By Heidi Rader, Professor of Extension at the University of Alaska Fairbanks
Honeyberries or haskaps are a unique berry. Not only that, honeyberries have a huge range in shape, size, productivity, taste, timing and evenness in how they ripen, as well as in how easy they come off the bush. The taste of honeyberries is often compared to other berries. I think the taste is unique, and you should try it to make your own comparisons with other berries.
I have written several articles on berries, and they are roughly in order of my personal preference: first, on cultivating wild blueberries, next strawberries, then raspberries, and then currants. So now I’m tackling honeyberries or haskaps so they are my fifth favorite berry. They would be 6th if you include cloudberries. I’m not going to write about cloudberries since they are generally not cultivated, although there may be ways to protect and promote their growth in the wild.
Some berries require full sun, a narrow pH range, and well-drained soils. Honeyberries on the other hand tolerate partial shade, wet soils, and a wide pH range. Their pruning requirements are more manageable than other types of berries, and they won’t take over your backyard with thorny bushes like raspberries tend to do. What’s not to like about a berry that is easy to grow, cold hardy, highly productive, and ripens earlier than most berries?
History of Honeyberry
Lonicera caerulea (Honeyberry, Haskap, Blue Honeysuckle) was originally cultivated in Japan and Russia. Later, researchers at Oregon State University and the University of Saskatchewan bred many new varieties.
Choosing a variety
Close to 20 varieties of Honeyberries have been planted at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) Georgeson Botanical Garden over the years, and there is quite a patch now that has started to grow together. Of these varieties, Borealis and Blue Belle are the only ones that I think are still widely available. Borealis was touted as the best tasting variety in the University of Saskatchewan Fruit Program in 2007, but Boreal Blizzard may have surpassed it. In 2021, the Boreal Series, (Boreal Beauty, Boreal Blizzard, and Honey Bee (Pollinator for Borealis, Tundra, and Indigo series)) developed at the University of Saskatchewan in 2017 were planted at the Georgeson Botanical Garden at UAF. Boreal Beauty matures about a month later than other honeyberries and Boreal Blizzard has large, very tasty berries. The plants all seem to be thriving at the Georgeson Botanical Garden at UAF according to manager Lacey Higham. The Alaska Berry Farm has bred a number of haskap varieties that thrive in Alaska–they say they are somewhat similar to each other. Utah State University Extension recommends Tundra, Boreails, Indigo Gem, Blue Lightning and Kamchatka.
Pollination
Along with choosing varieties for taste or other characteristics, you need to choose at least two varieties that will pollinate each other. For haskaps to set fruit, each variety must be pollinated by a variety that is compatible and that bloom at the same time. This chart delineates which varieties are compatible for cross pollination. It was created by Dr. Bob Bors who was haskap researcher and breeder extraordinaire at the University of Saskatchewan. A so-called pollinator plant is one that is usually not as tasty as the primary variety you are growing. One Green World has 28 honeyberry varieties. Descriptions include timing of maturity and which varieties are compatible pollinizers.
Planting and Growing
If a pollinator plant is less desirable, you can plant as few as you can in as few as a 1:24 ratio (see this diagram for how you would lay it out). However, if the pollinator variety is as desirable as the other variety, you can simply plant them in alternating rows. To maintain individual plants, plant 4 to 4.5 feet apart with rows 8 to 10 feet apart. For a hedge, plant 3 feet apart. Haskaps tolerate a wider range of soil acidity or pH than many other types of berries—up to nearly 8. Also, unlike many berries, they thrive in wetter soils. Ideally, the pH would be between 5-7 and somewhat well-drained soil. Soil should be fertilized before planting as well as each spring. Newly established plants need to be regularly watered but established plants can be watered less. Weeding is also important for establishment.
Pruning
After plants are about three-years-old, dead or damaged branches should be pruned as well as up to about 25% of the older branches. This will help maintain adequate air flow and productivity of the plants.
Pests
Birds will eat the honeyberries before they’re even ripe, so you’ll need to cover the berries with netting with a mesh smaller than half an inch. You can float the netting over the berries or put it over poles so that you can harvest the berries easily with the netting on. You can view the bird netting and layout that is used at the Alaska Berry Farm here: https://youtu.be/DvMBfoGOU40 Some varieties hide their berries from the birds a little better than others. Powdery mildew may be an issue as well.
Harvest
Honeyberry flowers are just about the first flowers to emerge in the spring and are frost and cold hardy. Bumblebees or honeybees may pollinate these early flowers. Honeyberries may appear to be ripe before they are truly ripe but won’t taste as good as ripe berries and will still be a little green inside. You’ll want to wait 5 to 10 days from when they are first blue on the outside to be fully ripe on the inside. Before you harvest en masse, taste a few—don’t we always do this anyways? There is a range depending on the variety of earliness to ripen, even ripening, and how quickly they ripen. Some varieties hold onto their berries better while others tend to drop them sooner. According to the University of Saskatchewan, mature haskap plants can produce 5 to 10 pounds of fruit each year (or more!).
If you don’t have space or don’t want to grow your own haskaps, find a local U-pick near you: https://marketspread.com/alaskagrown/ or https://thealaskafrontier.com/berry-picking-in-alaska/.
Eating
I haven’t personally tried many honeyberry recipes but these look good to me, particularly the Haskap Meringue Pie. I am always looking for a non-lemon/lime meringue pie so this fits the bill. They also might make delicious sub for these apricot pistachio bars. Or try them in a scone or muffin substituting the berry you would normally use.
Questions about gardening or the Tribes Extension Program? Visit www.uaf.edu/ces/tribes Contact Heidi at hbrader@alaska.edu or (907) 474-6620. For more articles like this, go to: https://itgrowsinalaska.community.uaf.edu/
Heidi Rader is professor of Extension in partnership with Tanana Chiefs Conference. This work is supported by the Federally Recognized Tribes Extension Program Project 2022-41580-37957. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
UA is an AA/EO employer and educational institution and prohibits illegal discrimination against any individual: www.alaska.edu/nondiscrimination.