Kiwi, shipova, sea buckthorn? New from Extension: Uncommon fruits for Washington’s maritime climate

Seaberries
Native to cold regions of Europe and Asia, sea buckthorn, or seaberry, bears dense clusters of small, oval, yellow-orange fruit with a citrus flavor, high in vitamins C, B12, and E.

The latest free, online guide from WSU Extension helps home growers and gardeners in the coastal regions of the state get to know uncommon and delicious fruits like kiwi, fig, and sea buckthorn.

Minor and Uncommon Fruits for Maritime Climate Gardens (FS383E)

With its mild maritime climate, western Washington has long been a productive region for many tree and small fruit crops. Lately, interest has increased for some of the less common tree and small-fruit crops. Some of these hail from other continents, others are native plants with an obscure history. To help bridge information gaps, a trial of these uncommon crops was carried out at WSU’s Northwestern Washington Research & Extension Center (NWREC) in Mount Vernon, Wash.

This new guide contains information on kiwi and kiwiberry, chokeberry, pawpaw, Cornelian cherry, quince, persimmon, fig, sea buckthorn, honeyberry, medlar, mulberry, currants and gooseberries, jostaberry, elderberry, mountain ash, and shipova.

Authors are Jacky King, research assistant at NWREC; Carol Miles, horticulture professor and director at NWREC; and Lisa Wasko DeVetter, associate professor of small fruit horticulture.

Find more new and revised guides online at the WSU Extension Publications bookstore.