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aliciahere_zone3a

Haskap

aliciahere_zone3a
12 years ago

Hello! I found some older threads on Haskap, but nothing recent. I am looking to plant two Haskap plants in my yard. Any varieties that you would recommend? I know you need two different ones to pollinate. Any other experiences, I've heard a lot of people have had success with them.

Comments (8)

  • Konrad___far_north
    12 years ago

    Not sure....have you checked on Honeyberries? There are a bunch of names in the link

    Here is a link that might be useful: Honeyberries falling off?

  • don555
    12 years ago

    I'm growing "Blue Belle" and "Borealis", which are two of the more recent introductions and supposedly good pollinators for each other and sweeter than the older varieties. I've only had them in two years and they aren't in the greatest spot, but so far I'm not impressed. They have fruited in both of the past two years, but lightly, but they are still very young so that's okay. My main complaint is that I find the fruit too sour. I know another person growing them who claims the fruit sweetens if left on the plants for several weeks after they first turn blue, so I tried that this year but they still taste too sour for me. To be fair, I hate sourness in fruit. But I was expecting haksaps to be sweeter. To me they taste like a very sour blueberry. Maybe I'd like them more if I added sugar and used them to make pie or juice, but I don't have nearly enough berries for that yet.

  • haskapguy
    12 years ago

    I manage a 10 acre haskap orchard. Sorry to inform don555 but Blue Belle is the female parent of Borealis, so is not that compatible with Borealis in terms of cross-pollinizing, Berry Blue or Berry Smart Blue or one of the other Russian varieties will all work better. The older Russian varieties typically have a more tart taste and can have a bit of a bitter afternote. The sugar level of ripe haskap is actually very similar to blueberry but some of the other flavenoids... the ones that give haskap fruit higher levels of antioxidants than blueberries, also give it a tart flavour. The acididity is also higher,which ehlps give it a 'zing' in your mouth, but is very good when making preserves, juice etc as it is very stable. (the addition of lemon juice or other acidic stabilizer is typically not required)
    The best fruit flavours will be found on the most recent releases from the U of S, they are Borealis, Tundra, Indigo Gem, Indigo Yum and Indigo Treat. These 5 do not cross pollinate each other well. The recently released Honeybee is purported to be a good cross pollinator with the other 5 and has better fruit than Berry Blue etc, but has a habit of stem retention. Our most productive and easiest to harvest plants are the Indigo Gem, and so far are the favorite for fresh eating. Our orchard experienced a neighbor induced setback (spraydrift)so is a bit behind but based on a partners smaller orchard expect plant yields in excess of 5lbs/plant We are in Central Saskatchewan Our orchard website (for some reason I can't get the form to accept it) is www.northernlightorchards.com

  • Konrad___far_north
    12 years ago

    >>Sorry to inform don555 but Blue Belle is the female parent of BorealisSo, are you saying the female Blue Belle is not producing, only the Borealis?

  • don555
    12 years ago

    Thanks for all the info. on haskaps! I guess I'd have to think about whether I really want to get another bush to be a better pollinator for my 2 existing bushes, as I don't much care for the berries. And Konrad, both of my bushes are fruiting poorly but they are young and one of them (not sure which variety) isn't putting out many blossoms yet (and the ones they are putting out aren't doing a very good job at pollinating the other plant).

  • aliciahere_zone3a
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Oh, thank you so much for all of this information. Haskapguy - the information you have provided is great. I will try to obtain an Indigo Gem and a Honeybee. Now, if only there were more suppliers....

  • Konrad___far_north
    12 years ago

    Agree with Don, fruits are sour.

    Check out link below.
    The Borealis is the best tasting culivar, you might need a honeybee for good pollination.

    Indigo Gem (9-15)
    The fruit of this cultivar are small (1.29 g) and have a chewy texture, possibly indicating a more durable fruit. Indigo Gem is a productive cultivar that is good for processing.

    Borealis has the largest (1.62 g) and best tasting fruit, and is best for U-picks and home gardens. Fruit bruise easily when mechanically harvested so this cultivar should not be used for processing. This is the best haskap for fresh eating.
    ..


    I have berry blue and blue belle and both have lots of berries.

    {{gwi:732477}}

    Here is a link that might be useful: Haskaps

  • ebhoneysuckle
    12 years ago

    For lots of info,

    Here is a link that might be useful: Edible Blue Honeysuckle Gardeners

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