'York' is a variety of American elder selected from the cross of Adams #2 and Ezyoff at the Geneva Experiment Station in New York in 1964. Its medium-sized dark berries ripen slightly later than... more->
We spent 13 years building an abundant fruit forest, annual veggie beds, perennial medicinal herbs, and a healthy mixed hardwood-coniferous forest and now we've sold our property to the next stewards so that we can begin a new homesteading project in Vermont closer to our best friends and their kids.
Don't worry - we plan to keep this website up and running so that our customers can reference what we've written about our plants!
We'll let you know once we re-start a farm in Vermont!
'York' is a variety of American elder selected from the cross of Adams #2 and Ezyoff at the Geneva Experiment Station in New York in 1964. Its medium-sized dark berries ripen slightly later than... more->
Also known as Osborne Prolific, this fig produces a pretty small to medium sized fruit that is purple with yellowish stripes and a rosy interior. Yum! more->
Hinnomaki Red comes from Finland. The plant bears dark red, sweet and large berries. more->
This species of hardy kiwi stands out from the crowd because it produces coppery red colored kiwi fruit! It can be pollinated by Meader or any of the male Actinidia arguta. more->
This variety began producing very large clusters of medium-sized dark purple berries for us in the second year, and it has doubled the yield each year since! Samdal was originally developed in... more->
Ranch is shorter and more compact than most elderberry varieties. It gets only 5ft tall, so berries are easier to reach for harvesting. more->
Although American persimmons are smaller than their Asian counterparts found in grocery stores, they are just as sweet, juicy, and delicious! While the Japanese Fuyu or Hachiya are grown... more->
The tasty fruit of this variety has yellow-green skin and a honey colored interior. These are the largest figs we've ever grown. Boy, are they sweet! There is a reason this one is named after... more->
Our friend Allen reports that this particular Aronia produces plentiful berries. These shrubs readily send up new shoots from near the base of the tallest stems. more->
'Nova' is a variety of American elder, selected for its reliable yield of medium-sized dark berries at a germplasm center in Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada in 1960. Although it may have better... more->
'Haschberg' is a variety of black European elder, especially popular in commercial orchards in Austria and Germany. It produces abundant and large clusters of dark purple berries, and grows to... more->
'Himrod' is an excellent sweet green seedless table grape. It is very productive. Fruits turn golden when ripe, which is usually late summer. It is self-pollinating. Very easy to grow and... more->
Canadice is a delicious seedless red table grape. It ripens at the later end of grape season, in early fall. Canadice is self-pollinating. Very easy to grow and drought tolerant. more->
Glenora is a concord -type seedless grape. Grapes are medium to large size and have a deep dark blue color. It is self-pollinating. Very easy to grow and drought tolerant. more->
This variety of red raspberry bears medium sized, juicy fruit. This variety was developed especially for resistence to phytopthora rot and other fungal diseases that proliferate in wet soil, so... more->
This raspberry bears sweet and beautiful golden fruit! Need we say more? more->
Seaberries are tart and delicious golden fruit about the size of a lentil, borne in large quantities along the thorny stems of this shrub. The berries are packed with fifteen times the vitamin C... more->
This male variety will pollinate any Actinidia arguta (hardy kiwi), purpurea (hardy red), or deliciosa (fuzzy kiwi), but it won't likely pollinate A.... more->
This variety produces very well in our partly shady garden. A neighbor of ours has a vine that towers overhead, engulfing a fence and raining down fruit. more->
'Korsor' is a variety of black European elder from Denmark, notable for its large, dark, juicy berries. It grows to about 8 feet tall.
European black elderberries are the most sought-after... more->
Bred in Canada, 'Tulameen' has very large red fruit, even bigger than the large-fruited commercial variety 'Meeker'. Unlike 'Cascade Red', it prefers well-drained soil.
Raspberry canes... more->
'Captivator' is virtually thornless and very hardy. Shrubs are productive and bear medium to large sweet red fruits which ripen midsummer.
This variety was propagated from a plant growing on farm near us, on Muslin Creek.
European black currants have a very distinct musky flavor which is prized by many in europe and the U.S.... more->
'Seascape' is a good choice if you want to harvest strawberries throughout summer and early fall. The best choice is to grow some of this variety adn some of 'June', and then you will haev... more->
Also known as Grosse Monstrueuse de Lipari, this fig is named for an island in italy and known for its delicious fruit and large leaves. It has faintly striped and mottled green and purplish skin... more->
Grapes are very easy to grow and maintain and never fail to produce abundant crops. This red variety is espcially sweet and ripens later than the green and purple varieties we grow. more->
Grapes are very easy to grow and maintain and never fail to produce abundant crops. This is a sweet and delicious table grape. It is the earliest to ripen of the grapes we grow. It is very... more->
Rugosa rose is a suckering shrub native to asia. It has large and beautiful blooms and the largest rose hips of any rose we know. The rose hips are high in vitamin C and can be eaten fresh or... more->
'Golden' currant is larger than the european currants that we grow. It is vigorous and can grow in a variety of soil types and habitats, up to 9 feet tall. It has beautiful clusters of yellow... more->
Waldo is a purple gooseberry originally brought to us by Rick Valley, a wise local Permaculture landscaper. It was the result of hybridizations from Dr. George Waldo. It has sweet purple fruits... more->
Because the fruits on 'Illinois Everbearing' ripen over a period of a few months, not all at once, its is nice to have a shorter plants for harvesting them often. The fruit is dark purple and has... more->
Tired of thorns ripping through your clothes and poking through your gloves as you harvest sweet blackberries in summer? This cultivar released from the University of Arkansas yields large, sweet... more->
'Desert King' is a very good choice for the Northwest. It is early to ripen, productive, and has excellent flavor. Sweet and delicious fruits with green skin and pink pulp ripen in late July or... more->
'Blackdown' produces large, jet-black berries that are juicy and flavorful with a distinctive musky taste. They are excellent in jams, jellies and juice. The plant is vigorous and has upright... more->
Red currants produce bright red clusters of fruit which are are striking in the garden and they enhance any dish to which they are added. Red currant fruit is high in vitamin C and potassium and... more->
'Minaj Smyriou' has excellent European black currant flavorand can be eaten fresh or used to make jam and juice.
European black currants have a very distinct musky flavor which is prized by... more->
'Cascade' is easy to grow and a consistent producer here in the Wilamette Valley. Provides large crops of delicious red fruit. It is very winter hardy.
Red currants produce bright red... more->
A favorite gooseberry here at Fern Hill, 'Jahn's Prairie' produces hearty yields of large dessert quality red-pink fruit in midsummer. This shrub grows more upright than some gooseberry varietes.... more->
'Hinnomaki Gold' also known as 'Hinnomaki Yellow" is a very hardy variety, and bushes produce a heavy crop of medium sized, greenish yellow fruits. Some say this variety has a delicious aromatic... more->
This is a special and very ornamental deciduous shrub. Bright green branches and stalks display elegant clusters of dark brown berry clusters. When ripe, these berries taste like chocolate. ... more->
Jostaberry is a cross between european currants and gooseberries, taking the best from both. It is a thornless shrub producing dark fruits with a mild black currant flavor. The fruit is larger... more->
This is a compact variety of prickly pear cactus that has edible green pads with no thick spines and small clusters of tiny hair-like prickles. Unlike prickly pear shrubs, this variety stays... more->
Rugosa rose is a suckering shrub native to Asia. It has large and beautiful blooms and the largest rose hips of any rose we know. The rose hips are high in vitamin C and can be eaten fresh or... more->
Akebia is a twining deciduous woody fruiting vine. Unlike many fruiting vines, it is shade tolerant. Leaves are somewhat evergreen and young leaves may have a purplish hue. Vines can grow 20 to... more->
Fabulous flowers on this semi-evergreen vine. The complex blue flowers bloom mid summer to fall. This vine is reasonably hardy and can grow a lot in one season. During cold winters it may die... more->
Blackcap raspberry is one of the most delicious native fruits in our area. It is also not well know because it is not as common as the wild blackberries. The blackcap is a cane fruit that grows... more->
Although some know it as California ginseng, elk clover, or spikenard, I think Oregon ginseng is quite fitting for a plant that inhabits shady, moist seasonal creeks in deep coniferous forests as... more->
The maypop is a perennial passionflower in our climate. The plant dies back each year to the ground and re-sprouts in late spring. Less vigorous than P. caerulea, this species has a... more->
Native to the Pacific Northwest, thimbleberries produce delicate, thimble shaped raspberry-like fruit atop canes up to 5 feet tall. The pretty white flowers in spring brighten up shady corners of... more->
Viking has been selected for delicious flavor raw and cooked. Some seedlings can be extremely astringent but this one will just give you a little pucker. more->