B Grade Seaberry (Hippophae rhamnoides)

1 year old bareroot seedling 

‘Grade B’ plants are smaller seedlings that finished the season a bit undersized to be considered ready for field planting for many folks. They are healthy and alive, but a bit small (usually less than 8") and able to get lost in the weeds quickly. They can be field planted to their final homes if you are on top of  watering, mulching, and weeding. We recommend  planting them in a home nursery bed to grow for one full season, develop much larger root systems and be very ready for tougher conditions and less care next year. This is an affordable and sensible way to start small so you can go big with your plantings.

Seaberry is a thorny shrub with separate male and female plants able to improve relatively poor surrounding soil. Seaberry roots host nitrogen fixing bacteria and colonize erodible hill sides and steep slopes well. It produces orange berry-like fruit on thorny branches that can be harvested by cutting whole branches and freezing them to later process and juice for preservation. The bushes generally produce fruit within three years and reach their maximum production within seven or eight years.

Seaberry produces ample biomass and can be used as a living fence, shelter break or guardian companion plant for more browse susceptible plants. Fruit is only produced by female plants but need a male to pollinate for fruit set. People are often familiar with this plant from cosmetics and shampoos because of its nutritive capacity for improving skin hair and nails. It is indeed considered a superfood being nutritionally dense.

We describe the taste as little drops of sunshine, tart slightly sweet with a glowing aftertaste. Young plants need a bit of attention while getting established but once set up they are hard to get rid of and send up profuse amounts of suckers.