I’m surprised that I still have honeyberries on my Blue Moon bushes in August. This is a later blooming variety and I have Blue Sea that blooms at the same time for pollination.
I also have early blooming varieties including the Indigo series (Gem, Treat, Yum), Blue Forest, Blue Velvet, Borealis, Honeybee, Tundra and Berry Blue.
It's amazing to me that cross pollination is needed for honeyberries in places other than inside the city limits of Fairbanks Alaska. I travel the northern routes very well and also talk to Canadian friends. What goes on inside the city limits of Edmonton is not the same thing that goes on inside Fairbanks in regards to selfing of honeyberries (or selfing of pin cherries).
One of the early blooming species 'blue sky' carried fruit by itself for me in Fairbanks and I doubt it would have here at home. I think it might be parallel to the duration of the climate season and the avoiding of too much stress from early frost outside of the city. Pure speculation, but blue sky It served the queen bumblebee population very well due to the first flowers available to them.
What is the consensus on honeyberries? Are they worthwhile to grow? I've been on the fence - the positives are that they produce early and are disease and pest resistant; the negative seems to be that the flavor isn't stellar. I asked a One Green World employee about them a couple of years ago, and he dissuaded me from buying any (not a difficult task at the time).
If they are worthwhile to grow, what varieties are best for the Pacific Northwest?
GH, what I was told was that honeyberries (of Russian origin) are not very productive here, but that haskaps (of Japanese origin) would be. There are haskap bushes in my yard. They are early, productive, and pest/disease resistant. They require being watered regularly - after the harvest, during the dry months. Now to the question of whether they are worth the yard space and effort - if you wish to bake pies and make jams, your products will have more complex, interesting, intense flavors than blueberries. If you wish to eat them, they do taste good, but they have more acid than most berries.
Yes, they are very very closely related. This https://eco-sense.ca/2014/05/2.....ifference/ explains. I don't know enough botany to say how well it is captured, but it agrees with my recollection of what Maxine Thompson told me.
o Lonicera caerulea var. edulis – Russian (Early)
o Lonicera caerulea var. emphyllocalyx – Japan (Late)
o Lonicera caerulea var. kamtschatica – Japan (Late)
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