All Zone 4 (or hardier) Plants
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Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Ribes rubrum
History: Although there appears to be little information on its origins, we know Rovada was bred in the Netherlands and is the top commercial variety in Europe. Some even say it is the #1 variety in the world!
Why We Grow It: Rovada has its reputation for a reason! It is known for producing abundant clusters of large, bright red berries that are eye-catching and easy to pick. The berries are good for fresh eating since they are sweeter than other currants and great for making jams, pies, and more. The bush itself is resistant to powdery mildew and quite cold hardy.
Species: Helianthus tuberosus, Sunchokes are also known as Jerusalem Artichokes or J Chokes
History: Stampede apparently originated on a reserve in northern Ontario where indigenous peoples had been cross-breeding the earliest flowering sunchokes they could find. They succeeded with Stampede which is an early flowering and ripening variety. In 1978, only two tubers were sent to Johnny's Selected Seeds in Maine, producing enough tubers by the end of the year that the nursery was able to introduce the new variety commercially in 1979.
Why We Grow It: Stampede is an extremely productive variety and produces relatively large, if somewhat knobby, white tubers. Like other sunchokes, Stampede can be prepared and eaten in a variety of ways, similar to the many ways you can use a potato! The early flowering and ripening time of this variety is great for anyone with a limited growing season.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Rheum sp
History: Zack's grandma Barbara-Anne grew this variety on her homestead near Poplar Hill. It has been enjoyed throughout the generations in a multitude of crisps, jams, tarts, sauces, and pies (see one of Mouse's pies in the pictures!).
Why We Grow It: Rhubarb is nutritious, incredibly easy to grow, and sports a showy bloom appreciated by both pollinators and humans. This perennial vegetable creates a lush, delicious ground cover and can be used to make a variety of delicious dishes.
A note on the "Grandma" Series: Inspired by Ken's 'Grandma Ethel Black currant', we decided to curate our own repertoire of family favourites grown by our grandmothers! Check out our tried-n-true gooseberries and raspberries in addition to the currants and rhubarb.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
History: Crimson Passion dwarf sour cherries are one of several dwarf sour cherries developed and released by the University of Saskatchewan with the goal of creating sour cherries that were cold hardy, shorter in stature, and produced good quality fruit. This initiative began in the 1940s and Crimson Passion was released as part of the Romance series in 2004. It is the sweetest of the Romance series cherries.
Why We Grow It: Crimson Passion produces large sweet fruit, excellent for fresh eating or processing. It contains the same sugar content (20-22 Brix) as sweet cherries, but also contains the tangy flavour of sour cherries, combining the best of both worlds into one cold-hardy shrub. This variety reaches up to 10' at maturity, great for anyone with limited space.
Check our our blog post with some tasty sour cherry recipes!
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Actinidia arguta
History: Changbai Giant kiwis were discovered by the Changbai Mountain Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agriculture near the North Korean border. The variety was likely collected and propagated due to its unusual round shape and excellent flavour. Named for the Changbai Mountains where it was discovered, its name translates literally from Mandarin as 'perpetually white.' It is also named for the exceptionally large fruit it produces.
Why We Grow It: Aside from its interesting origins, Changbai Giant also boasts unusually shaped kiwis compared to other varieties: round like an apple rather than more oblong like other hardy kiwis. The fruit is also very sweet and the plant itself is a little hardier than some other varieties. Like other female varieties, it can produce a large crop of fruits and it is recommended that the vine be grown on a trellis or other kind of support.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Lonicera caerulea
History: Boreal Beauty haskap is part of the Boreal series of haskaps developed by Bob Bors at the University of Saskatchewan. The goal of the Boreal series is to cross haskaps from Russia, Japan, and the Kuril Islands to create superior cultivars with the best qualities of all three strains. Boreal Beauty was released in early 2017, chosen for its large size, firmness, and good flavour. Its name, a reference to Beauty and the Beast, was meant to be a handy way to remember that Boreal Beast is the recommended for pollination partner for this variety, but in practice unfortunately the two don't overlap quite enough for pollination to be optimal.
Why We Grow It: Boreal Beauty sports large berries that are more oval-shaped and firm than other haskaps while maintaining with good flavour. This variety could show promise for mechanical harvesting. It is also quite vigorous and produces heavy crops.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Lonicera caerulea
History: Blue Banana was developed by Lidia Stuart of Berries Unlimited, potentially bred from Russian varieties or a cross between Russian and Japanese varieties. The variety is named for the unique shape of the berries and was likely selected for their large size and sweet flavour.
Why We Grow It: Blue Banana is exceptionally sweet compared to other haskap varieties and the flavour has been described as 'smoked strawberry.' These large, sweet berries are good for fresh eating along with cooking, baking, preserving, etc! The bush itself grows quickly and is relatively disease resistant.
Why We Grow It: These apples feature red blush over green skin and have a rather flattened appearance. They have an intense pineapple flavour that is a pleasant mix of sweet and sharp, and are also crisp, juicy, and high in Vitamin C. As one can imagine, they are great for fresh eating but can also be used for cooking. The tree is vigorous and produces good crops, but does tend to bear fruit biennially. It is also one of more particular trees, being more sensitive to late frosts and drought conditions.
History: Cortland apples were first bred in 1898 by Cornell University in New York and introduced in 1915. Since then, they have become one of the top fifteen apples in the US and Canada, although the majority are still grown relatively close to the university where they originated. While there are different versions of Cortland available with features such as redder skin, we are happy to offer the original!
Why We Grow It: Especially with older, popular varieties, we are always happy to offer what is, to the best of our knowledge, the original strain. Cortland is a sweet apple with crisp, juicy flesh. It is great for applesauce or drying as the flesh is slow to brown. The fruit keeps until Christmas under home storage conditions although the crispness and flavour does fade over time. This variety crops well annually and makes a good pollinator for others.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Sambucus canadensis
History: York was developed at the New York Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, New York in 1964. It is a cross between the varieties Adams 2 and Ezyoff.
Why We Grow It: York is known for producing exceptionally large berries that are quite flavourful. This variety is also quite productive, a good choice for fans of these delightful dark purple berries! Eating the raw elderberries can cause adverse reactions so it is recommended that you cook them first!
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Aronia melanocarpa
History: McKenzie was created by the USDA who, in 1976, planted several seedlings of the variety to evaluate its performance. It was named 'McKenzie' in honour of its first planting site in North Dakota, possibly named after McKenzie County specifically. The variety was officially released in 2008.
Why We Grow It: McKenzie boasts vigorous growth and good production, reliably producing firm blue-black fruit that is tart with an earthy taste. The berry clusters are easy to pick and have a wide range of uses!
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
History: Goldrush was bred specifically for scab resistance as part of the collaborative PRI disease-resistant breeding program run by Purdue University, Rutgers University, and the University of Illinois. It was developed in the 1970s and released in 1994. This variety has a complex heritage of Golden Delicious mixed with a cross of several other varieties for their disease resistance.
Why We Grow It: This is arguably the best scab-resistant variety released from the PRI Breeding Program as far as flavour is concerned. The dense, crisp flesh of this yellow apple is full of sugars and flavour. It is distinctly spicy and tart at first but mellows the longer it is in storage. The fruit stores exceptionally well. This truly multi-purpose apple is also great for drying and, unusually for a modern variety, is good in hard cider.
Why We Grow It: Discovery is a slightly sweet apple with noticeable acidity, and under optimal conditions it can have a strawberry flavour. Like many early apples, it is great for sauce. The fruit is on the smaller side and has a flatter shape with greenish-yellow skin overlaid with a bright red blush. The red can sometimes stain the cream-coloured flesh inside, providing some visual appeal. The tree boasts some resistance to scab and although it can take a while to start bearing fruit, once it does it bears quite reliably.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
History: Nova Easygro was developed at the AAFC Kentville Research and Development Station in Nova Scotia and introduced in 1971.
Why We Grow It: Living up to its name, Nova Easygro is hard to beat if you're looking for a low-maintenance backyard tree or a clear winner for organic orchards. This variety is resistant to numerous common apple diseases and tastes great. The flavour is pleasant and sweet and the flesh is firm and white with the perfect texture, earning this apple favourable reviews at our tasting event.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
History: Brookgold was developed at the Crop Diversification Centre South in Brooks, Alberta and was named for the town and its golden colour. It was introduced in 1979.
Why We Grow It: Brookgold, like other fruit varieties developed in the prairies, is very cold hardy! Although there is sometimes a trade-off between cold hardiness and fruit quality, this variety still produces small yellow freestone plums that are very sweet, making them great for fresh eating and good for canning and preserving.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Prunus pumila var. besseyi (Western sandcherry) x P. salicina (Japanese Plum)
History: Convoy was released by Boughen Nurseries in Manitoba in 1941. Like other chums, it was bred to produce a fruit with the hardiness of the western sandcherry but the fruit quality of a Japanese plum. Convoy was likely selected for being sweeter than most other chums.
Why We Grow It: Always on the lookout for unique trees, we are happy to offer chums! Convoy is a hardy shrub that produces a clingstone red fruit with yellow flesh. It has a mild sweet flavour that is good for fresh eating but it can also be used for baking, preserving, and canning. The shrub is generally resistant to plum diseases.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
History: Cupid is a part of the Romance series of dwarf sour cherry bushes developed and released by the University of Saskatchewan in 2004. Their goal was to create cold-hardy, dwarfing bushes with good quality fruit. Cupid was likely selected for its good flavour and unusually large cherries, the largest in the Romance series.
Why We Grow It: These dark red, cold-hardy cherries have a sweet-tart flavour that can be enjoyed fresh for fans of a more astringent flavour or used for cooking, baking, and preserving. Cupid has the largest cherries of all the dwarf sour cherries in the Romance series and also ripens the latest, helping to extend the season.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Rubus parviflorus
History: Thimbleberries are a native plant closely related to raspberries and blackberries. Cultivated for edible, ornamental, and ecological reasons today, they have also historically been used by indigenous peoples as a source of food and medicine.
Why We Grow It: This is an excellent under-story plant that produces smaller, flatter berries than cultivated raspberries, but with a delicious sweet-tart flavour. Apparently young shoots can be harvested in spring, lightly peeled, and then boiled for an asparagus-like 'vegetable'- we haven't tried this yet, but would love to hear from you if you have! The thornless bush grows up to 7 feet tall, though can be kept smaller with pruning/trellising/tying down. The fruit grows best on 2-3 year old canes unlike raspberries, which makes this an ideal plant for living fences.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Amelanchier alnifolia (aka Western Serviceberry)
History: Martin was grown by Dieter Martin in Saskatchewan. He selected this variety for its large berries and uniform ripening time.
Why We Grow It: Martin produces deep purple berries that are both flavourful and juicy! The berries are on the larger size and ripen at more or less the same time, making them a good choice for mechanized picking.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Lonicera caerulea
History: Boreal Blizzard was developed by Bob Bors at the University of Saskatchewan as part of the Boreal series of haskaps. The goal of the Boreal series is to cross haskaps from Russia, Japan, and the Kuril Islands to create superior cultivars with the best qualities of all three strains. While Boreal Blizzard is only a cross between Russian and Japanese varieties, it has produced some of the largest berries the breeding program has seen while boasting good flavour!
Why We Grow It: Boreal Blizzard produces exceptionally large berries that are meaty and sweet. This heavy cropper is ideal for U-pick operations and small farms where the larger berries make them more suitable for hand-picking.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Juglans cinerea or hybrid. NOTE: Butternuts are known to hybridize readily with other closely related species so there is no guarantee on whether these seedlings are pure, though the mother trees appear very true to type.
History: Butternut is an endangered tree native to southeastern Canada and the eastern United States where they grow naturally along sunny stream banks with rich, well-draining soil. The nuts have been used as a source of food and made into a butter-like oil by indigenous peoples. The trees have also been used for making syrup, furniture, and woodcarving. 'Butternut' became a derisive term for people living in the southern US since their clothes were dyed using butternuts, and the name later applied to Confederate soldiers. Unfortunately, Butternuts are highly endangered today due to Butternut Canker which has decimated their population within two decades.
Why We Grow It: By planting endangered species, collectively we can help Mother Nature potentially find a naturally resistant variety of Butternut. The nuts are quite similar to other walnuts but with a milder flavour. They can survive in zone 2, but they must be planted somewhere zone 3 or warmer to produce nuts. The sap can be boiled to make walnut syrup, which tastes very similar to maple syrup but with notes of caramel and butterscotch.
Be mindful of the juglones in the in the roots/nut husks, they are toxic to many other species. They require a buffer of about 50'/30m from the edge of the trees canopy for juglone-sensitive plants. This article from The Garden Hoe has a helpful list of plants that tolerate juglones. However there are recent (2019) studies showing healthy soil high in organic matter and mycorrhizal fungi actually reduce the toxicity of juglones suggesting many plants can grow below juglans species in a healthy ecosystem - it will be interesting to see more study done in this area!
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
History: Toka is a hybrid of an American plum (Prunus americana) and a Japanese plum (Prunus salicina) that was created by Dr. N.E. Hansen who is known for his extensive career in developing cold hardy plant varieties. He developed Toka at the South Dakota Experiment Station and introduced it in 1911. It is unclear what 'Toka' translates to in English but 'toka' can mean 'etc/among other things' or 'river crossing' in Japanese
Why We Grow It: Toka is also known as Bubblegum plum due to its flavour and smell which bears an uncanny resemblance to bubblegum. These plums are incredibly aromatic, and will fill your kitchen with their perfumed scent as they sit out to ripen. The semi-clingstone fruit features deep red skin and bright yellow flesh that is firm but juicy. It is good for fresh eating or preserving.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
History: Novamac apples were developed at the AAFC Kentville Research and Development Centre in Nova Scotia and introduced in 1978.
Why We Grow It: Novamac is a variety that definitely deserved more attention. They are generally disease resistant and have proven to be very easy to grow in our test orchard where they are performing well. This apple has a nice vibrant tang but also lots of sweetness and notes of berry. The flesh is firmer than its namesake McIntosh, which it is descended from.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
History: Meteor sour cherries were introduced by the University of Minnesota in 1952 as part of an effort to breed more cold hardy varieties.
Why We Grow It: Winter hardiness, reliable cropping, and a resistance to leaf spot make Meteor a good choice for the backyard. The fruit is bright red with yellow flesh. Meteor is classified as an amarelle type sour cherry, similar to Montmorency. It is excellent for making pie.
Check our our blog post with some tasty sour cherry recipes!
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
History: Wolf River was raised from seed by Quebec lumberman William Springer in the latter half of the 19th century. When Springer and his family were moving by wagon to Wisconsin, they bought a bushel of Alexander apples along the way. Upon arriving at their new home, he planted the seeds from said apples along the bank of the Wolf River and the Wolf River apple grew from there. This variety has since garnered a reputation as a good cooking apple and for the incredible size of its fruit.
Why We Grow It: First and foremost, Wolf River is legendary for the huge size of its fruit. The apples can weigh a pound or more and there are stories of pies being made from a single apple. The fruit, green with red blush and stripes, has a sweet and tart flavour that is good for cooking and it holds its shape well when cooked. The tree itself is hardy and relatively disease resistant as well.
Species: Rubus sp
History: Hardy Black originated in Nova Scotia. As the name implies, the variety was selected for its hardiness along with excellent fruit.
Why We Grow It: This hardy variety produces large, dark berries that are sweet and juicy. To make it even better, they bear fruit over a long period of time which gives you that much more of an opportunity to enjoy these lovely berries.
Species: Aronia melanocarpa
History: Nero was created in Russia by plant breeder Ivan Michurin in either the late 1800s or early 1900s. Likely selected for its large fruit and sweeter flavour, Nero is still used commercially in Russia to this day.
Why We Grow It: Nero produces ample clusters of dark berries that are somewhat sweeter and less astringent than other aronia varieties, making it more favourable for fresh eating. Like other aronia berries, it is ideal for baking, cooking, jellies, etc. The plant itself is tough and cold hardy.
Available only for pick-up at nursery.
Species: Ribes nigrum x R. ussuriense
History: Consort was bred by Agriculture Canada at the Ottawa Research Station with the goal of creating a variety resistant to White Pine Rust. Researchers crossed black currants (R. nigrum) and Korean black currants (R. ussuriense) in order to create a resistant variety. They succeeded with the hardy Consort which was introduced in 1952.
Why We Grow It: This productive black currant is quite cold hardy and quite resistant to White Pine Rust. The medium-sized dark berries can be used for a variety of uses including jams, preserves, and baking!
Species: Prunus pumila var. besseyi (Western sandcherry) x P. salicina (Japanese Plum)
History: Due to a mishap in transit, we have ended up with some chums whose varieties are unknown! We know they are either Convoy, Dura, Manor, or Sapa but each individual plant is a fun little mystery.
Why We Grow It: Despite the mix-up, these chums are still an excellent addition to any yard or orchard! For the frugal farmer, mystery chums are a good option since we are discounting them by 50%. Chums generally have a sweet flavour and are good for many uses such as cooking, baking, and preserving. Chums do need to be planted with a pollination partner of a different variety in order to produce fruit, so you may want to either purchase 3-4 mystery chums to increase the odds of pollination or buy one mystery chum and two different named cultivars to ensure they have a pollination partner.
History: York Imperial was discovered as a seedling tree growing on the farm of John Kline in Pennsylvania. Nurseryman Jonathan Jessop, of Springwood Farm in York, Pennsylvania, began propagating the variety in 1820 after witnessing schoolboys digging through the leaves around the base of the tree in spring and retrieving apples there were in great condition despite spending all winter on the ground. In an age without refrigeration, Jessop knew this variety had excellent commercial potential. It was initially named Jonathan's Fine Winter for its excellent storage properties but was later renamed York Imperial after horticulturalist Andrew Jackson Downing called it the 'imperial of keepers,' again referencing its storability and the location of Jessop's farm. It quickly became popular and remains one of few heritage apples that are still commonly grown in the US today.
Why We Grow It: York Imperial produces a rather lop-sided fruit with yellow skin and red striping. It is crisp and juicy with a lovely sweet, honeyed flavour that is hard to turn down. The fruit is truly all-purpose, also being great for cooking, baking, jelly, juice, drying, and cider and generally storing quite well. While not the fastest growing tree and with a tendency to start producing fruit a little later than other varieties, York Imperial is an exercise in patience that is well worth the wait.