It deserved the hype!

I’ve rarely seen a berry but in kitsap peninsula trailing blackberries grow in dense patches at the edge of woods, by the side of the road and between the highway lanes

I would agree that western trailing blackberries deserve the hype. Ones that I really liked include Marionberry, Loganberry and Newberry. Yum!! Unfortunately they don’t like my heat so I don’t grow them any more :slightly_frowning_face:

Also another thumbs-up on SunGold… I ate the first couple ones this year recently so have a fresh memory of how yummy they are.

Magness is definitely worth the hype, it is one of the best-tasting pears. It is not the very best, get a Dana Hovey for that.

Maria’s Joy pawpaw … my favorite and worth the hype.

Chocolate persimmon … ditto

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There is a lot of good fruit that grows wild in the PNW. I watch a YouTube guy called weird explorer. He rarely travels to colder regions so he does not really have a lot of cold hardy varieties on his list he has tried but he has tried things like the Mountain Rose apple which is native to around there, he ranks the thimbleberry very high on his list and he ranks a few others pretty high. I suppose the downside is a lot are hard to find. Thimbleberry and salmonberry are both things either gardeners or foragers seem to be the only ones tasting them.

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This might be getting a little off-topic since I’m not aware of any hype around these, but yeah there’s a decent array of wild berries and fruits around here.

Very good flavor, but each plant produces very little fruit and each fruit is very thin-fleshed. Also fairly dry, almost no juice. But yes, the flavor is phenomenal.

Even the best ones taste pretty bland, but they do produce abundantly in the shade and are the main understory plant around here. Kids seem to love picking them even though they don’t taste like much. My 9 month old loves them!

But the trailing blackberry is one of the best-tasting wild berries, I’d support any hype surrounding its flavor.

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That’s an issue of growing conditions. Thimbleberries ripen in summer so if the plants are lacking adequate water the fruit can suffer, but in proper conditions they have adequate juice to be very tasty.

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I wonder if it’s also a matter of genetics. Most on the thimbleberries I eat come from a boggy valley in a city park near my house that stays wet and muddy year-round, so they shouldn’t be lacking adequate water. Though maybe they lack adequate sunlight (even though they do taste very good, just dry).

You’re probably right about the genetic factor. I doubt anyone has ever documented the range of variation within the species. I definitely think there is room to clone and distribute more quality/productive clones. If raspberries can be selected for productivity why not thimbleberries?

Glad to get your vote on the Dana Hovey ,as I just added it for next year. Supposed to ripen later and keep well.

Don’t forget Haden:)

Of course, an old classic!!!