Fruit: Native Fruits

Few fruits of commercial importance, including blueberries, cranberries, strawberries, and cactus pears, are indigenous to the United States. Before the arrival of European settlers, Native Americans commonly gathered raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries that grew wild in openings in the forest. They also ate many species of wild grapes, blueberries, cranberries, native persimmons, and mulberries. Native species of plums, typically smaller and more astringent than cultivated imported species, as well as crabapples and choke cherries, grew from coast to coast. Native Americans mostly gathered berries and small fruits that grew wild but did plant tree fruits around their villages. They ate fruits fresh and cooked, and added them to pemmican, which otherwise consisted of dried meat and melted fat. The Spanish brought peaches and watermelons to Mexico and Florida, and well before Jamestown was settled, Native Americans commonly planted these fruits.