Sampler of Rare Fruits for Fun or Profit Part III

Author: Barbara Adams

Here is a sampler of unusual fruits showing up on temperate climate farms and in nurseries. Their rarity in your location, of course, depends on your growing region.

Mulberries  (Morus)

The mulberry is a self-fertile fruit tree that produces abundantly with varieties that are reliable in USDA zones 4--9. The fruits resemble long raspberries or blackberries, and are used most often as fresh fruits, in baked goods, wine and preserves. The trees need full sun, and can be maintained at 15 feet. One warning is that fruit-eating birds are particularly fond of the mulberry, and their brightly colored juice stains very easily, so don't plant a row of these over your customers' parking area! The trees produce a summer crop, July through September, and the fruit is described as chewy, sweet and highly flavored with a pleasing, unique aftertaste.


Nanking Cherry (Prunus tomentosa)

A cherry relative, the Nanking cherry is considered a 'tart cherry bush.' It is a beautiful flowering shrub that produces edible tart-cherry-like fruit. Products from the fruit are commonly fresh fruit, pie fillings and jellies. The fruits ripen in summer and are around ½ inch in diameter. The plant is also sold as a wildlife and windbreak plant. This deciduous shrub grows in USDA zones 2—8 and matures at six to 12 feet. It is native to Asia, tolerant to drought, and requires a soil that is well drained.


Elderberries (Sambucus species)

Elderberries are shrubs that prefer full sun, and are considered to be the easiest of all fruits to grow and care, and also possibly the most consistently productive. Extremely prolific, both the blossoms and berries have been used for centuries in cultures throughout the world for both medicinal and edible products including baked goods, cordials, jellies, tea and wine. The teas are also used in baths as an herbal treatment and the berries have also been used in dyes. Most recently, the elderberry has been explored and come to the forefront as a possible treatment for winter ailments, and the fruit is reported to be higher in vitamin C than oranges. As a nursery plant, the elderberry can be sold as a multi-purpose plant with many uses for both humans and as a wildlife sanctuary plant, as birds enjoy the berries, also.

source : hydroponicsearch