Grilli's Acre was born out of a love affair with brambleberries that started in 1981 when the farmer's wife was living in Oregon. When the farmer married her in 2002, he had been wondering what to do with some property he owned across the road. "Why don't we plant berries?" she asked, to which he replied, "You know, that's not a bad idea." So on a very cold, windy day in January of 2003, the farmer and his wife planted their first row of Olallieberries, and the rest, as they say, is a berry long story.
The farmer is a lifelong resident of Ukiah, retiring from Georgia-Pacific in 2001, and the farmer's wife was born in Southern California and retired from Verizon Communications in 2002.
They are busier now that they don't have jobs.
About Us
About the Berries
In the late 1920s, George Darrow of the USDA began tracking down reports of a large, reddish-purple berry that had been grown by a man named Rudolf Boysen. He enlisted the help of Walter Knott, a Southern California farmer known as something of a berry expert. Knott hadn't heard of the new berry, but agreed to help Darrow in his search.
The pair soon learned that Rudolf Boysen had abandoned his growing experiments several years earlier and sold his farm. Undaunted by this news, Darrow and Knott headed out to Boysen's old farm, where they found several frail vines surviving in a field choked with weeds. They transplanted the vines to Knott's farm where he nurtured them back to fruit-bearing health. Walter Knott began selling the berries at his farm stand in 1935 and soon noticed that people kept returning to buy the large tasty berries. When asked what they were called, Knott said, "Boysenberries." As their popularity grew, Mrs. Knott began making preserves that ultimately made Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California world famous.
Health Benefits
* High in Vitamin C and fiber, both of which have been
shown to help reduce the risks of certain cancers.
* Contain high levels of anthocyanins, which work as
antioxidants to help fight free radical damage in the
body, and give Boysenberries their deep, dark color.
* Antioxidant levels of food can be measured as ORAC
(Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity). The ORAC
value of Boysenberries is 42 μmoles/TE/g almost
double that of blueberries, a well-known antioxidant.
* Contain ellagic acid, a compound known to fight cancer,
viruses and bacteria.
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Olallieberries are large, shiny, juicy berries in the bramble family. They are most commonly compared to blackberries, and they are closely related to blackberries. However, they have a more intense, tart flavor, and a very brief growing season. Olallieberries are most widely cultivated along the West Coast of the United States, specifically in California, and are a coveted treat while fresh. They can also be found frozen and in the form of preserves such as jams and jellies. In some areas, olallieberries are also used to make distinctive berry wines.
In 1935, an employee of the United States Department of Agriculture crossed a loganberry and a youngberry, producing a varietal which was named “Oregon 609.” When the berry was released to the general market, it was renamed an Olallie, a Chinook word for “berry.” It proved to be very successful in cultivation in California, and the state quickly dominated the olallieberry market. Alternate spellings for the berries include olallaberry, olalliberry, and ollalaberry.
The parents of the olallieberry both owe a great deal of their genetic material to the blackberry. Loganberries were bred by crossing blackberries with red raspberries, while youngberries are a cross of blackberries and dewberries, smaller wild relatives. The genetic material in an olallieberry is approximately two thirds blackberry and one third red raspberry. While the berries superficially resemble blackberries, they grow on canes or vines which are much less thorny than blackberries. They also retain the sweet core of flavor common to raspberries.
Without a doubt, the olallie is the 'celebrity' of Grilli's Acre.
Health Benefits
* High in Vitamin C and fiber, both shown to help
reduce the risks of certain cancers.
* Contains high levels of anthocyanins (83-326 mg/
100g) Anthocyanins work as antioxidants to help
fight free radical damage in the body and give
berries their deep, dark color.
* Antioxidant level of foods can be measured as
ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity). The
ORAC value of Evergreen blackberries is 28
μmoles/TE/g, slightly higher than blueberries.
Red raspberries are known for their radiant red color and powerfully good flavor. Raspberries are distinguished from the blackberry and other dewberries in the same genus in that the fruit separates from the receptacle producing a hollow core. The fruit is medium to bright red depending on the variety, medium-sized (3.0 g) and moderately tart with small seeds. Red raspberries are well-suited for commercial or home freezing, as well as jams and jellies, with a small percentage of the crop destined for fresh markets locally and worldwide.
Health Benefits
* Contain high amount of polyphenolic compounds
known for their anticancer properties.
* Contain strong antioxidants that fight against
cancer, heart and circulatory disease and age-
related mental decline.
* Have high ORAC levels – ORAC measures the
antioxidant levels of a substance. Red Raspberry
ORAC levels at 24 μmole/TE/g, equal to
blueberries which are known for their high
antioxidant levels.
* Shown to have anti-inflammatory benefits, resulting
in the reduction of pain associated with arthritis,
gout and other inflammatory conditions.
* Seed oil is creating interest in the cosmeceutical
(skin care products which provide health benefits)
market. Oil from raspberry seeds is rich in Vitamin
E, omega-3 fatty acids and has a sun protection
factor (SPF) of 25-50.
* Red raspberry ketones are currently being used in
Japan as a weight loss supplement in a pill form
and as an external patch.
Large, sweet, aromatic thornless blackberries called "Triple Crown" will run away from the competition in the next few years. Triple Crown is the newest thornless blackberry from the Agricultural Research Service's Fruit Laboratory in Bellsville, MD. The berry is named for its three crowning attributes; flavor, productivity and vigor. The plants yield large, glossy black berries, larger than other commercially grown varieties and have a constant supply of big, flavorful thornless blackberries throughout the ripening season. Triple Crown is a good choice to help extend the blackberry season for home gardeners.
Health Benefits
* High in Vitamin C and fiber, both shown to help
reduce the risks of certain cancers.
* Contains high levels of anthocyanins (83-326 mg/
100g) Anthocyanins work as antioxidants to help
fight free radical damage in the body and give
berries their deep, dark color.
* Antioxidant level of foods can be measured as
ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity). The
ORAC value of Evergreen blackberries is 28
μmoles/TE/g, slightly higher than blueberries.
