Honey Bee Haskap (Honeyberry) vs Chester Thornless Blackberry - TreeTime.ca

Honey Bee Haskap (Honeyberry) vs Chester Thornless Blackberry

Rubus fruticosa Chester (Thornless)

Lonicera caerulea Honey Bee

Chester Thornless Blackberry
Honey Bee Haskap (Honeyberry)

Chester Thornless Blackberry is a self-pollinating fruit-bearing shrub. In mid-summer, the Chester Thornless Blackberry produces large, sweet-tasting, heart-shaped blackberries that are perfect for fresh eating. It is a semi-erect blackberry plant that requires little support from a trellis to keep its fruit off the ground. Don't forget to protect your berries. The birds love this shrub almost as much as you will.

Chester Thornless Blackberries are floricanes, primarily fruiting on second year canes. Each spring cut back all two-year old canes, leaving only the last year’s growth.

Honey Bee Haskap produces tarter fruit than the Aurora and Borealis varieties and is known for bearing fruit at a younger age. The flavour of Haskaps is generally described as a cross between a blueberry and a raspberry. Honey Bee Haskaps are well suited to fresh eating, freezing, baking, and preserves.

The Honey Bee Haskap has stronger fruit holds than other varieties so the berries stay on the bush longer. The berries do not roll well so they are not recommended for mechanical harvesting.

For optimal fruit production, cross-pollination is required. Haskaps need to be planted with a compatible variety. Compatibility is influenced by both bloom time and genetics.

Honey Bee Haskap is an early-pollinating variety and pairs well with Aurora, Borealis, Tundra, and Indigo Gem.

Chester Thornless Blackberry Quick Facts

Honey Bee Haskap (Honeyberry) Quick Facts

Lowest Price: $13.29 - SAVE UP TO 22%
Lowest Price: $7.99 - SAVE UP TO 36%
Zone: 3b
Zone: 2a
Height: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Height: 2.1 m (7 ft)
Spread: 3 m (10 ft)
Spread: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Moisture: normal, wet
Moisture: normal
Light: full sun
Light: full sun
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no
Berries: heart shaped black
Berries: elongate blue berries ripen in late June. Delicate skinned, tarter than Borealis and Tundra Haskaps
Firmness: firm
Harvest: July
Flowers: pink
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: short
Life span: short
Maintenance: high
Suckering: high
Suckering: none




Other Names: chester blackberry, hardy blackberry