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===History===
===History===
Originally cultivated as a food crop in Siberia, northern China and northern Japan, now also in Canada.  
Originally cultivated as a food crop in Siberia, northern China and northern Japan. Some cultivars have been developed at the University of Saskatchewan and the commercial growing of haskap is growing in Canada.<ref name=cockrallking2016>Cockrall-King, J (2016). [https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=527hCwAAQBAJ Food Artisans of the Okanagan: Your Guide to the Best Locally Crafted Fare.] TouchWood Editions. ISBN 9781771511537.</ref>


===Varieties===
===Varieties===
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Flowers yellow - white.<ref name=whitefield1996 />
Flowers yellow - white.<ref name=whitefield1996 />


Fruits 0.8-1.0cm long, dark blue.
Fruits 0.8-1.0cm long, dark blue. Thin skin.<ref name=cockrallking2016 />


===Growth Habit===
===Growth Habit===

Revision as of 15:28, 27 May 2019

Template:Italic title This article discusses cultivation, uses and preservation of Lonicera caerulea (Honeyberry / Haskap berry), a cool temperate climate shrub with edible fruit in the honeysuckle family. The plant may perform moderately well as part of the shrub layer in a temperate climate forest garden.

Background Information

Approximately 180 honeysuckle species are identified. They are arching shrubs or twining vines, some are fragrant and are grown as garden ornamentals. Most have mildly poisonous berries. Other edible honeysuckles include Lonicera augustifolia (Narrow-leaf Honeysuckle) and Lonicera villosa (Mountain Fly Honeysuckle).

Taxonomy

Family: Caprifoliaceae ("honeysuckle family")

Genus: Lonicera

Species: L. caerulea

Common names

  • Honeyberry
  • Sweetberry Honeysuckle
  • Haskap (haskappu, hascap, hascup)
  • Blue-berried Honeysuckle / Blue honeysuckle
  • Honeyberry Honeysuckle
  • Deepblue Honeysuckle
  • Bluefly honeysuckle
  • Edible honeysuckle
  • Swamp fly honeysuckle

Etymology

Lonicera after Renaissance botanist Adam Lonicer.W

Caerulea/caeruleus dissimilation of caeluleus, derived from caelum (“sky, heaven”) +‎ -uleus (diminutive suffix indicating small size or youth).

Haskap from Ainu language meaning "little present on the end of the branch".

History

Originally cultivated as a food crop in Siberia, northern China and northern Japan. Some cultivars have been developed at the University of Saskatchewan and the commercial growing of haskap is growing in Canada.[1]

Varieties

Characteristics

Range

Native to:

Albania, Amur, Austria, Baltic States, Belarus, Bulgaria, Buryatiya, Chita, Czechoslovakia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Kamchatka, Khabarovsk, Korea, Kuril Is., Magadan, North European Russi, Northwest European R, Primorye, Romania, Sakhalin, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, Yakutskiya, Yugoslavia

Introduced into:

Norway

[Source= Plants of the World Online][2]

Morphology

Mature height 1.2-1.5 m (5"), spread 1.5 m (5")[3][4]

Flowers yellow - white.[5]

Fruits 0.8-1.0cm long, dark blue. Thin skin.[1]

Growth Habit

Fast growing, deciduous shrub.[6] Not a climber, unlike the common ornamental honeysuckles.[5]

Reproduction

Self-sterile,[4] i.e. at least 2 cultivars needed for cross pollination and good cropping.[7]

Flowering from late winter[3] to spring (March-April in UK).[4] Flowers frost tolerant.[4]

Fruiting in summer (May), often the first berries to come into fruit.[7]

Requirements

Hardiness

Soil Type

Tolerant of most soils.[4] Well-drained, organic matter rich soil is ideal.[3]

Soil pH

Tolerates acidic and alkaline soil.[3]

Shade Preference

Full sun

Shade Tolerance

Moderate shade, cropping reduced

Aspect

Exposure

Cultivation

Easy to grow

Planting

Other sources advise Potted or bare rooted plants in winter.[4]

Forest Gardening

Like many berries, cropping is reduced in shade. In this regard, there are potentially more productive options for the shrub layer which will perform slightly better in partial shade (e.g. Gooseberry, Jostaberry, currants). However, marked hardiness, early cropping, disease resistance and low maintenance are potentially useful factors. Honeyberry plants may be best positioned in relatively sunnier patches in a forest garden to perform best, and they may benefit from the wind-sheltered microclimate provided by nearby trees.

One author of a forest gardening textbook gave honeyberry a "good" rating (2 out of 4) to describe the plants potential to perform in a temperate forest garden.[4]

Companion Planting

Allelopathy

Propagation

Semi ripe cuttings in late summer. Hardwood cuttings in winter.[4]

Maintenance

Low maintenance. Annual application of balanced fertilizer.[3] Over fertilization will lead to vigorous growth at the expense of flowers and fruit.[3] Mulch around base of plant.

Watering

Pruning

Problems

Generally resistant to pests and disesases.[6]


Harvest

Harvest when berries darken and soften.[4]

Stores for about 1 week.

Preservation

  • Freezing

Uses

Berries can be eaten raw.

  • Jams
  • Jellies
  • Fruit leather

Secondary uses:

Cooking

Generally speaking, can substitute for blueberry in recipes, e.g. in pies or crumbles.[5] Seeds are very small, so no need to sieve.

Add recipes or links here

Nutritional Values

  • High in antioxidants (3x higher than blueberries).
  • High in Vitamin C
  • High in calcium

References

Template:Reflist

  1. 1.0 1.1 Cockrall-King, J (2016). Food Artisans of the Okanagan: Your Guide to the Best Locally Crafted Fare. TouchWood Editions. ISBN 9781771511537.
  2. Lonicera caerulea (Plants of the World Online).
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Honeyberry (Royal Horticultural Society).
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 Crawford, M (2016). Creating a Forest Garden: working with nature to grow edible crops. Green Books. ISBN 9781900322621.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Whitefield, P (1996). How to make a Forest Garden. Permanent Publications. ISBN 9781856230087
  6. 6.0 6.1 Pemberton, T; Gearing, D; Marsh, C; (2019). Edible Shrubs. Plants for a Future. ISBN 9781791954949.
  7. 7.0 7.1 Toensmeier, E; Bates, J (2013). Paradise Lot: Two Plant Geeks, One-Tenth of an Acre, and the Making of an Edible Garden Oasis in the City. Chelsea Green Publishing. ISBN 9781603583992.
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