RASPBERRY/BLACKBERRY CROSSES (COMMONLY KNOWN AS 'HYBRIDS')
Hybrid berries make a nice change to blackberries in pies and crumbles and add an additional dimension to bowls of mixed berries.
They are delicious in summer pudding mixes and make jams that are a little different.
They often have a shortened season due to the weather, especially if it’s hot and dry, and crops can be unreliable, lasting for days rather than weeks!
TAYBERRIES
These berries are sweeter and more aromatic than a Loganberry.
They have excellent flavour and are a very dark red/purple when fully ripe.
TUMMELBERRIES
A newer hybrid than the Tayberry and, to my taste, is a little sweeter with a more fragrant / floral flavour than Tayberry.
They have a dark translucent red colour when ripe and can be used in much the same way as Tayberries (see above)
LOGANBERRIES
The original raspberry / blackberry hybrid which remains popular and is the best known of the family.
They are sharper than Tayberries and Tummelberries but still freeze well and make beautiful jam.
Again, their uses are as for Tayberries (see above)
BOYSENBERRIES
Boysenberries have a distinctive 'old fashioned' bramble flavour, it being the usual hybrid cross but crossed again with a blackberry.
The fruits are stunningly dark in colour and were originally bred in Australia.
Uses are as for other hybrids (see Tayberry above) and particularly as for Blackberries.
We also grow SILVANBERRIES, which are of a similar provenance to boysenberries
USES:
- Hybrids make excellent jam and ice cream
- Excellent in summer puddings
- Excellent as alternatives to blackberries in pies and crumbles