Lonicera Species, Honeyberry, Haskap

The flavor of the well-ripened fruit has been compared with raspberries and blueberries.

The wild species is highly variab...Read Morele, and many seedling plants produce bitter fruits. If you want edible fruit, cultivars have been bred with superior flavor. Most state USDA extension services will have advice about locally suitable cultivars. The University of Saskatchewan has a breeding program and much excellent information about growing this fruit: http://www.fruit.usask.ca/haskap.html

This species is not self-fertile and needs at least two different compatible cultivars in order to set fruit.

Grows and fruits well in Z1--Z4. In Z5-6, you may be best off with Japanese cultivars, as Russian material will break dormancy during winter thaws. The southern limits of this species have not been well explored, but for good fruiting, cool summers are necessary. In the wild, this species has a circumboreal distribution, growing in bogs in boreal forests and occurring further south in the mountains.

Fruit turns blue several weeks before it's fully ripe--the interior of fully ripened fruit is deep purple-red. Unripe fruit is bitter. Fruits will be harvested by the birds unless covered with netting.

Also called haskap, honeyberry or sweetberry honeysuckle.

According to the USDA Plants database, the range of this species does not extend to Texas, though the fact that they report plants on the west coast casts doubt on all their identifications: http://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=LOCA6 BONAP, which is usually more accurate and complete than the USDA database, reports no wild plants in the continental US. http://bonap.net/NAPA/TaxonMaps/Genus/County/Lonicera

L. c. var. edulis is native to Europe and not N. America.

"Haskap" is the Japanese word for the variety that's native to Japan (L. c. var. emphyllocalyx). Some argue that it should be reserved for L. c. var emphyllocalyx, but the Canadian hybridizers use it for their hybrids.

Rating neutral as not at all familiar with this plant. I noticed several shrubs of it in east tx, z8a, and got it identified on this website.

I planted two honeyberry plants this March. They are doing quite well. Won't get any berries this year but they seem to be thriving. The ...Read Morenursery said they would do well in partial shade.
Hope to have berries next year.

A number of selections from Russia are now being grown on the prairies of Canada. I have started from seed sent to me by a friend in Japa...Read Moren (this may be L. kamchatika) and had very good germination (100% on the first setting) after 4 - 5 months in the refrigerator. Planted the seedlings in a 4 ft. x 4 ft. grid and am looking forward to spring. I also have some plants from the University of Saskatchewan's collection of Russian varieties.

I am looking for seed from plants with good quality fruit for a private collection which I am starting.