That's so Berry Nice!

If you have berries like I do, then you know that it is or is nearly harvest time! In my back yard I've got raspberries, wild strawberries, cherries, black and red currants, gooseberries and plumbs. The raspberries were a surprise and we've only just noticed them after living here for over 3 years! They're so perfectly ripe that they're nearly falling off the bush. My daughter and I have been in the back yard raiding the raspberry bushes on a daily basis.

The strawberries are so wonderfully sweet and come in such small numbers that it's best to enjoy them right after picking them. The currants are almost ripe and my children can hardly contain themselves. They want to pick the bush bare as soon as it's possible. I figure one more week and we'll be waist deep in currants. I still have yet to check my gooseberries but I give it another 2 to 3 weeks if memory serves.

Berries are simply wonderful! They're perennials that need very little care. It's the gift that keeps on giving. For the best production water your berry plants well, especially as the fruits are developing. Yearly additions of compost and mulch help keep weeds at bay and soil nice and moist. Aside from compost it's good to add a complete fertilizer in spring. You might want to test the soil from time to time.

For currants, at least what works for me, is trimming the old growth back in the fall after berry production and/or in the spring. What is old growth you ask? What does it look like? It's thicker and darker than the newer shoots. Old branches tend to look a bit gnarled. I like to trim in the fall after the berries are picked and then it's easy to see which branches have produced poorly. I trim those down about 10cm from the ground. I have done this for the past 3 years and the bushes are producing better than ever before. If you have berries, then enjoy! Soon I'll be writing about my peas. Remember those? The last time I posted about them they were about 10 cm tall and now they're taller than me and producing tons of pea pods!