Afaik the North American variety is a different sub species of arctic bramble, rubus acaulis. (Which in turn is a poor producer here) They’re probably well adapted to your conditions. Have you tried mixing them in with the cultivars?
One thing to note about the cultivars. Not all of them are a good match for pollinating each other. Most of the Swedish hybrids (R. stellarcticus) derive from a handfull of seeds imported from Alaska. Beata and Sofia for example don’t easily mingle. The Finnish varieties are pure r. arcticus but many of them are also sister lines which means they can carry the same genes for self incompatibility. It’s recommended to grow at least three varieties side by side to be sure. I must have four or five in that raised bed and this is the first year they’re thriving. Only an hour or so of direct sunlight.
i have 4 different cultivars from 2 different nurseries. mine are in full sun and get watered during dry spells. maybe they need more shade like my wild ones that grow in dappled shade all day.
Although you clarify that it is a hybrid, written this way it indicates that “stellarcticus” is a species. In fact it is both a hybrid and a pure species. This is because it is a hybrid between two subspecies within the same species. It should be written as Rubus arcticus ssp. ×stellarcticus to indicate that it is fully R. arcticus, but a hybrid between an Alaskan selection of R. arcticus ssp. stellatus and a Sweedish selection of R. arcticus ssp. arcticus.
Interesting side note is that eFloras Flora of North America indicates that all three subspecies (ssp. acaulis, ssp. arcticus and ssp. stellatus) all are present in Alaska.
Looks like you got a decent crop- more than I have ever seen! What cultivars do you grow?
This video shows Beata and Linda.
On the One Green World website they have listed (probably not in stock)- Anna, Beta, Sophia, and Valentina. I am not sure if there are any other names sold in the US.
In Germany I see Beate, Mespi, Marika, and Tarja.
It seems like the names get changed depending on the language. I haven’t seen Linda yet. I’m guessing “Beate” is “Beta”.
mine arent 1/4 the size of those. the few that i do get. mine also flower and fruit around the same time as my indigo gem/ treat honeyberries. mostly done now.
I have Linda, Beata, Marika and Tarja and got a nice harvest this year (already done since I am in a milder climate (Belgium) than @BerryAllen (Finland)).
Papers indicate conditional sterility induced by heat or drought. I did see the best production in the shade.
I grow Beata and Sofia and I think I also have Linda somewhere in there. These are the hybrids.
I also grow Pima, Susanna, Mespi and Elpee from the Finnish breeding progran. Tarja didn’t make it and Marika is supposedly the most susceptible to leaf diseases so I’m sticking to what I have now.
It seems to me that if lots of genetically unique plants (rather than just a couple different clones) are required for good harvests and the named selections aren’t really any more productive than wild… then perhaps people should just be growing seedlings to ensure lots and lots of genetic variation.
I am guessing there was only one importer / wholesaler and they are the only source for the US nursery stock (you notice all US nurseries sell the same 2-4 varieties- mostly just two). The original importer didn’t do research or picked the 4 varieties that happen to be too close to pollinate each other. Everyone in the US is passing around the same few varieties and we get beautiful groundcover, and everyone in Europe with access to the other varieties will end up with fruit.
It makes sense- the only (real) pics you see come from Europe.
Do you mean just grow the wild seedlings? Yea at this point if you are looking for something more than groundcover that is probably the best option. I’ve seen wild ones out on the tundra, but I have never been around when they are fruiting. They don’t seem very vigorous either.
I mean seedlings from whatever will set fruit locally to collect seed from; wild or cultivated.
I have been surprised more than once to find that native wild plants (in general) which appear to be of low vigor quickly explode with vigor when transplanted into better conditions found in managed gardens. Often times wild plants persist where they can survive better than other plants, but that does not mean those growing conditions are ideal for brining out their genetic potential.
Do any of you have issues with your arctics being eaten by some unknown pest? Mine are being skeletonized by something. It’s an issue I don’t really have with any plant except arctic raspberry and roses, so I’m wondering if they’re particularly delicious to Japanese beetles or some such.
Not a massive yield but a treat none the less. The bigger ones I’m sure are the Alaskan ones. Not quite as tasty as the pure arctics but definitely worth it.
Picture download is acting up again but I’ll keep trying
