Early summer
Strawberriesare an iconic summer fruit, and come in two types: June-bearing and everbearing.
Its important to have both types for a full summer of fruit.
This is my second year withhoneyberryshrubs and theyve proven to be hardy and easy to grow.
These upright shrubs bear oblong bright blue fruit early in the season that could be compared to blueberries.
The most popular cane-bearing berry there is,raspberriesgenerally grow on six foot tall, upright, second-year canes.
Usually found near streams,salmonberrybears small raspberry-looking fruit on a sturdy shrub that can grow to 12 feet.
Another hardy shrub,gojiberry forms oblong, bright red sprays of fruit.
Mid-summer
Not only doblueberryshrubs offer fruit, they also make fantastic garden filler as a plant.
More drought-resistant than people think, blueberries prefer less water than other berries.
They thrive in both full sun and partial shade, and there are even evergreen varieties.
But what I like most about blueberries is the wide variety of them available.
Consider a hedge of blueberries to fill out the garden.
If you imagine a cross between a shrub and an upright vine, you getcurrants.
These small spheres become surprisingly sweet with more complex flavor than other berries and the shrubs are fast growers.
Since they grow like raspberries (cane) they can also spread easily and require a trellis.
In nature,huckleberriesgrow on mountains with dappled light and just the right humidity.
In particular, the evergreen huckleberry is a great yard shrub.
I have trouble sometimes telling mygooseberryand currant shrubs apart, but its obvious once the fruit appears.
They tend to be a little more sour than other fruit, sweetening the riper they get.
The boysenberry cultivar is even sweeter, making it the perfect jam fruit.
Elderberriesare often overlooked in the garden.
Though a shrub, they really resemble trees and are incredibly aggressive growers.
The flowers that remain form bunches of dark red spheres late in the season.
These plants make a fantastic deer-resistant hedge, but must be maintained to not grow out of control.
Mulberrytrees are a commitment.
They grow prolifically, forming long ruby berries.
If not controlled, mulberry trees become quite large and will drop a lot of fruit onto the ground.
That said, mulberries are, themselves, wonderful to have.
They are a more complex tasting fruit than raspberries, with sweetness but an underlying slight bitterness.
Cranberriesgrow on low-to-the-ground shrubs that spread horizontally and require a lot of moisture.
Cranberries themselves are known for the unique aspect that they are hollow and will float.
Thimbleberriesand salmonberries have a lot in common.
This bramble berry grows on shrub-like plants, and forms small raspberry-looking fruit in clusters.
Thimbleberries are quite sweet and make a really nice plant to have for foraging in your yard.
