Szechuan strawberries and portuguese brandy

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Strawberry like fruits on a tree
Strawberry like fruits of Arbutus menziesii (left) and Cornus kousa (right) taken by Sara Bishop

Many visitors ask about the strawberry looking fruits found on some the trees and shrubs in the gardens at this time of year.

The first (picture top left) is Arbutus, commonly called the strawberry tree. At Ness you will encounter two different species - Arbutus menziesii, native to the western coastal areas of North America and Arbutus unedo, native to Mediterranean basin, northern Spain, and western France. Both are attractive evergreen trees, very drought tolerant, with red flaking bark, white flowers and of course the strawberry like fruit.

To the casual observer the main differences between the two species when you encounter them at Ness is size and when they flower. Arbutus menziesii flowers in late spring and is distinctly a tree with the potential to reach 30 metres in height, over its 300-year lifespan. Although in Europe heights of 15 to 20 metres are more normal depending on when they were planted.  Arbutus unedo is a much smaller tree with a shrubbier habit growing up to 10 metres and flowers in the autumn, alongside the strawberry like fruit which have develop from the previous year’s flowers.

The next (picture top right) is the fruit of Cornus kousa, commonly called the Szechuan strawberry. A small deciduous tree with an attractive shape that really deserves to be planted more in gardens. Aside from the plentiful red fruit, some also develop red and purple autumnal leaves, and they all offer a wonderful early summer display of creamy white flowers. Reaching a modest 8-10 metres, the trees are native to central eastern parts of China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan.

The fruits of both Arbutus species and Cornus kousa are edible. Arbutus fruits are exceptionally high in vitamin C and despite a high sugar content quite bland with a grainy texture. Szechuan strawberries are let down by a bitter tasting skin and numerous hard seeds!  The fruits of Arbutus unedo are often used jams and turned in traditional fruit brandy - Aguardente de Medronhos in Portugal and types of rakia in Albania.