Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
brionk

Aronia

brionk
22 years ago

Last year I ordered an Aronia berry bush from Raintree Nursery. It didn't grow much last year, despite the fact that I gave it good soil, and it did not produce a single berry.

How long do these plants take to get going? Any special fertility requirements?

Thanks!

-Brion

Comments (28)

  • lostman
    22 years ago

    I got both Nero and Viking a year ago for them as well. I just had a small amount of growth last year.
    I am hoping that this year will be better. Most of my plants are shy of growth in the first year.
    So I would wait before getting conserned.

    I thought my hardy kiwi were failing the first year I planted them. All I saw were
    alot of leaves, but no growth. The following year, they grew 4-5 times their size!

  • Rodknee
    22 years ago

    My Aronia melanocarpa seedlings from One Green World were stagnant the first season. They grew much more the second year than the first and produced a small amount of fruit. I expect them to increase alot this year. I have only used compost to fertilize and they are in partial shade about 3 hours per day in the hot summer.
    Good Luck, LJ

  • ezawada
    21 years ago

    anyone have or know what the difference between Viking and Egerta are ? I see that Cloud Mountain offers both of them, and was wondering if anyone has grown them.

    Thanks

  • emlove
    21 years ago

    My aronia berry bush had no fruit the first year, but after that, I must have harvested 20 pounds of fruit. I've got no idea what to do with it though :)

    Remember, aronia needs acid soil and good moisture.

  • lostman
    21 years ago

    Emlove,

    How would you discribe the taste you your berries right off the bush?
    Though I only had a few berries this year, but I was diappointed with the taste.
    I thought they wuld be sour, but they were more bitter and smokey tasting even after
    hanging on the bush all summer. They kinda reminded me of a coffee.

  • newyorkrita
    21 years ago

    I bought mine from a local nursery this past summer. The shrubs were really tiny but some already had flowered and had fruit. So, of course, I picked those shrubs. The fruits were eaten a short while later by some wild animal or bird around here.

  • newyorkrita
    20 years ago

    Lots of green fruit on my Aronia shrub this year. I am really curious to try the fruit since there seems to be different ideas about how edible this is.

  • nurblet
    20 years ago

    What ph should the soil be for aronias?

  • abgardeneer
    20 years ago

    Aronia melanocarpa seems to do fine here in alkaline soil, at what is probably close to the northern limit of it's potential growing area (zone 3) - not sure how much better it might do in acidic soil. It seem not to "need" acidic soil, in the sense that blueberries need acidic soil.

  • newyorkrita
    20 years ago

    Ordered small Black Aronia 'Nero' for planting this fall. The one plant I have of black Aronia was stripped by the wildlife around here within a week of fruiting. Decided the only way to fix that problem was to plant more Aronia shrubs.

    I have to say that I think these are excellent landscape shrubs. Pretty spring white flowers and gorgeous glossy green leaves all summer long. Then berries plus fall color at the end of the year. What more can one want from a shrub.

    I hope to try Red Aronia next year too.

  • newyorkrita
    20 years ago

    Found two 'Iroquois Beauty' Black Aronia at a local nursery so I bought them and planted them today. The 'Iroquois Beauty' is the same type of Aronia that the one shrub I already had from last year is.

  • lostman
    20 years ago

    I dont know if anyone else has this, but I just noticed that my aronia is fruiting again. Does it usually have two seasons? We will have to see if it can ripen before the hard frosts hit.

  • newyorkrita
    19 years ago

    The black Aronia is leafing out but no flowers yet, too early. I ordered Red Aronia mailorder this Spring. It should arrive late April.

  • hemnancy
    19 years ago

    My Aronia Vikings are 5 years old and have fruited the last 3 years. They had quite a lot this year. I cook it, blend, strain and add unflavored gelatin, sweetener like sugar, honey or stevia, and almond extract to make a gelatin dessert. The flavor is quite good cooked, but terrible raw. I also don't like the skins/seeds. Aronia are a very powerful anti-oxidant, and better than cranberry for bladder infections, etc. according to my mom's naturopath. They are worth growing and eating for health benefits, like other berries with dark pigments- blueberries, black currants, salal, oregon holly grape, etc.

  • hoover67
    19 years ago

    This is one of the berries that I have picked for our garden (formally a clay tennis court) with a net. I see that the spacing needs to be 4-5'. I hope to plant them in a 4' x 12' bed. Is one variety better than the other?

  • newyorkrita
    18 years ago

    Get one of the named varieties like Nero or Viking. If you want a shorter one, get 'Iroquois Beauty'.

  • lostman
    18 years ago

    Another observation conserning aronia

    I made some jam out of it which was horrid! I think maybe the skins and/or seeds made it bitter. I was about toss out the jam and remove the bush, but I found out that mixed with peanut butter on a cracker, it was wonderful!! I never liked peanut butter and jelly, but now I crave this mixture. Also my "not so good" elderberry jam was good with peanut butter too. Go figure.

    Lastly, a friend of mine made some Aronia jelly with swedish steam juicer that was very nice on its own. So I guess there is many ways of doing this.

    Maybe Im just a bad jam maker. :(

  • oldroser
    18 years ago

    Trader Joe is selling jars of the juice and recommends mixing it with lemonade. I find it is absolutely great mixed with tonic - but only a small splash of aronia juice will flavor 8 oz of tonic. TJ gets theirs from concentrate shipped from Eastern Europe - but it needs dilution to be palatable.

  • chervil2
    18 years ago

    My Aronia Viking has been bearing fruit for about 7 years. No one that I know likes the flavor of these berries. The bush is attractive and so I let it be.

    Chervil2

  • stargazer_1118
    18 years ago

    I just moved into a new neighborhood which use tobe a giant farm many years ago. I have aronia bushes growing like crazy mixed in with the blueberries. They are a bit tart but make a wonderful jelly. my 6 and 8 year old fight over this jam!!!

  • oldroser
    18 years ago

    Since Trader Joe wasn't stocking aronia juice on my recent visit, I've ordered a couple of Viking from Forest Farm. If and when I get a crop, I'll run them through my Squeezo to juice them and can the juice in pints.
    My sister sampled the juice mixed with tonic and agreed that this is an absolutely delicious combination.
    If the birds want to eat them, they're going to have to fight me for them.

  • yelena
    17 years ago

    Aronia leaves and fruits are known to reduce high blood pressure. Please note that juice can be dangerous for persons with low blood pressure.

  • teenameena
    14 years ago

    I'm thinking of planting some aronia bushes this year, after reading about them in 'The Seasons on Henry's Farm' by Terra Brockman, and tasting jam made from aronia-yum! In the book it says the bushes may take three years to start producing, then yielding 40# eventually.

  • groall
    14 years ago

    Brionk....First they sleep, then they creep and then they leap....I think that is how it go's...Aronia don't seem to have any special need, good soil, dampness.....I planted Aronia years ago and now when I walk around I find little plants from the berries Stellar Jay's have buried, in the fall, early winter months, I will walk around, cut off a long stem and as I walk about, pick a bare spot and shove the stem into the ground....today as I walk about, I see new shoots on these stems which I shoved into the ground, later during my walks I can grab a hand full of berries and enjoy the flowers in a month or so...I think some of my first plants...have several types now....came from Raintree, don't remember how big they were but there is no reason why you shouldn't see a berry in a year or two....the bush or tree if you trim it that way, will be wispy if left alone but annual pruning and you will have a nice bush...berries are a little tart, few large seeds but make nice wine...and Aronia will get very tall (formed into tree), large bush...

  • hemnancy
    14 years ago

    I was cooking Aronia, straining out the seeds and skins, and making gelatin out of my berries, but my son encouraged me to try it fresh or frozen, whole. I have been adding whole frozen berries to my fruit salads with various fruits- apples, pears, peaches, pineapple, grapes, papaya, etc., and have adjusted to eating it, it doesn't stick out much from the other flavors and is toned down. I also have tried whole frozen berries with yogurt and Stevia, or whipped cream and Stevia, and like them.

    I'm planning to try to get some Nero bushes this year, does anyone notice any difference in flavor between it and Viking? Or the Iroquois Beauties?

    A problem is I noticed a few maggots from Spotted Wing Drosphila in a few berries last fall so am planning to try putting some traps with molasses, brewer's yeast, etc to try to lower populations around Aronia and other berries.

  • eldoneverhart_gmail_com
    12 years ago

    If you want to learn more about aronia, visit my blog Aronia in America and click on the link to my websire for even more information. http://aroniainamerica.blogspot.com/

    Dr. Eldon Everhart
    Everhart Horticulture Consulting
    1208 Chestnut Street
    Atlantic, IA 50022-2236
    Office: 712-254-4035
    Cell: 712-249-3868
    Email: eldoneverhart@gmail.com
    Website: http://www.hortconsulting.com/
    Blog: http://aroniainamerica.blogspot.com/

    Here is a link that might be useful: Aronia in America

  • aronia123
    10 years ago

    I found aronia juice in Toronto area..... Site is www.aroniag.com click on stores and find one in your area....

Sponsored
Grow Landscapes
Average rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars8 Reviews
Planning Your Outdoor Space in Loundon County?