A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The Food Garden Forum Fruit Forum Help me identify this berry

If it's even a berry, I would like to know what kind it is and if it is edible (I thought it was an Amelanchier alnifolia but the images I've found of that show huge plants, maybe the ones I've found are just starting?):

The berries are smaller than they look in this picture, the leaves are very small, each berry is probably the size of a pea or smaller:


Here is the size of the whole bush:
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r25/Athefre/DSC04034.jpg

An image of one berry that has ripened some more(it's about 2 or 3 times the size of the less ripened ones above):
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r25/Athefre/DSC04042.jpg

I cut one open to show what it looks like inside if that matters:

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r25/Athefre/DSC04044.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r25/Athefre/DSC04045.jpg

I found one that is a lot larger than the others and was hard when I squeezed it a little:

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r25/Athefre/DSC04041.jpg

And here is one that is large also but has spikey stuff around it:

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r25/Athefre/DSC04040.jpg

The last 5 pictures came from a much larger tree that is probably 8 feet tall.

There is something else I want identified if you can. I found a tree with little hard fruit looking things (that look like apples just starting to grow)that have that opened bottom look of the mystery berries in my pictures but are much larger and on the limbs of the tree along with the leaves there are thorns 3" to 4" long. I thought they might be some type of apple or a crabapple but the images online don't look like what I have. I'll get pictures if needed.

EDIT: I decided to remove the image tags from all but the first image. Having to click to see an image scares some people off for some reason. So, I thought since there is a size limit here, having one to get people started wouldn't be much of a problem.

gotta admit.... if I have to click on a link to see a pic, most of the time I don't bother. but, my computer is slow. some people may not be bothered by it?
did it flower before it bloomed?

I just found it today so I didn't get to see the flowering or what colors the flowers were. By looking at the way the bottom of the berry is split and has those flaps it looks like it did flower.

i've clicked on all of them and am working on looking at them, but in the meantime, can you resize the one that has the image tags? we limit sizes here to 640x480 which is message board size.

if my brain would function, i'll tell you what they are, but it isn't coming to me. when it does, i'll be back to post, promise

I can't even find the edit button anymore, I thought it was down there with "Reply", "Quote", "Quick Reply", and so on. I remember seeing it so easily yesterday...

There is a time limit for editing.

I hate to keep adding posts because it keeps some people that could have known the answer from even checking out the topic because they figure "There's a lot of posts there already, the topic creator probably has their answer by now".

But, what is the time limit because I can't edit my second post in this topic (which I've never edited) but I can edit my third.

It does resemble my blueberry. Would not say for sure tho. It

I saw this Wikipedia page and thought what I've found is this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amelanchier_alnifolia

It's also called Saskatoon, Serviceberry, and Juneberry.

Another image of the berries I'm thinking they are:

http://www.ecoterralandscape.com/images/serviceberry2.jpg

I found some more large tree versions yesterday in the fields near my house and they look like the Amelanchier but there aren't as many berries growing together. I think the images online are from cultivators.

I want to know so badly because I want to eat them :)

Agriculture department
Or Forestry dept
Game preservation

Any of those around you they would know ..

cooperative extension or county agent, or university agricultural department will know also. i know, but the brain still isn't in gear.

and, most of us who read here, read by what is newly written, so no worries to the "too many replies".

it isn't uncommon to see over 50 replies if the topic is interesting or perplexing enough

like your berries. i hope you find out soon, and hope they are edible.

I live somewhere that I think doesn't have places like that near it. Lots of fields and forest, and very few houses nearby. I'll go to the field later and get some pictures of the other large trees I found. The berries out there look exactly like the ones in the links in my last post but that could be a coincidence (a poisonous variety?) so I'm not going to try it yet just in case.

if you live in NC, google university of north carolina cooperative extension program. i know they have one. or something similar. even if it isn't near you. they can help

I think it's a "lowbush blueberry." It's in the Vaccinium family along with cranberries, bilberries, and some others. But I would do a little more checking before I ate it. Your pics don't look like they're quite ripe anyway.

Oops. My bad. I forgot that the ripe one was red. Definitely NOT a blueberry.

Could it be this? The leaves look similar. This is Vaccinium Calycinium or Ohelo... something.


And this is the lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium)

I definitely don't think either of those are what I have. The leaves on both don't look the same to me.

Here are the new pictures:



Larger version: http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r25/Athefre/Berrywithleaves.jpg


That large leaf in the back is part of some vine growing on the berry tree.
Larger version: http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r25/Athefre/GroupedBerriesforumsize.jpg

Close-up of a leaf:


Larger version: http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r25/Athefre/Leaf.jpg

All photos came from some of the larger trees which are on the edges of the wheat fields surrounding my house.

About the UNC Cooperative Extension: How do I get the information? I searched the site and all I saw was a "Contact" link but when you go to it, it says "Contact Webmaster".

A guy at the University of British Columbia Botanical Gardens says he thinks it's an Amelanchier, too, but he didn't know which one. I looked at your pics and it sure looks right to me.

Forgot to add that he thinks that 'furry' looking one is some sort of gall...an aberration due to a virus or insect.

Thanks for getting that information. I'm going to try one when ripe but the Amelanchier trees around us don't have many fruits. There's probably only 10 growing right and the birds will probably get those.

About the other things I was wondering about: I saw images of a hawthorn online and that's what they seem to be. Those are bitter so I probably won't try those.

what town are you in (or outside of) and i'll try to find you some info.

Jiffy,

I found this link to the county cooperative extension centers. Leggo can go here and click her county for info on who to contact.


http://www.ag.ncat.edu/extension/locations.htm

Leggo, once you click on your county, it may show a 'website' link. Click on that and then click on 'Contact' at that page and then click 'individual staff information'.

good job kalar!

Thanks, I just sent an email to one of the people it listed.

Also, I'm a he, not a her :wink:

Oh dear me. My most humblest of apologies. I didn't even stop to think or to check. I'm chalking it up to a senior moment.

I'm told it's good to learn something new every day. Keeps the brain young.....not! I learn all kinds of things every day and still have trouble. On the other hand, it could be a heckuva lot worse if I didn't. :wink: