More Northern Forest Berries

We went out to Freeman island on Lac La Ronge this past weekend, where I found yet another berry. This one was edible too! I believe this is the wild black currant (Ribes americanum). It has prickly stems, tasty black berries with red juice, no foul smell, and is about three feet (90 cm) tall. It was growing in a sunny area, with slight cover from evergreen trees. It was also in a very convenient spot right up next to our cabin (how's that for a great plant quality?).
Wild black currant:

Foliage of the wild black currant:

Right next to the wild black currants were some wild raspberries (Rubus idaeus var. strigosus). I think the good berries had already been eaten by the hungry bipeds (of the human variety).
Wild raspberries:

Altogether, I counted eight berries at the cabin site, the first five being edible: (1) Wild raspberry, (2) Wild black currant, (3) Saskatoon berries, (4) Lingonberries, (5) Wild blueberries, (6) Northern comandra, (7) Bunchberries, and (8) Bearberries. If we looked harder, we might have even found some highbush cranberries too. As far as I know, none of the non-edible berries on that list are particularly toxic or dangerous in small quantities. (Also, the non-edible ones don't taste very good.) There were several mushrooms growing out there too, but I'm not even going to begin to try to identify (or eat) those. That's a hobby too reckless for my tastes.

I posted pictures of the other northern berries last year:
http://zoneonegarden.blogspot.com/2008/09/northern-saskatchewan-wild-berries-and.html
Kona, the husky-malamute, enjoying life on the island:

She's usually not particularly fond of water but spent a fair bit of time wading in the water up to her knees this weekend. I didn't notice her eating any berries, but she did eat grass (and her dogfood). This is the first time we have ever let her run off-leash and she stayed close to us and the cabin the whole time. She was more than happy to escort us on trips to the outhouse. I think the dog may enjoy life at the cabin more than I do!

My Northern Climate Ice Plants

Ice plants sound like something that should grow in our northern short-season garden, don't they? Actually, most of these plants are succulents associated with hot areas, yet I've had success with a few of them. The "ice" refers to the glistening appearance of salt crystals secreted by the leaves of these plants of largely African origin.
My alpine garden, with ice plant at center:

I have three types of iceplants, though the common name doesn't really distinguish between the great diversity of "ice plants". This year, I grew several Mesembryanthemum criniflorum from seed (bought from Thompson & Morgan). This was a bit difficult to do on my light shelf, because the plants are sprawling and limp and tend to rot if the foliage gets wet (when the plant sprawls into the drip-tray I keep under my pots). Outdoors though, they have a more upright and robust appearance.

These plants are naturalized along the California coast, and I have fond memories of running around barefoot on these when I was a kid. We loved the sensation; it was something like walking on tiny pickles. This plant won't survive the winter here, however. I wonder if I can keep some cuttings indoors though?
First flower of Mesembryanthemum- a bit deformed and squarish:

I was inspired to try these annual flowers after rooting some cuttings of an "ice plant" in Arizona last winter. I think one of the plants I saw in Arizona was actually Malephora crocea, the "Copper Ice Plant". It was very easy to root from cuttings and had beautiful flowers that opened when the sun was shining. My legacy in my parent's Arizona yard will be an expanse of ice plants, though I hear the rabbits are good at keeping them under control.

The two other (and perennial) plants are Delosperma nubigenum and Delosperma deleeuwiae. At first I was impressed with the dense mat of yellow flowers that D. nubigenum makes in June and July, though I'm even more happy with D. deleevwiae, because it spreads its purple blooms over the entire summer. Both have nice pebble-like succulent foliage that spreads to form a dense, shiny mat that looks good all year round.
Delosperma nubigeum in July of this year:

Delosperma deleeuwiae in late August:

I got the D. deleeuwiae from Wrightman's alpines, if you're looking to get one for yourself. D. nubigenum sails through our winters without any problems (its foliage just turns reddish), so I imagine that D. deleeuwiae might do the same.

More Tree Pests - Need Help

Having had success in identifying pests through the blog in the past, I am requesting help yet again. My neighbours alerted me to the problem of the willow trees in our area. The leaves are turning brown and show areas of skeletonization and holes eaten through them.
Browning of leaves on willow tree in La Ronge:

There are tiny black insects under many leaves (not even 1 mm long) as well as what looks like tiny black flecks of excrement.
Tiny black insects on willow leaves (click to see closer view):

Today, I spotted a yellow-headed larva (or caterpillar, but I suspect a larva) with a green body crawling along one of the leaves. Between Google and me, I think this may be a sawfly larva.
Larva vs. caterpillar on willow tree:



Also, there are many 5-7 mm web-like silken cocoons on the upper surfaces of the leaves. Many contain what looks like a black grain of rice. I assume something must have matured in these little cocoons and already moved on, since I don't find anything alive and moving inside of them. An Australian website describing their own problem with a willow sawfly shows a picture with a similar-looking cocoon.
Cocoons of willow tree pest:

There are several winged insects flying about the tree, but I'm not sure which is pest or friend. Besides, I'm better at photographing the slow-moving critters.

In a likely-unrelated matter, the tart cherry trees didn't produce any fruit this year. They did have blossoms in spring followed by green fruit, but then the fruit just seemed to disappear off all four trees. I have no idea what happened. There doesn't appear to be any disease plaguing the trees. In previous years, we had pear slugs (which are also sawflies), but those never showed up this year.
Tart cherry "Carmine Jewel" with no fruit: