Dwarf Blueberries and Raspberries

Posted in Gardening Tips on January 1 2013, by Sonia Uyterhoeven

Sonia Uyterhoeven is the NYBG‘s Gardener for Public Education.

Most of us like our blueberries served in a bowl. Of course, very few of us imagine growing them in a bowl, but that is precisely what modern hybridizers are allowing us to do. I exaggerate when I say bowl–I hope you understand that. But growing blueberries in a container–and a reasonably sized container, at that–is now a reality.

I have been perusing information from growers on the new introductions for 2013 and have found some truly interesting edibles. Fall Creek Farm & Nurseries of Oregon have a new series coming out this year called the BrazelBerries™ collection. The collection consists of two dwarf blueberries and one thornless raspberry which are small enough to comfortably tuck into a container for your patio garden.

The smallest member of the new BrazelBerries™ collection is the super dwarf highbush blueberry, Vaccinium corymbosum ‘Jelly Bean’. ‘Jelly Bean’ is hardy from zone 4 to 8, and is a prolific little squirt that grows one to two feet tall, forming a nice, compact mound. White Flower Farms–one of the local vendors for this collection–recommends planting the blueberry in a 12-inch clay pot. Edible blueberries appear in mid-summer with a sweet flavor, and you can expect a bumper crop from this little over-achiever.

Of similar size and stature is the award-winning Vaccinium corymbosum ‘Peach Sorbet’, hardy from zone 5 to 10. She grows 18 to 24 inches tall and wide, forming a compact mound. One of the main attractions of ‘Peach Sorbet’ is her new growth, with spring foliage in a kaleidoscope of colors ranging from peach and pink to lime green. She is equally striking late in the season, with deep purple-red foliage in the fall. In the middle of the summer, she produces a healthy crop of sweet fruit.

Raspberries have always been one of my favorite fruits, so I am thrilled that part of Fall Creek Farm & Nurseries’ new lineup is a dwarf raspberry that thrives in containers. Rubus idaeus ‘Raspberry Shortcake’ is a thornless raspberry that is hardy from zone 5 to 9. Growing 2 to 3 feet tall, it forms a dense mound that produces sweet fruit mid-summer. Further, ‘Raspberry Shortcake’ doesn’t need a companion pollinator and can be grown on its own.

Now that I have your mouths watering, whether you are thinking of reaching for a pie crust or a bowl of cornflakes, I will have to keep you waiting for next week’s blog. But you’ll want to come back for growing instructions and a good old-fashioned American success story. Few growers have seen the forward momentum of Dave Brazelton–otherwise known as Mr. Blueberry–who followed his passion and built a thriving family business, not to mention one of the top blueberry breeding programs in the industry.

On a personal level, I am delighted with these new introductions and am happy to tell you that we will have a number of these pint-sized wonders on display in the NYBG this coming year. However, my interest is not dictated entirely by my tummy (although that is a powerful motivator). In this day and age, when plans for growing local and reducing worldwide carbon emissions are hopefully on everyone’s agenda, an accessible way to produce berries should be welcomed by many.

I don’t know what the rest of you were like when you were growing up, but one of my favorite local outings as a kid was going to visit a retired English doctor to pick the raspberries on his property. The harvesting procedure went like this: one in the container, one in my mouth, and a quarter as the reward for each container that I harvested. In this electronic age, where many children suffer from what journalist and author Richard Louv coined “Nature Deficit Disorder,” what better way to reintroduce children to nature–whether in an urban or suburban environment–than with nature’s candy grown conveniently in a container?

Happy New Year to all my readers, and I’ll see you next week!