I bought two Haskap(Honeyberry)subspecies,emphyllocalyx from Maxine Thompson,where she had a table at the Orchard Show in Canby,Oregon last Fall.She has done extensive work with this plant from Japan. I was hesitant to get Honeyberry from any seller because of some reports of them being somewhat sour.She said maybe people were picking them too soon and the Japanese ones were better suited to a more moderate climate than the Russian species. I have never tried a Honeyberry,but am looking forward to it.The ones I have are just starting to bud.I'm not sure if it's male and female that are needed for fruiting.What I think Maxine said,that it took two "different" plants.Maybe like Blueberries or some kinds of fruit trees. Here is Maxine's phone number and e-mail.She will be better to talk about these plants.She lives in Corvallis,Oregon.I believe some growers are working with her in other parts of the country,that she may refer to. Brady Dr.Maxine M. Thompson Phone:541.745.7266 e-mail:thompsom@onid.orst.edu Note:the last letter in her e-mail name is "m" rather than "n".

Ah the memories your post brings of me 25 years ago, my first house and all the plans I had for my little 4 acres. You may be a little ambitious, but then again, so was I. And isn't it great to have the space to be ambitious? So a little advice from someone who's been where you are now. First, rejoice and be proud of the sucesses, because there will be some, learn from the failures, there will be some of those too. Take what you have learned with you next year as you plan out your gardens and next year, remember what you have learned then and take it with you the year after when you plan your gardens, and so on and so on. IMHO, gardens are never done and that is the wonder of them. I personally wouldn't move the gooseberries if they are producing well where they are and you are able to havest from them. That's the way I am with the wild raspberries, blackberries, elderberries, hickory nuts, black walnuts, sassafras, and strawberries. To me half the fun is getting out in the neighboring fields/woods and collecting the fruit. Plus another thing you will learn is that you don't want to take up space you can use for another plant with something that you have easy access to. Congrats on the new home and the new gardens, and have fun in the coming years as your gardens and gardening passions develope.

I think you will find that no one Nursery will carry all the varieties because they each get a license to grow whatever they can sell in their area. You really only need a couple of good plants and I would recommend Tundra and Borealis as they are quite superior to the others although Berry Blue and Blue Belle are comon and produce quickly. Check some of the Haskap and Honeysuckle links from my blog. Good luck. They are a fruit with a difference and some folks do not like the tartness of some of the varieties. Here is a link that might be useful: My Blog

I live at the west edge of the Twin Cities. I grow 4 older cultivars, for ten years now. The site info is correct in that they do not sucker and are not invasive in that way, but they are invasive by seed in our area. Birds LOVE these berries! My bushes are netted before they turn color, and every berry is picked, whether I use it or not. Otherwise I will find them popping up in various places in the yard. Please, take heed! Every few years I cut them back severely to keep the size more manageable for netting. The species is quite variable. General taste is a mix of blueberry and grapefruit. I am very surprised the site does give any info for size or shape of the shrub, or bloom time. Obviously, the different cultivars you pick for cross pollination need to overlap their blooming season. "Tends to bleed" means you will get purple hands when you pick them. But Borealis would be my pick of the lot too. I have one cultivar who's bloom time hardly overlaps with the others. Consequently, it does not produce much fruit. I would pull it out and replace it with a Borealis if you decide to order, but only one. I could easily drive to New Brighton.