The black raspberries change color almost by the hour, now. The plants - acquired from the defunct Liberty Garden Center in Red Hook (I began with one, it made more, some died in a drought last year) - have traveled from an all-sun Cobble Hill rooftop, to a Harlem terrace with four hours of midday sun (and a sweet crop), to Carroll Gardens, where the hours of sun yaw wildly from full-shade winter to sunny summer, with about five to six hours of direct sun, now.
I met a formidable black raspberry the other day at the Gowanus Nursery, which is 10 minute walk away, over the pedestrian bridge that crosses the roaring eight-lane BQE. I wrote a story about the nursery and its owner, Michele Palladino, for Gardenista - many of her plants are rooted in our new garden:
Shopper's Diary: Gowanus Nursery in Brooklyn.
Yummm!! I planted red currant, black currant, and raspberries this year, in addition to a couple of strawberry plants I had from last year. I'm praying the birds and critters will let me have a few - they are already attacking the currants and they aren't even ripe yet!
ReplyDeleteBlackcaps are my favorite. They used to grow wild hereabouts, but I've not seen them for years. Beautiful photo.
ReplyDeleteWhen we bought our house in Minneapolis 20+ years ago it came with 15 feet of black raspberries growing along the fence. Except for literally cutting them to the ground every 3 years and tossing old grille ashes on the dirt, we don't do a thing! Last year I froze 20 bags with 2 cups each, ate bowls and bowls of fresh and made black raspberry vanilla jam. With going grocery store prices those bushes must produce about a $1000 worth of raspberries year after year, it's incredible!
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