Worth a shot. They’re all cheap enough, and there’s something to learn. In the off chance that I can get them to fruit here without too much trouble, I’ll confirm that they’re tougher than they appear. If they can grow here, they can probably grow anywhere in the states.
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I agree, if you don’t expect much and something comes of it. I found some low chill hour plants that work here. So you never know. It’s a very pretty plant once it matures.
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I am somehow shocked that I bought seeds on Ebay and actualy got them to grow. Not only that. Each is growing differently leading me to think I actualy got what I ordered.
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Did you just cast the seeds on top of the soil in the pot and then leave them till this year? Or did you use acid to scarify them first? I tried my hand at crossing a last summer and although I got some seed I did not get it to germinate.
I would like to try for a better cold hardy black raspberry. I have a greenhouse in which my current blackberry grows so I can get pollen but I want to know if I have to get some acid to germinate the seeds and who sells such a thing?
Any good auto parts store. Thirty percent sulfuric acid, known as battery acid.
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If memory servers correctly the seeds where all “pre stratified” so they where cast on top with sprinkling of soil on top. I did keep them under ground cover cloth the entire summer but not the winter.
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Thank you both, I have done my crosses and I will go check for the acid.
I have pollination . Seedling blackberry that needs a pollinator . Nothing last year as nothing bloomed with it . Good overlap of bloom this year . So I will have fruit and seeds of the cross . Raspberry pollen . So in 2-3 years I may get to sample the cross .
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Yeah I think you are right. I did enjoy a lot sampling my crosses. My first will have a full load this year. It turned out I had to many things to do this spring to do further crosses, but may do some with the fall crop.
I grow Tayberry and Marion and found out both are Hexaploids and should cross just fine. I want to do that just for fun. Although I have a few seedlings now. Most didn’t germinate for me. Many blackberries have different ploidy levels so I have been hesitant to work more with them. We will see how the seedlings I did get, work.
I’d like to see cross breeding of the ground cover raspberries like arctic raspberries and cloudberries. Not sure what their ploidy are, but they are a little more similar in structure to alpine strawberries. I have the four common arctic raspberry cultivars growing in their second year, so perhaps I’ll try to cross with one of my alpines or another one of my raspberries. I’d love to work with the cloudberries too, but I’ve searched for years trying to find that plant and have never had any luck.
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Do you have a species name?
Rubus chamaemorus looks to be protected in many areas. Probably cannot be sold.
I have Arctic raspberries, and they flower like crazy but not one fruit in 2 years.
oh that’s such a bummer, I got a lot of flowers last year but also didn’t get any fruit. I was hoping this was the year I’d finally get to taste them but I suppose I shouldn’t get my hopes up.
I’ve also had this issue with arctics. i also have all 4 cultivars from HBUSA and Hartmanns. looks like there will be a ton of flowers this summer. I’ve seen pics of them loaded with fruit. maybe they take awhile to fruit? I’ve also been looking for cloudberry plants and had no luck. tried seeds from europe and couldn’t get any to grow. supposedly native to Maine but I’ve never seen any. i look every time i go out. even the arctics are native here but like cloudberries i never seen any.
That could be. I’m not removing them anytime soon. Juliet cherry fruited for me the first time and about 90% of the small cherries that formed will drop off. I bet sometimes they don’t, but local conditions etc. At least it will have a few I can try. So it’s true with many plants.
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they are really spreading now. popping up all over the place. every one is starting to put out a flower. 1st time they have really started to spread. i hope its a sign that they are ready to grow some berries! they are a nice looking ground cover. mine are all about 4in. tall.
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I could not keep the Arctic’s alive.
I don’t know if you’ve tried it, but cloudberries, or bakeapples grow wild in Newfoundland. Have you tried to get plants from anyone there?
I know of the bakeapples in Canada but haven’t found someone to reach out to about digging up a few plants. Not even sure if shipping the plants would get through customs; I’d guess that it wouldn’t. Seeds are easy enough to come by but I’ve had zero luck in germinating them and that seems like the case for most people who try. I’ve also tried to buy frozen berries, but finding suppliers is incredibly difficult.
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