so hard to get to? So I have never lost any noticeable fruit to them and never seen any volunteers. Any seeds can’t germinate or grow in any shade, only open sunny spots. However, I know it can be invasive/aggressive in open poor soil, but I’m not sure if that’s more from suckering v birds planting the seeds. I wish I had a more confident answer!
Planted a couple very small seedling ones this year. so far they are doing ok. They get 8-10 hours of sun so should be good. I haven't tried the fruits but I eat choke cherries so I figure I will be good.
Interesting. Definitely worth looking into.
I have a self-pollinating variety on my nursery wishlist because I have a small garden and did not want to use up space for an additional male. But your remark about the fruit size made me look again and I think I will nix a dwarf male that tolerates a bit of shade plus a female producing big berries. Thank you for another very helpful video, Angela. Much appreciated. Oh, did you ever try to make a seaberry-ginger jam? I loooove it.
Thank you for this interesting post ! A rare, prized, unique fruit for its many nuritional, medicinal qualities and great for our skin. You are fortunate to live in a temperate climate to have sea berries !. Would love to grow these, and need to research to find types that could survive winters.
They are very hardy, uo to minus 25 degrees C.
Enjoyed the video and found your information very useful.
Thank you, Charles!
Hi Angela. Have you ever experimented with other fruits that you are growing with the Seaberry? Im curious to see what might mix well with it. Black Mulberry as an example. Thanks. Great video by the way.👍👍
Nice video. I just ordered 3 F and 1 M from One Green World, planting this past Summer. Interesting study of this plant doesn't reveal a lot of sources for info, but plenty to view and read about. The links were very helpful. Have you purchased the harvesting tool or do you harvest by hand ?
Thank you for the great info, it’s on my list, not least for the added nitrogen fixing function 🙏👌🌱🌱🌱
I wonder if it will grow in zone 4b? The thorns on a grapefruit tree are very dangerous, about 3 inches long and very irritating when they scratch you.
Just read through you blog and see that it will grow in my zone. I also have high winds here. Thanks.
They’re Hardy down to zone 3a!
can I grow it in a very big container?
I have 3 and 2 year old plants planted 5 and none are really growing. Any advice on establishing these plants. Heavy clay, seasonally wet, full sun site.
Where would I purchase A male and female one of each I would like the variety that usually grows in the Himalayas?
Do you sell them?
Tuyệt vời.
they look like miniature tomatoes
SO MALE AND FEMALE TREES WILL PRODUCE FRUITS?
Only females produce fruit. (Just like persimmon trees)
Only females produce fruit, but they won’t do it without a male around to pollinate. They are dioecious.
You want roughly 1 male for every 6 females.
@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy do you know how close the male should be to the female?
Australian funnel web is the most poisonous spider in the world, only one person has survived a bite.
The ones in Oregon are Tegenaria genus and harmless. I still don’t want to get bitten!
I need a male my female is lonely. 🖖😅
Oh no one green world YIpES I don’t want all boys I just bought a bundle do they like fertilizer at all?