Seaberries are tart and delicious golden fruit about the size of a lentil, borne in large quantities along the thorny stems of this shrub.  The berries are packed with fifteen times the vitamin C of oranges, and contain phenols and oils used in many commercial supplements and cosmetics.  Seaberry is great for poor soil because it has nitrogen-fixing root nodules.  In order to set fruit, the female plants need to be pollinated by males nearby.

We’ve been growing this shrub for ten years, and have decided that it certainly has helped improve our soil with the abundant leaf litter and nitrogen fixation, but the low yields, difficulty of harvest, and extreme thorns make it a poor choice for most gardens with limited space.  The one situation where this shrub would shine is to create a living fence where you want to avoid maintenance and care, where the thorns can’t pop a tire, and where the shrub can’t overtake any other useful plants.