Sea buckthorn (from the Latin Hippophaë) belongs to a genus of plants in the Elaeagnaceae family. Ripe berries and leaves of this plant are widely used not only for preparing various preparations and dishes, they are very much in demand for medicinal purposes. Timely and correct harvesting is a guarantee of obtaining high-quality raw materials.

Harvest dates

Correctly determining the timing of harvesting sea buckthorn is very important to facilitate labor-intensive work and maximize the preservation of all useful substances in the berry. To determine in which month to conduct the collection and in what way to carry out the event, it is necessary to determine the varietal characteristics:

The harvest of early varieties should begin to be harvested in early August, but it is better to harvest the berries of the “Chuyskaya” variety at the end of summer;
late varieties are ready for harvest from the second half of the first autumn month.

However, the exact timing of harvest may vary depending on the weather, soil and climatic conditions in the region where the berry crop is grown. The first sign of the beginning of the harvest is the acquisition of intense and characteristic coloring by the berries. Fully ripened berries are tight, but are distinguished by fairly easy tearing. It is at this stage that the berries contain an optimally high amount of vitamin C. If the purpose of using the berries is to obtain sea buckthorn oil, then it is recommended to wait until the harvest is overripe on the tree.

How to collect sea buckthorn (video)

Quick collection methods

Before harvesting, you should remember that sea buckthorn juice can ruin clothes, so you should use raincoats. The berries are collected from the top of the branches to the bottom. To carry out this event not only quickly, but also efficiently, it is recommended to use special devices. Today, gardeners practice the following methods of harvesting sea buckthorn:

The easiest way is to carefully cut branches with berries from the plant and then freeze them, making it easy to harvest. The disadvantage of this method is that frozen berries are unsuitable for making juice or jam.
The classic method of manual collection is widely used. Despite the fact that in this case the berries are suitable for any type of processing, this method is too labor-intensive and time-consuming.

If at the time of ripening of sea buckthorn there is frost in the morning, then to collect the berries you should spread a thick cloth under the tree, onto which frozen berries will fall off as a result of blows on the branches. As a rule, in our country, manual harvesting is used, as well as the use of various devices that facilitate and speed up harvesting.

Convenient devices

In small areas, it is advisable to collect sea buckthorn manually or using tongs. which do not damage the berries and the plant. However, a few, but quite accessible and effective folk inventions make it possible to make the harvest of sea buckthorn not only quick and easy, but also of very high quality, with minimal loss of the marketable value of the berry.

Various combs, designed for “combing” ripe berries onto a fabric spread under the berry crop.
Wire "cobra", made of thin but quite strong steel, with the addition of a comfortable wooden handle (the wire should be bent in a loop and then secured to the handle). Such a simple device easily cuts off the stalks even in areas of the crown that are difficult to reach by hand.
Popular tin tube 10 cm long and 3-4 mm in diameter larger than the size of the berry. Such a tube must be wrapped with regular insulating tape and secured to a plastic bag. As a result of the cutting movement, the berry is cut off from the stalk and moved through a tube into the bag.
A special collection method is used when it is necessary to obtain sea buckthorn juice. In this case, you should place a fairly wide container under the branches with berries, and then, running your hand along the branch from the base down, you should squeeze the berries. As a result, juice flows out of the ripe berry and fills the container. It takes about an hour to collect three liters of juice.

Conditions and terms of crop storage

Most often, the collected berries are placed in bags and placed in the freezer, where they retain all their beneficial properties for six months. In the future, the berries can be used for some types of processing.

Another fairly common way to store sea buckthorn is to place freshly picked and unwashed berries in jars. The berries should be poured with cooled boiled water, covered with lids and stored in the refrigerator. You can make berry puree or jelly, jam or jam from fresh sea buckthorn.

Dried sea buckthorn has recently gained popularity. Berries can be dried by pre-treating them with a soda solution and rinsing with running water. They should be spread out in an even layer and dried in direct sunlight for about three to four weeks. Artificial drying is also allowed - in an oven or a special dryer. The berries prepared in this way must be placed in a wooden or cardboard container, the bottom of which should be covered with thick sheets of paper.

Aftercare for sea buckthorn

After harvesting, sea buckthorn trees need to carry out such measures as removing weeds and leaves in the trunk circles, followed by shallow loosening of the soil. When loosening, care should be taken, since the root system of the berry crop belongs to the category of superficial.

Sea buckthorn: features and care (video)

The depth of loosening should not be more than five centimeters. In addition, high-quality moisture-recharging irrigation and mulching should be carried out. If necessary, sanitary pruning is carried out by treating the cut areas with a standard garden varnish. As a rule, in central Russia, plants do not need shelter and winter well under snow cover.

27.11.2017 3 716

When to collect sea buckthorn in order to preserve the beneficial properties of the healing berry as much as possible?

Not every gardener knows when to collect sea buckthorn, although this berry can be found in summer cottages quite often, and in order to prepare it for future use and preserve its beneficial properties, you should clarify the timing, in what month the berry is collected, when it is best to do it in the Moscow region, the middle zone, in the Urals, Siberia, Leningrad region, Ukraine, Bashkiria, and also choose the optimal method for removing sea buckthorn berries from a branch quickly and without loss...

When to collect sea buckthorn - timing

Sea buckthorn ripens from mid-August to late autumn, depending on the region and type of tree - for the Moscow region, central Russia, Ukraine, Bashkiria, where the climate is quite warm, the berry is ready for consumption at the end of August, and in the Leningrad region, in Siberia, harvest Sea buckthorn can be eaten by the end of September.

Weather conditions in spring play a big role, so there are no specific ripening dates - early sea buckthorn is usually harvested in mid-August, middle berries in mid-September, late berries ripen by the end of September. The ripe fruit is golden yellow or bright orange in color and sits tightly on the branches, which makes picking much more difficult. Freshly ripened sea buckthorn has the most - it contains the largest amount of ascorbic acid, carotene, and other useful elements.

The harvest continues until late winter, but when to collect sea buckthorn depends on what will be prepared from it in the future - for compotes, preserves, jams, dense whole hearths are needed, which are collected in late summer - early autumn, for juices and oil production A softer berry will do. Please note that the longer the fruits hang on the branch, the softer the skin becomes, and it becomes increasingly difficult to pick whole berries. However, some craftsmen know how to harvest sea buckthorn more conveniently in winter, when the berries are covered by frost - the harvesting process consists of tapping the trunk and branches of the plant with a stick. Whole, frozen berries fall down on their own; the picker can only spread a tarpaulin or polyethylene under the base of the tree. This method is often used in production, but at home you can cheat it by cutting off the branches with berries and putting them in the freezer for several hours. There are many ways to remove sea buckthorn berries from a branch quickly and conveniently.

How to remove sea buckthorn from a branch - methods and devices

To remove sea buckthorn berries from a branch, you need to have patience and a certain amount of optimism - the branches are prickly, the fruits are quite small, densely planted. There are many ways to harvest, but before the process it is necessary to protect your clothes and hands from getting juice; it is better to wear gloves and an apron. Collection begins from the end of the branch towards the base.

manual harvesting of sea buckthorn - in the photo

The most basic method is to collect by hand, this is a long, painstaking process that requires a lot of labor, and in this way the hearths are collected when they are still quite dense. Craftsmen make work easier as best they can, so faster options have appeared.

Scissors - to quickly clear sea buckthorn branches, you will need small (up to 10-15 cm) scissors; as experience shows, with this size the hand gets the least tired. The berries are simply cut from the branch, they fall onto the underlying fabric or film.

Tweezers with curved edges have proven to be no less effective - with this method, several berries are grabbed with the tool and torn from the branch.

Many people know how to pick sea buckthorn with a fork - pry up the berries, drag along the branch towards the edge. An ordinary sparse comb is used according to the same principle - the branches are combed and the berries are rolled down. The downside of these devices is the inaccuracy of the process - along with the fruits, leaves and bark end up on the litter, which must be sorted out and dried into a very tasty and healthy product. It is recommended to dry the leaves in a dry room where direct sunlight does not penetrate.

A comb for collecting sea buckthorn attached to a mitten is especially convenient - a thin comb is sewn onto a thick fabric mitten, a hand is passed along the branch, and for greater convenience a funnel with a tube is attached to the hand, at the end of which there is a bag or bucket - the berry falls into the funnel and immediately rolls into a bag without scattering on the ground.

When it is already possible to collect sea buckthorn, gardeners make a device in the form of a stick with a loop of thin wire on the edge - each berry is hooked under the loop and carefully torn off the branch. Fruits collected in this way retain their shape and are perfect for making compotes, jams, and various recipes from.

Another variety is a device in the form of a slingshot with a stretched string or fishing line - a branch is passed into the hole and the berries are trimmed with a thin fishing line.

A scraper for collecting sea buckthorn is easy to make, even for beginners - gardeners bend a steel wire (50 cm is needed) in half, make a spring-shaped loop in the middle, bend the edges of the wire 90° - thread a branch into the loop, remove the berry.

the process of collecting sea buckthorn - in the photo

A variety of sea buckthorn harvesters, boxes and other devices can be bought ready-made in specialized stores - they greatly facilitate work and save time.

Starting from October-November, sea buckthorn can be collected for juice directly from the tree - prepare a clean container and without removing them from the branch.

When the first frost occurs, it is convenient to crush the frozen berries - they retain their integrity - the fallen fruits are collected on a tarpaulin, and then transferred to a container for storage. This method is the most successful for transportation.

Based on the previous one, for home use you can cut the shoots with the harvest and store them in the freezer until they are needed, for example, in winter you just need to prepare something tasty and healthy for the whole family. The shoots themselves are cut, not the branches, otherwise you can harm the tree and affect next year's harvest.

It is convenient to collect sea buckthorn by wearing an apron in the shape of an inverted umbrella - this way the fruits will not break on the ground when hit. You can make such a device yourself by attaching rigid wire to the edge and sides of the hem, bending it in the form of a semicircle, sewing additional ribbons on the corners and tying them behind the neck.

For beginners, picking berries seems like an impossible task, but simple, effective tools will help you cope with it quickly enough. Decide for what purpose the fruits are needed, then you will be sure when to collect sea buckthorn and what is the most effective method to choose.

Sea buckthorn berries are widely used for preparing various dishes and preparations, as well as for medicinal purposes. Despite its great popularity, few gardeners know when and how to properly harvest sea buckthorn, which leads to a decrease in yield. Following useful recommendations and using different devices greatly simplifies the process of picking berries.

Sea buckthorn ripens over a long period - from mid-August until the onset of the first frost. The exact timing of ripening depends on the region of growth and the specific tree variety. In places with a fairly hot climate, the berries are ready for consumption at the end of summer, and in cooler regions it is better to harvest in September-October.

The timing of harvest is also influenced by further purposes of use. If you plan to make jam, jam and compote from berries, then you need dense berries that are harvested in early autumn. Softened fruits, which can be obtained at a later harvest, are more suitable for juice and oil production.

The longer the berries hang on the trees, the softer their skin will become, and picking whole fruits becomes more problematic.

Is it possible to pick unripe berries?

Not fully ripe berries with elongated stalks are easier to pick, but they do not contain enough nutrients. Unripe sea buckthorn can be eaten without negative consequences, while its taste characteristics are less pronounced. It is recommended to use unripe fruits for processing or as a decorative element when decorating various dishes.

How to correctly determine the ripeness of fruits

Ripe fruits acquire a distinct golden yellow or deep orange hue. The berries are densely packed on the branches, making picking difficult. It is better to collect freshly ripened sea buckthorn, since it has the most useful characteristics and contains the maximum amount of ascorbic acid, carotene and other useful components.

As a rule, most of the berries ripen in August. By the beginning of the autumn season, it is possible to collect the bulk of the harvest in warm regions.

General rules for harvesting

pre-inspect the fruits to determine the degree of their ripening;
start collecting only if there are no visible damage or signs of rot;
If the berries are not fully ripe, it is better to wait until autumn.

Table of ripening and harvesting dates for berries in various regions of Russia

The ripening period of sea buckthorn directly depends on the growing region. This is explained by the fact that each region is characterized by a certain climate, humidity level and other conditions. In particular, there is the following relationship between regions and ripening periods:

Leningrad region and Siberia - end of September.
The middle zone of the country, Bashkiria, the Moscow region and the near Moscow region, as well as the Ukrainian village of Shulginka - late summer.
In the Urals - before the onset of the first frost.

Special collection devices

To make it easier to pick ripe berries, you should use special devices. Convenient equipment eliminates the need for manual collection and saves a lot of time. Which device to use should be decided depending on individual preferences, the amount of harvest, the size of the tree and financial capabilities.

Cobra

You can build a device called a cobra yourself using thin metal wire and a piece of wood. Simply bend the wire into a loop and secure it to a wooden handle using electrical tape. The top of the wire loop should be bent so that it looks like the end of a burning candle, and the side should be made oblong, like a snake.

The device is convenient for cutting off thin stalks and extracting sea buckthorn from the most inaccessible places. When using a cobra, you need to make sharp movements for greater effectiveness.

Glove

For collecting sea buckthorn, a specially sewn glove is suitable, in the lower part of which an open bag with wire is sewn. A rounded metal comb is fixed above the bag. When you bend your hand, the wire on top of the bag bends, and the branch with the berries ends up between the comb and your thumb. To collect the fruits, all you have to do is slide your finger down and straighten your palm to close the bag.

After this, you can start collecting on other branches without fear that the collected berries will scatter. The disadvantages of such a glove are problematic access to high branches and the possibility of leaves and crushed berries getting into the bag.

Using a loop

Collecting using a loop is in many ways similar to using a cobra. You can make a loop from wire or thin steel. The harvest is obtained by cutting off the stalks. The main advantages are the speed of collection and the ability to get berries from high and hard-to-reach branches. The loop can be made in different lengths depending on the height of the tree.

A quick method using tongs

The use of tongs with a built-in fruit compartment makes it possible to harvest the crop with maximum care in relation to the tree. The device picks each berry individually, and the branches remain unharmed. Manual work has a beneficial effect on further volumes of the harvest, which will ripen by the next season. Despite the speed of collection, it is recommended to use this method only if there are a small number of trees on the site.

Scraper for quick harvesting

You can make a scraper for collecting berries using a metal wire about 50 cm long, coated with an aluminum sheath. In the middle of a piece of wire, it is enough to make a curl like a spring, making a revolution around any rounded object. Externally, the device is similar to a fork. The end of the scraper must be leveled and bent at a right angle to one side. Harvesting is done by pressing down on a branch and scraping the crop from it in one downward motion. It is recommended to keep a bag under the device or spread a film on the ground around the tree.

Slingshot

A device in the form of a slingshot helps to collect berries by cutting them from branches. The tool is bent from a reliable wire or a vegetable peeler is used, removing the knife from it. By pulling a fishing line or string onto a slingshot, the berries are cut from the branches, placing a bag underneath. To prevent the string from damaging the integrity of the tree buds, it is not recommended to press the branches with great force.

Cone

You can make a cone-shaped device yourself from a tin can, a bag, an elastic band or thread. The manufacturing process consists of the following steps:

cut a plate 10 cm wide and no more than 15 cm long from the jar;
by rolling, prepare a conical blank with a hole diameter of about 1 cm;
tape the bag to the lower base of the cone.

During picking, it is enough to press the metal part on one side so that it cuts the berries from the branches. Despite the laboriousness of making the device, its use prevents the crop from being scattered on the ground.

Knapsack or harvester for harvesting sea buckthorn

In specialized stores for gardeners, you can purchase a combine harvester for convenient and efficient harvesting of sea buckthorn. The device is produced in various modifications, including metal, plastic and wooden variations. Despite the abundance of configurations, the devices operate on the same principle.

The collection method involves cutting with a working surface that looks like a comb. A harvester, also called a knapsack, is a hand-held attachment with a container into which the harvest falls.

Hook

You can make a spring hook for collecting sea buckthorn yourself or purchase it at a gardening store. The device is brought to the branch and clamped between the two ends. With a sliding movement along the branch, all the fruits are removed into the bag.

The main advantage of this device is the high harvesting speed.

The disadvantages of the tool are the inability to reach remote areas and the fact that the hook also cuts off foliage and disrupts the decorative appearance of the tree.

Tray

As an additional tool, you can use a tray made of wood with a plywood bottom. Using a tray in combination with a scoop makes harvesting easier. The tray is used as a container for berries, so it is recommended to choose a device with small dimensions so that you can hang it on your lower back or neck.

For this purpose, the removable ends of a wide and durable belt are fixed to the side walls in the central part. The suitable dimensions of the tray are 70 x 50 cm, the height of the walls is about 10 cm.

Comb

Using a comb is one of the fastest ways to obtain a harvest from trees. Using a comb, the berries are combed from the branches in large volumes. Despite the quick harvest, some of the thin-skinned berries may be damaged due to the impact of the hard comb. In addition, foliage and some branches are torn off from the tree along with the fruits.

Making a collection device with your own hands

You can simplify the manual method using a device that is made from a plastic bottle. You can make the device yourself at home using the following method - cut off the bottom of the bottle, cut out 4 petals and place the neck on a long stick. For greater reliability, you need to nail the neck of the bottle to the stick using a simple nail.

Collecting sea buckthorn by hand

The traditional method of harvesting sea buckthorn involves removing each berry from the trees individually without additional equipment. This technology is the most labor- and time-consuming, but allows you to get the maximum amount of harvest without damaging the shoots and branches of trees.

Cutting twigs with berries

To speed up the manual method and make it as convenient as possible, it is possible to trim branches with berries and subsequently separate the fruits in another place. This technology is simpler and more comfortable, but in case of incorrect or excessive pruning of branches, it can cause damage to the tree, which will affect the future harvest.

When further sorting the crop, it is not necessary to pick each berry from the cut branches. All you need to do is store them in the freezer and take them out as needed. Picking frozen sea buckthorn from the branches is much easier and faster. It is important to take into account that after severe freezing, the berries should not be made into jam or processed to make juice. If you plan to process the crop, the juice can be squeezed directly onto the tree in the following way:

wear special culinary gloves;
place a clean container under the branches;
run your hand along the entire branch from the bottom to the top, pressing the sea buckthorn with your fingers.

You can also harvest after the first cold snap. To do this, you need to lay a blanket under the trees and knock down the sea buckthorn with a stick wrapped in soft cloth so as not to damage the fragile skin. The frozen berries will fall onto the blanket, after which all that remains is to collect them in a storage container. This collection technology is most often used when growing on an industrial scale.

Trimming berries with small scissors

Manual harvesting of sea buckthorn using small scissors allows you to carefully collect all the berries without disturbing the integrity of the branches and shoots. In addition, unlike the use of various devices for collecting fruits, cutting with scissors ensures the largest harvest the following season. The disadvantage of using small scissors is that it is more time consuming compared to other methods.

In addition to standard small scissors, you can use a specialized fruit picker with pointed elements to collect sea buckthorn.

A device with a pruning shears fixed above the funnel allows you to remove fruits without damaging their skin or causing harm to the branches of the tree. To prepare such a device, it is necessary to fasten the handles together with metal strips. The metal elements themselves are fixed with a lever attached to an elongated pole. During the harvesting process, it is enough to place the funnel under the branches and press the lever so that the pruning shears cut off the stalk. The fruits will roll out of the funnel along the sleeve into the designated container without the risk of damage.

How to clear collected sea buckthorn leaves

If one of the specialized devices was used to harvest sea buckthorn in order to speed up the work, then in the future there will definitely be a need to clean the fruits from leaves and branches that have fallen into the container. Manually sorting the crop is quite difficult and time-consuming, so it is recommended to resort to easier options.

One method of sorting involves using an oblong vegetable board or other similar object. By placing the board at an angle of about 45 degrees, it is enough to pour the entire harvested crop on top in small portions, as a result of which the berries will roll down, and the foliage and branches will remain on the board.

Also suitable for sorting the harvested crop is the use of a shredder, which is used to cut cabbage. The shredder is installed at an angle with the blades facing up. Place dishes or a box under the base. The berries are poured in portions onto the upper edge, after which they are rolled due to their rounded shape, and the branches are held back with knives.

If sea buckthorn was frozen along with branches and leaves, then sorting should be carried out at a low temperature. In warm weather, the crop begins to quickly thaw and wrinkle, which makes it difficult to remove branches and debris.

Rules and terms of storage of sea buckthorn

Sea buckthorn does not contain molecules that destroy vitamin C, so it can be stored fresh for a month. The recommended ambient temperature is no more than 3 degrees. Freshly harvested sea buckthorn can be left on the branches, placing them in a box inside the refrigerator or placing the fruits in a separate container. To preserve the harvest, the container must be opaque and tightly covered. Dishes with fruits should also be stored at low temperatures. During the entire storage period, the berry will not lose its beneficial characteristics.

A common option for storing sea buckthorn is freezing. When exposed to cold, the crop retains its taste characteristics and pronounced aroma. Shelf life when frozen reaches one year.

Freezing should be performed in the following sequence:

Sort the berries to remove leaves, twigs and other debris. It is important to eliminate unripe, bruised and damaged fruits.
Place the selected crop in a large container and fill it with water for rinsing. To avoid leaving dents, do not place sea buckthorn under a stream of water.
Place the washed berries on parchment or cloth napkins and wait until they dry naturally. Raw berries cannot be frozen, as their shell will collapse and the juice, along with vitamins and other nutritional components, will leak out.
Wrap the cutting board in cling film and sprinkle sea buckthorn in one layer, then leave the harvest in the freezer for a day at a temperature of -12 to -17 degrees.
When the fruits are frozen sufficiently, all that remains is to pour them into a plastic container and return them back to the freezer for further storage.

Harvest canning

Sea buckthorn berries can be preserved to keep them fresh. To do this, you need to rinse the fruits well, mix with sugar and grind in a meat grinder. The proportion of sugar to harvest is 0.7:1 kg. Mixed products should be transferred to sterilized glass containers and left in a dark room with a temperature of about 0-5 degrees. Canning can also be done in the following ways:

Pour the washed fruits into containers and fill to the top with heated syrup. Close the containers with airtight lids and turn them upside down. After waiting for complete cooling, remove the glass container to the basement or refrigerator.
Pour sea buckthorn into jars and place in a bowl filled with hot water. The jars need to be covered with lids and kept in boiling water until the sea buckthorn begins to release juice and falls to the bottom. After 15 minutes, you will need to remove the jars from the water and close them tightly.

Dried storage

If there is no possibility of storing it fresh or canned, then it is allowed to dry sea buckthorn. Thus, the crop will also not lose its taste characteristics. It is recommended to dry not only fruits, but also foliage with particles of tree bark. To store it in a dried state, it is necessary to spread the leaves and bark on a smooth surface and leave it in a thoroughly ventilated, dark place with low humidity.

After waiting a few days, the raw materials can be poured into a prepared bag. The shelf life of raw materials is about 5 years without loss of original characteristics.

To dry the sea buckthorn itself, you will need to perform more steps. First you need to sort through the harvested crop, remove damaged specimens, wash thoroughly and wait until dry. Then a solution is prepared from a teaspoon of soda and 1 liter of water, heated almost to boiling.

The berries are placed in the soda mixture for 5-10 seconds and immediately washed with warm water. When the harvest dries a little, it remains to be laid out on a baking sheet in the oven and covered with paper. In order for the sea buckthorn to dry quickly, the oven should be preheated to 35-40 degrees and wait 2-3 hours. It is recommended to store the dried crop at a temperature of 18 degrees.

Sea buckthorn is considered a crop with regular and abundant fruiting. Therefore, harvesting is significantly difficult for many gardeners even with only four or five bushes. The fruits ripen in late August. Many people know how to pick sea buckthorn, but not everyone knows that their use depends on the time of picking the berries.

general information

If the crop is intended to be consumed fresh or to be made into jam or compote, then harvesting should take place at the very beginning of its ripeness - in late August - early September. During this period, the berries have the most ascorbic acid, moreover, they are still quite hard and do not produce juice. If you plan to make jam, butter or marmalade, then it is better to postpone harvesting sea buckthorn for a couple of weeks so that it becomes juicy and soft.

Since ancient times, this medicinal plant has been considered a storehouse of biologically active substances and vitamins.

How gather sea buckthorn

Ripe fruits are orange berries, very densely planted on branches, of a fairly small size. They are so closely spaced that they look like they form an ear of corn, protected by hard spines. In addition, the fruits have very delicate skin.

Those who often come across this crop know firsthand how labor-intensive it is to collect sea buckthorn. When picking fruit from most varieties, especially overripe ones, the stalk very easily comes off with a piece of skin. At the same time, abundant juice flows out of the berries, which over time begins to corrode your hands.

Traditional collection methods

The simplest and “roughest” option for harvesting sea buckthorn is to carefully cut branches with berries from the tree and freeze them. In this case, frozen fruits are easily torn off and do not lose precious juice. The disadvantage of this method is that it is only suitable when you initially plan to store sea buckthorn frozen, and not squeeze juice out of it or make jam.

The most common, common to all varieties of berries, is harvesting by hand and small scissors - tweezers. This method, although popular, has its drawback: it is very time-consuming.

Some people prefer to cut whole branches from the bush and then pick the berries from them at home. The method, although good, also has disadvantages. Firstly, this can harm the tree, because the branches must be cut very, very carefully, which is not always possible. Secondly, if you adhere to this method, then you need to cut off all the branches from the bush, because sea buckthorn is literally strewn with fruits during the harvest period. But this absolutely cannot be done, otherwise the plant will die. And finally, at home you still have to cut the berries one by one, and this takes no less time than when picking “live”.

Secrets of harvesting

How to collect sea buckthorn? As a rule, each gardener has his own technique. Some use an enamel basin, hanging it for convenience on the neck at the optimal height for pouring fruits collected by hand. Others make a regular slingshot with a string of fishing line or wire. The branch is held with the left hand, and the homemade device for collecting sea buckthorn is held in the right. With the help of a tightly stretched string, the fruits seem to be combed off. And as a result, juicy sea buckthorn is poured into a specially prepared and suspended tray. Gardeners will learn when to harvest in order to prepare food for the winter using the calendar. But how to do this - no specialist can give an exact recommendation on this. How to collect sea buckthorn, the devices used for this - each person has his own rules and methods.

But one thing is absolutely certain: the harvested crop must be urgently processed so as not to lose precious juice. Therefore, most often sea buckthorn is not even washed. And if the bush in the garden plot is very dusty, then you can thoroughly wash it with water from a hose and let it dry during the day. And the next day you can start harvesting.

Folk tricks

There are plenty of homemade devices for collecting sea buckthorn. All of them are aimed at making the harvesting process easier, and most importantly, making it quick. In addition to combs used for “combing” onto a tray, bag or even umbrella placed underneath, knives are also used. But the most popular folk tale is considered to be “cobra”. To make it you need a piece of wood for the handle and thin steel wire. The latter needs to be bent and made into a loop. And then use an awl to attach it to the handle, threading it through the holes made in the wood. The top of the loop should be curved so that it resembles the tip of a burning candle. And from the side it should look like a snake. This “cobra” perfectly “attacks” sea buckthorn, conveniently cutting off the stalks and extracting fruits located in inaccessible places.

The second most popular device that helps with such a complex process is the “tube” - another invention of folk craftsmen. For it, you need to cut a blank from any tin can, make a tube out of it, one hundred millimeters long and with a diameter slightly larger than the berries themselves that this device will collect. The tube must be wrapped with electrical tape, just short of its edges, and secured in a plastic bag. And then the fun begins. A tin tube with a plastic bag attached to it is brought with its upper edge to the stalk and lightly presses on it. And a miracle: the berry itself smoothly rolls into cellophane.

Juice collection

Those who don’t want to bother making various devices or don’t want to pick berries because they only use sea buckthorn juice can resort to a very old method. But you need to remember that sea buckthorn juice is harmful to the skin of your hands, so having clean cotton or culinary gloves is simply necessary. Place a convenient container under the branch with the fruits, then with clean hands you need to slowly move it down from the base of the branch, squeezing the fruits so that the juice flows out of them. In an hour, you can thus collect up to four liters of healthy sea buckthorn juice, which is a real pharmacy in your garden plot.

A small thorny bush with orange or yellow berries has long attracted attention. The ancient Greeks, for example, used it for medicinal purposes because they knew how to harvest sea buckthorn when it was ripe. The berries were given to warriors and athletes to keep them strong. And the horses that grazed next to the bushes acquired shiny manes and coats. It's no surprise that Greece has long been a world power.

Currently, sea buckthorn is considered one of the most useful products. It is widely used in medicine, cosmetics and cooking. The berries contain a huge number of vitamins, minerals and active substances that affect the body's protective functions. But when the harvest ripens, many are interested in how to collect sea buckthorn so as not to get hurt. After all, the berries are very small, and the branches have thorns. Because of this problem, the desire to “make friends” with the bush disappears, and the fruits remain on it for the winter. Is there any way to resolve this issue painlessly? Practice shows that yes.

Don't lose a single berry

Harvesting sea buckthorn fruits should begin immediately after the first frost. If you wait a little, they will become softer, and when picked, they will be crushed in your hands. Ripe berries should have a rich orange color and fit tightly to each other on the branch.

In the middle regions of Russia, sea buckthorn begins to ripen in early September, so the harvest period is determined by the climatic conditions of the area.

Before picking sea buckthorn, it is advisable to know for what purpose the berry is needed. If you are just eating, for or making jam, then it is better to get down to business at the very beginning of ripening. To make marmalade or squeeze out butter, it is wise to wait until the berries gain moisture and become juicier. The optimal period is mid-autumn.

Once the goal is set, it's time to get down to business. A practical guide from the video will help with this: how to quickly collect sea buckthorn without wasting precious time.

Armed with knowledge, you can safely go for the healing berry, following a few simple rules:

we begin to collect fruits from the upper branches, gradually moving down;
in order not to get dirty with the juice of bursting berries, we wear old clothes;
reliable protection against thorns - durable gloves;
We prepare simple devices for collecting sea buckthorn.

As practice shows, such principles help to harvest high-quality thorny bushes without losing a single ripe berry.

When ripe berries are picked, they burst and juice flows out. Due to the large amount of acid, it irritates the skin. In view of this, it is imperative to protect your hands, face and eyes from direct contact with the amber liquid.

A smart approach to harvesting healthy fruits

Since sea buckthorn is very beneficial for health, many summer residents use various devices to collect it. Traditionally this is done very simply. Cellophane or a piece of thick fabric is spread under the bush. Then, with a strong stick they hit the branches and trunk of the plant, after which the ripe berries fall down. When the bush is empty, the harvest is poured into containers or wooden boxes. You can build such a simple device as in the photo shown.

Some berry connoisseurs are thinking about how to quickly collect sea buckthorn without tools without damaging the fruit. Of course, this can only be done manually, directly from the bush. Each berry must be carefully separated from the branch and stalk, lowered into a prepared container. For convenience and speed of harvesting, the dishes are hung around your neck. Although it may seem like a very time-consuming process, skilled hands can easily cope with the task.

Opinions often differ on how to properly collect sea buckthorn. Therefore, everyone decides for themselves which method to use.

There are several options for homemade devices for harvesting healing berries:

A loop.
Scraper.
Scissors.
Tin tube.

Experienced summer residents know firsthand how to collect sea buckthorn from branches using a homemade loop. Sometimes it is called “cobra”. To make such a device you will need a wooden beam for the handle and thin steel wire. First, a loop is made from wire, resembling the head of a cobra with an open hood. Using an awl, it is attached to a prepared wooden handle. With the ready-made device, you can quickly collect fruits from bushes even in hard-to-reach places. To avoid pricking your hands, the loop is attached to the edge of the branch. After this, all the fruits are cut off with a sharp movement.

Before using the “cobra”, you need to place a wide container under the bush for falling berries.

Another device for collecting sea buckthorn is a scraper. It is made from aluminum wire, 50 cm long. A curl is bent in the center of the segment, like a spring.
It can be obtained by attaching a wire to the neck of a glass bottle in one turn. The ends of the device are aligned and bent to one side by 90 degrees. Using a ready-made device, clamp the branch into a curl and remove the berries, moving it down.

When using a scraper to collect sea buckthorn, the berries are often crushed, resulting in the loss of precious liquid.

If you don’t want to bother with how to pick sea buckthorn berries using tools, you can take scissors, a blade or a special mitten.
Using these items, it is easy to remove ripe fruits from branches that have been previously cut from the bush. This method is convenient to use on a summer cottage in the yard or in the house. Carefully cut berries with scissors are sprinkled with sugar or made into jam. Needless to say, it turns out to be a very tasty dish for the winter.

A tin tube is an equally effective way to collect sea buckthorn from a tree. It can be made from a tin plate 10 cm long. The diameter should exceed the size of the berries of the bush. One end of the tube is attached to a plastic bag. When the device is brought to the fruits on the tree and lightly pressed on the stalk, they are smoothly downloaded into the bag. Simple technology allows you to collect a lot of berries in one visit. It all depends on your mood, finger dexterity and speed of movement. Sometimes orange berries are collected using ordinary tongs.

Of course, picking sea buckthorn berries is not an easy task. After all, the bush reliably protects them with thick thorny branches from uninvited guests. And the fruits themselves hold tightly to the shoots. The delicate skin of the berries, which collapses when pressed, also complicates matters. Due to such factors, summer residents cut off sea buckthorn along with its shoots with large scissors or pruners.
They bring them home and then remove them from the branches. This option is acceptable if the plant is located far from the holiday village. But it’s worth the effort, because sea buckthorn is a real storehouse of beneficial vitamins for the body.