sea buckthorn
Other Common Names Include:
Siberian pineapple, Sea Berry, Sandthorn or Swallowthorn
Latin Name: Hippophae rhamnoides L.
Plant Family: Elaeagnaceae
Close Relatives: None
Uses and Markets: Culinary (juices, teas, fresh and frozen fruit); medicinal (fruit and oils used for the treatment of internal and topical maladies); personal care products; essential oil
Production Life Cycle in Ontario
Perennial
Hardiness Zone
3
Special Notes
A woody shrub to small tree with an extensive root system capable of fixing nitrogen. Adapted to a wide variety of soils including marginal land with poor nutrient and water retention capacities.
Propagation method
Most commonly by transplants from cuttings, less commonly by root divisions and seeds
Greenhouse Seeding/Propagation Dates
Autumn or winter (seeds and cuttings).
Field Seeding Date:
N/A
Field Transplanting Dates
Spring
In-row spacing
1-1.5 m
Between row spacing
5-6 m
Optimal Soil temperature at planting
N/A
Fertility
No current Ontario fertility recommendations exist. Research and recommendations from outside Ontario do not necessarily apply to Ontario growing conditions. This crop fixes its own nitrogen and supplemental nitrogen application is usually not required. Click here for phosphorus and potassium application guidelines and for more information on specialty crop fertility.
Soil type
All soil types
Soil pH
Acidic to alkaline soils.
Special requirements for growth habit
Rows should be oriented in a north-south direction. Plants are either male or female. Orchards require 1 male for every 7 female plants and regular pruning.
Optimal Temperature Range
22-28 °C, temperate weather crop.
Temperature sensitivity
Hardy to -40°C
Irrigation requirements
Irrigation usually not required.
Days to harvest
ca. 110-120 days; harvests typically begin in early August.
Specialized equipment
None
Harvest
Harvest Scheduling
Multiple harvests
Hand harvest or machine harvest
Hand harvesting of berries is very labour intensive. Mechanical harvesters are used in Europe.
Quality parameters/grades
No established grades
Additional Harvest Notes
Berry laden branches may be harvested, frozen at -20˚C, and the berries rolled off of the branches. This reduces yields in the following year, as berries form on 2nd year wood.
Post harvest
Special handling/curing
Berries are stored at low temperature or flash frozen for later consumption or processing.
Storage Conditions
Relative humidity (RH): N/A
Temperature: 4 to 6°C
Air Exchange: N/A
Duration: 10-14 days
Specific pests observed on this crop in Ontario (observations based on limited experience with this crop)
Insects and Invertebrates: Caterpillar defoliators (gypsy moth, green fruitworm), aphids, multi-coloured Asian ladybeetle (Harmonia axyridis – does not feed on plant, concern due to possible contamination of juice when harvesting mechanically), mites (e.g. Aceria hippophaena, Aculus tibiales)
Diseases: Damping off, wilts (e.g. Verticilium dahliae, Fusarium spp.)
Other: Deer
Other Potential Pests: The following pests have not been observed on this crop in Ontario. However, they are either significant concerns for closely related plants in Ontario, or are reported on this crop in other production areas. This is not a comprehensive list of all potential pests. Not all of these pests will necessarily survive Ontario’s climate, but could potentially survive in a protected environment (e.g. greenhouse, storage facility).
Insects and Invertebrates: browntail moth (Euproctis chrysorrhoea), spotted wing drosophila (Drosophila suzukii), redheaded flea beetle (Systena frontalis), thrips, earwigs
Diseases: brown rot (Monilniia spp.), anthracnose (Colletotrichum acutalum), scab
Other: Birds, rodents
*Indicates pests commonly mentioned as causing significant damage or economic loss to this crop in other regions.
Comments
To date most of the pests observed in Ontario sea buckthorn do not appear to have had serious impacts on the trees or fruit production, with the exception of Verticillium wilt, which has caused mortality of young trees when sea buckthorn was planted into soils with a history of the disease. However, some of the reported pests have significantly impacted yields in other sea buckthorn-producing areas. Spotted wing drosophila (SWD) is an invasive vinegar fly of Asian origin that has the potential to cause extensive damage to many fruit crops. It was first reported in Ontario in 2011, but has not yet been reported from sea buckthorn. The potential impact of SWD on sea buckthorn is unknown, but growers should monitor for this pest.
This crop is in Crop Group 13-07: Berry and Small Fruit Crop Group and subgroup 13-07B: Bushberry Subgroup. For more information on Crop Groups, refer to the Pest section. Always refer to product labels, and follow all directions specified on the label, before applying any pest control product. For a list of pest control products registered on sea buckthorn, refer to OMAFRA Publication 360: Guide to Fruit Production.
None
- Elford, E., Filotas, M., Todd, J., and S. Westerveld. 2009. Non-traditional crops demonstration garden. OMAFRA Simcoe Resource Centre, unpublished.
- Westerveld, S., Elford, E., Filotas, M. and J. Todd. 2010-present. OMAFRA herb demonstration garden. OMAFRA Simcoe Resource Centre, unpublished.
- Zandstra, J. 2009-present. Agronomic research on sea buckthorn. University of Guelph, unpublished.
- Li, T.S.C and T.J. Beveridge. 2003. Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.): Production and utilization. NRC Research Press, Ottawa, Canada
- Li, T.S.C. and W.R. Schroeder. 1996. Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.): A multipurpose plant. HortTech. 6(4): 370-380
