Fresh Pick of the Week: Boysenberries

Our Summer Certified Farmers’ Markets are in full swing this weekend!  The Palm Springs Market at the PS Pavilion on Saturday, from 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and our new Summer Market at Westfield Palm Desert on Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. To usher in the Summer, our Fresh Pick is a warm weather staple: Boysenberries!

Boysenberries are Northern California natives, having been developed by horticulturist Rudolph Boysen at his Napa farm, then made commercially famous in Southern California by none other than Walter Knott (That’s right! Knott as in Knott’s Berry Farm). They are the hybrid result of Boysen’s efforts to develop a new berry from several other varieties, including European Raspberries, European Blackberries, American Dewberries and Loganberries. 

Boysenberries are large berries with a deep maroon color, and a flavor that is a unique blend of all its parent berries. We are lucky to get them at the markets, as they are limited, both in terms of season, and in terms of distribution. Over the years, Boysenberries have seen both the highs and the lows of popularity among consumers, but their tendency to be difficult to care for, and difficult to transport, has made most commercial growers shy away from them. As a result, most commercially-grown Boysenberries, primarily from Oregon, are grown only to be processed into other products such as jam, pie, juice, syrup, and ice cream. Fresh Boysenberries are generally only grown for market by smaller farmers, and usually only sold at local farm stands and markets…like ours!