Picking your own cloudberries straight from the garden sounds like a dream to many berry lovers. Cloudberries are often called the gold of the forest for their golden fruit and their unique, aromatic flavour. Although they mostly grow wild on northern bogs, you can in fact grow cloudberries yourself with a little patience and the right conditions.
Where do cloudberries grow?
In the wild, cloudberries grow on sunny, damp bogs, mires and fens. They are close relatives of the raspberry, but the plant is much lower, only about 10-25 cm tall, and spreads by a creeping rootstock. The cloudberry is a perennial herb with round, slightly crinkled leaves that look like miniature water lily leaves. In early summer, usually at the end of May, it flowers with white, five petalled flowers close to the ground.
One important thing to know is that cloudberries have separate female and male plants, which makes them dioecious. A wild stand can therefore consist mostly of male or mostly of female plants, so you can find cloudberry plants without seeing any berries. Frost also affects fruit set. If the early flowers are damaged by a late spring frost, there can be fewer berries that year. The plant needs time to recover after a heavy crop as well, and a year with masses of cloudberries is often followed by a leaner one. A little luck and patience are needed even in the wild.
When are the berries ripe?
Cloudberries ripen in July and August depending on the local climate. Unripe cloudberries are hard, red and sharp tasting. As they ripen the colour turns a warm orange yellow and the berries become soft and juicy. They are first enclosed by green sepals that open up as the berries ripen. Fully ripe cloudberries come away easily from the plant when you pick them, which is a good way to tell that they are ready. It pays to be patient and let the berries finish ripening on the plant, because they do not ripen well once picked. When the cloudberries are golden yellow, soft and almost translucent, it is time to harvest.
Can you grow cloudberries in the garden?
Yes, it is possible to grow cloudberries in the garden if you can imitate their natural setting. The key is to build an acid bed that resembles a damp mire, with a sour, peaty base and even moisture. Cloudberries want a low pH, around 4-5, and continuous moisture, but the roots must not sit in pooled water. Here are some tips for success.
Build an acid bed or a growing box: Choose a sunny and sheltered spot in the garden. Dig a hole and lay a piece of pond liner in the bottom, preferably also up the sides, to hold the moisture, or use a large growing box or raised bed frame and line the inside with pond liner or plastic. This creates an artificial mire where the water stays in the soil longer.
Fill with suitable soil: Use rhododendron soil or another lime free acid mix rich in peat. You can also mix ordinary growing soil with plenty of unfertilised peat or sphagnum moss. The soil should be open and rich in organic matter but low in pH. Do not mix lime into the bed, because cloudberries do not thrive in chalky soil.
Plant cloudberry plants: Get your cloudberry plants from a reliable nursery. Remember that you normally need both male and female plants for the crop to set. Place the plants a few decimetres apart in the prepared acid bed. If you manage to find the self fertile variety Nyby, a Finnish bred variety, one variety is enough, because Nyby has both stamens and pistils on the same plant and can carry fruit on its own. Firm the soil lightly around the roots and water thoroughly after planting.
Care, water and feeding: Cloudberries need an even supply of water. Water regularly so the soil stays constantly moist, especially on warm summer days, but make sure it does not turn into standing water. One trick is to feel a few centimetres down with your finger. The soil should feel moist but not muddy. Feed very sparingly, because cloudberries have modest nutrient needs. A little well rotted manure or a special berry fertiliser in early spring is enough. Too much feeding, or the wrong type, can harm the plants, so be careful and avoid lime in any form.
Protect and overwinter the plants: Because cloudberry flowers are sensitive to frost, it is wise to cover the plants with fleece on cold spring nights once they start to flower. In autumn, when the plant begins to die back, you can put a layer of bark mulch or dry leaves over the bed. That helps insulate the roots against hard cold and keeps moisture through the winter. The cloudberry plant normally dies back completely above ground in winter, so do not worry if it seems to disappear. The red shoot bud at soil level overwinters and sends up new shoots the following spring.
Extra tips for success
Patience pays off: It can take a couple of years before the cloudberry plants are properly established and start to crop. In the first year much of the energy goes into the roots and into settling in.
Weed gently: Weeds compete for nutrients and moisture, so clear them out of the acid bed. Pull them up carefully by hand, since digging with tools can damage the shallow cloudberry roots.
Check the moisture in winter too: Even in winter and early spring the peat bed can dry out if there is little snow. Feel the bed during a mild spell and water lightly if the peat is too dry.
With the right care and a little luck your cloudberry plants will reward you. When harvest time arrives in the middle of summer you can enjoy the sight of the golden berries glowing against the green, moss like base. Imagine tasting your own home grown cloudberry jam, served with freshly made waffles or ice cream. Growing cloudberries does take patience and care, but the reward, the gold of the forest from your own garden, is worth the effort.
Author: Emma Vogiatzi
Fact-checked by Erik Hoekstra
Last updated 2025-11-27