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Orders can be picked up or sent nationwide in New Zealand. Orders can be paid for by credit card for pick up, or for orders being shipped, you can complete the order and the invoice for payment will be sent after the freight cost has been calculated. After receiving the invoice with the freight cost, you can decide if you wish to go ahead with the order, or cancel it. Once payment has been received, we will send your order. We send plant orders Monday and Tuesday nationwide, and on Wednesday to urban North Island addresses. Non-perishable items are sent Monday to Friday.
The easiest way to obtain a quote is to place an order through the online shopping cart - this does not require payment. To find out more about getting quote, vIew our FAQs .
The Japanese Raisin Tree (Hovenia dulcis) is an excellent specimen tree or ideal shade tree that will add interest to any garden. It is a quick-growing deciduous tree with an upright open growth habit, with spreading to drooping branches.
The edible ‘raisins’ are not a fruit but a swollen flower stalk. Once the flower has been pollinated, the seed and stalk develop. The flower stalk swells and becomes fleshy and lumpy, reddish brown in colour. The seed pod is round and small but inedible. In autumn, the ‘fruit’ will drop from the tree when ripe, or they can be hand-picked. The swollen stalks can be eaten fresh or added to dishes where you use dried fruit. Can be stored (up to 2 months), where the flavour will improve. Gather the freshly dropped bunches in a paper bag and store them in the hot-water cupboard.
Known to be free of any significant pests and diseases. No pruning is required; the lower branches will drop as the tree grows. When grown in full sun, a very cold, hardy (deciduous) tree will induce flowering and increase the sweetness of the raisin. Avoid salty winds. The raisin tree grows in many soil types other than waterlogged soils.
A fully grown tree will reach a height of approximately 10 m.