Gaultheria shallon |
Native Region: Haida Gwaii
Zone Range: 6-9
Preferred Climate: Shady/woodland settings. Well draining average acidic soil.
Harvest Date: Saturday 08 September, 2012
Seed count: 200-250
Description:
A great tough mutlipurpose native evergreen shrub bears 2 cm cylinder shaped edible fruits tasting like a cross between blueberries and wine grapes. Excellent eating out of hand, jelly, jam and wine...intense deep purple blue juice. Dense clusters of flowers attract many nectar seekers. Blooms at a very young age. A tough durable plant when established and is found growing along the maritime sandy seashores to the tree line. Dought proof when established. Multstemmed shrubs can be trimmed like hedges. Can reach 2-3 metres in height. Its leathery evergreen leaves are much sought after in the floral trade.
Notes:
Hand cleaned seed (no seed damaging appliances used). Use salal fruits instead of blueberries in any blueberry jam recipe....and enjoy! Makes great wine too.
Cultivation:
Use an equal mix of sand/peat for the sowing medium. Soak seed 24 hours then surface sow and tamp firmly. Mist well. Keep moist with repeated mistings; use a clear plastic cover to maintain humidity. Needs consistant 8 hours/day of light to germinate. Needs warm temps to germinate properly: should germinate within 2-12 weeks at 20 C. Because seed is very small, some might find it more pragmatic to surface sow and give repeated mistings (mist well to saturate the surface) over the course of days, but you must provide a clear cover (plastic...glass) to maintain humidity.
Plants prefer humus rich sandy soil (no clay!).
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