Russian Olive
Russian olive is another important support species tree for an extremely cold climate food forest.
It grows to about 20 ft high and is used for its high rating as a Nitrogen fixer.
The tree produces edible fruit, which hangs on the tree through the winter months, providing food for birds and other wildlife.
The fruit has a mealy texture and is used primarily in soups, while the leaves are a desirable fodder for browsing animals such as sheep and goats (and probably deer).
Russian Olive flowers in the spring with clusters of heavily scented blooms that attract bees and other pollinating insects.
The tree will coppice, making it a suitable chop n drop species as well as a source of fuel for rocket mass heaters.
The hard wood is fine grained and suitable for woodworking.
In fact, its wood has a very interesting character, and makes for some very beautiful pieces, such as the one pictured on the left that was made by the Canadian artist Hermann de Vries.
You mention that Autumn Olive and Siberian Pea Shrub are invasive. Is this not the case with Russian Olive? I know that it is considered invasive in some areas in the U.S.. I like your blog. I am doing my Geoff Lawton PDC right now, and was directed to your Chinampa post. Very good stuff there and elsewhere. I'm also in Zone 3 in Canada (the west side of the Rockies. ~Rob~
ReplyDeletePersonally I interpret invasive as exhibiting energetic growth. In a managed environment like chop and drop this is a desirable quality.
DeleteFor example, I often wonder about the potential of kudzu in zone 3...