Second Experiment

Day 297: Despite the fact that Akebia fruits (Akebi) have absolutely nothing to recommend them as edibles, my success at hand-pollinating them last year led me to wonder if I could repeat the experiment with similar results. Testing should never be a one-off. If results are not reproducible, you can't claim success. To that end, when the Akebis bloomed this spring, I got out my trusty camel-hair brush and started checking flowers daily for pollen production and receptivity. Once again, very few female blossoms appeared on the white-flowered vine as compared to the purple variety, and conversely, none of the male flowers on the purple Akebia matured to the pollen-making stage. Consequently, I was only able to transfer pollen from white male flowers to purple females; nevertheless, I got results, and seven Akebia fruits are coming into their maturity. I now know that I waited too late to pick them last year and that the seed/pulp ratio was skewed to the "seed" side of the equation. As for their potential as edibles...well, as a good scientist, I'm going to have to see this experiment through to its conclusion, although I don't expect the final stage to vary from previously recorded data. In other words, "Ugh!"

Fruit Of The Future

Day 4: Ah, there is a new fruit in my future! While in Chimacum, I visited the farmers' market and picked up a small basket of kiwi berries. This fuzzless version of the kiwi you find in grocery stores produces a grape-to-walnut sized fruit which I could argue is even more flavourful than its larger cousin, and the berries have no little gritty seeds as far as I can tell. I was pleased to discover that not all varieties require both male and female plants (I had visions of hand-pollinating again on a much larger scale), but hardy kiwi "Issai" is self-fertile! A larger yield can be achieved by planting two vines, so that's the plan for spring 2018. Cold-tolerant even in Zone 4 (I'm in Zone 7), they'll need a trellis or an arbour, and I know exactly where I want to put it: straight toward the crow board from the kitchen door.

Fuchsia's Edible Fruit

Day 327: Gardeners think of Fuchsias largely in terms of the showy annuals we see in hanging baskets, but there are hardy varieties, some of which even have blossoms as large as those of the annuals. By and large, their stems are woodier and they grow as sprangly bushes which have the potential for taking over six feet of your garden unless you keep them pruned. The flowers come in almost as wide a variety of combinations as those of the annuals, and hummingbirds love to visit them. Some even produce an edible fruit!

I have used the term "edible" loosely here. While not bad-tasting, these little berries are not particularly flavourful, either. They are slightly sweet, but the seedless soft flesh is only very lightly fruity. Eaten three or four at a time, they make me wonder what the result would be if I made a jelly of them the old-fashioned way, boiling down the juice until it set without the addition of pectin. The slightly perfumy note to the meat might produce a truly unique product if I could only gather enough of them for a half-pint (only two of my five varieties of hardy fuchsia have developed berries)! For now, I nibble on them on my way to and from the mailbox, rather more to enjoy the experience of having such an unusual fruit in my garden than for the taste.

Fuchsia Fantasy

Day 319: Until a few years ago, the only "hardy fuchsia" I had ever seen was a small-flowered, shrubby variety, fairly common in Pacific Northwest yards. In the interest of keeping my hummingbirds amused, I set about trying to find a commercial supplier and thus discovered that quite a few of the "hardies" bear flowers equal in size to those of the annuals seen in hanging baskets. Over time, I accumulated five varieties: (top to bottom, left to right) Army Nurse, Dollar Princess, Genii, Erecta and Riccartonii. My choices were governed by the degree of hardiness which varies by species; all of these can withstand winter temperatures of 0° or lower. Of the five, pink Erecta has proved to be the most susceptible to cold. It died back and did not sprout foliage on the old wood as the others did, but re-emerged rather late from the ground. This summer, I was surprised at seeing fuchsia berries on two plants. The fruits are reported to be edible but not particularly desirable unless you are growing one of the varieties specifically developed for taste. In that case it is said that they make a delicious jelly. Testing is in order, yes.

Last Fruits

Day 363: My everbearing raspberries ("Heritage") have been a delight this year. Bambi left them pretty much alone except for browsing the fresh tops in mid-August and somewhat limiting my late-season harvest, but there have been plenty for my personal grazing as I made my daily patrols to the mailbox. The jays ignored all but the ripest ones, surprising me with a generosity which does not extend to the grapevine. The plants are not yet mature enough to yield enough for jam, and it's possible that two vines will never produce in sufficient abundance given my poor soil and intermittent husbandry even if I could suppress my taste for a snack of sun-warmed berries plucked in passing.

The blueberries did not fare as well. One bush has disappeared. Whether it was eaten by deer or overwhelmed by grass, I do not know. The second produced only a small handful, all but two or three gone for jay food. I think I'll write blueberries off as a bad idea, but I might be tempted to fill their space with two more raspberry vines.