North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["William C. Garthright" <billg@inebraska.com>]

> Some folks call it "Chokeberry" and I cannot imagine why because the 
> freshly picked berries are delightful to eat.
>  

That's very interesting, because I looked into Aronia this past year 
when I was trying to decide what fruit-bearing bushes to try. I kept 
hearing, over and over again, that it wasn't very good-tasting fresh. It 
was frequently mentioned as making a good (sweetened) juice, or 
sometimes for other possible uses (gelatin desserts, even pie), but very 
few places said it was good fresh - and those were websites where 
EVERYTHING they sell is the best-tasting fruit ever.

Since I don't cook, and I'm mostly interested in fresh fruit, I decided 
to pass on Aronia. But I might change my mind, since I'm always looking 
for places to squeeze in just a few more plants.  :-)

Note that I also heard different things about Aronia's requirements. One 
place said it required "a damp, acid soil" - another that it would grow 
well anywhere. I also heard that it would tolerate partial shade,... and 
that it wouldn't. Like everything else on the Internet, it's hard to 
know who to believe. (I definitely trust this list much more!)

Bill
Lincoln, NE (Zone 5)

--
It's not true that life is one damn thing after another. It's the same 
damn thing over and over. - Edna St. Vincent Milay