[Salmo]

I want to plant one of the hybrid berries e.g. logan, tay. Which one is best? I know that on this forum I will get 10 different answers but that is valuable.

I have a 10 foot row to fill.

At present I have gooseberries and Autumn raspberries which are not netted and the birds do not take. Are any of the hybrids left alone by the birds. I do not want to put up a cage if I can help it.

[Lincolnshire Floyd]

I want to plant one of the hybrid berries e.g. logan, tay. Which one is best? I know that on this forum I will get 10 different answers but that is valuable.

I have a 10 foot row to fill.

At present I have gooseberries and Autumn raspberries which are not netted and the birds do not take. Are any of the hybrids left alone by the birds. I do not want to put up a cage if I can help it.

If you like blueberries but don't have acidic soil then there is an alternative that is reported to taste very similar. It's called a honey berry and will tolerate alkaline soil. It grows to about 5ft and is very hardy. It will withstand frost down to -40. But it is a member of the honeysuckle family so will need some support to ramble up. You will need two for pollination purposes. I've just planted seven near our bees as it flowers very early in March when there is not a lot of pollen about for them to forage. The berries are just a bonus for us. It's not really a hybrid but is a recent introduction to this country.

Jostaberry is a hybrid but will grow to 10ft and will shade everything behind it. It's also an aggressive grower and difficult to control in a small space. But the fruit is great as it's a cross between a blackcurrant and gooseberry so the flavour is not as strong as a blackcurrant which can be a a bit overpowering on their own and even in a pie or tart they can make your taste buds smart.

I have been tempted to try the Pink Lemonade Berry (advertised on Amazon). It's a small plant but again it needs acidic soil and I can't be messing about with it. Looks nice though.

I found autumn raspberries a waste of time. They don't get enough sun on them to develop any flavour worth mentioning and too sharp to eat raw. When you cook with them they need so much sugar adding that the end product tastes like a sweet and sour chinese takeaway. You don't need to net them because the birds don't like them either. Any fruit worth the eating will need netting in my experience apart from blackcurrants as the birds find it difficult to get a foothold in the plant.

You have been lucky with your gooseberries so far but believe me when the blackbirds decide they want them they will strip the entire crop in days. You could go away for a long weekend and come back to a barren bush.

[Beetroot queen]

We have loganberries and tayberries ( from poundland) all on there first year so no fruit yet but growing nicely.

Someone gave me a bosenberry to try today, wow i do have a one year old plant but after tasting it i want a plot full.

We also have japenese wineberry again first year plant but really looking forward to getting crops.

My blueberries are hanging on just but they dont seem to like where they are so will be moved.

No cages on ours either but no issues infact i would let the birds eat my currants but they are not interested

[Debz]

BQ you are lucky.   I have some very determined blackbirds and it's a battle to see who can get the berries first.  I don't mind sharing but they do!  Salmo, the best thing you can do is try tasting the other berries and see which ones you like to eat/use best and plant them.  Our local fruit shop sells punits of logan and tay berries but maybe some of your gardening buddies do to and you can see what grows best in your area.

[Beetroot queen]

No-one nets on our site for berries.
Thats a great idea about tasting some, i picked our bushes either from the pretty pictures, because it told me they were good for jam or because they were in the pound shop.

I would love to add cloudberries but cant find them 

[Trillium]

Definitely taste whatever fruit you're thinking of first. I LOVE fruit and was sure I'd love blackberries. Nope. Can't stand them. And guess who has them growing in the yard? Fortunately my son loves them so not a waste. Didn't think I'd care for gooseberries as someone described them as acidic, but I had red ones growing in the garden and love them. Can't get enough.

I know what Floyd means about autumn raspberries - tasteless. But the golds I have are ripening now and are lovely and I wish I had loads more. Looks like I'll be moving suckers.

[carlrmj]

  I've got Loganberries ,Tayberries and Boysenberries .

 The tayberries I have have thorns which makes picking slightly harder then thornless varieties ,however  I have tastes great  had loads of fruit off them .

 The loganberries are thornless and I've had masses of fruit off them also , although a bit tartish

These are both like slightly longer raspberries but firmer and don't crush when picked

 The Boysenberry is like a very large blackberry (an inch across ) and   tastes great .

 These are on long wires and the stems are 15 ft +