The haskap ‘Aurora’ (Lonicera caerulea) allows for ideal cross-pollination with ‘Indigo Gem’. Our second variety to ripen, ‘Aurora’ is sweet, less acidic than most, and larger than the others. Our favorite for fresh eating, one of the most prolific, and also pretty with a pinkish hue at the very tip. Haskap are the first to awaken when the snow has melted. This shrub, native to the subarctic—North America, Europe, and Asia—has no time to waste in taking advantage of the short growing seasons.

The haskap ‘Aurora’ rings its floral bells for the bumblebees, which open the season with creamy white blossoms. Then, in its second year, it quickly signals the start of the harvest for fruit pickers, just as the strawberries are ripening. It will bear fruit for over 30 years. Three times richer in antioxidants than blueberries, these berries are called “berries of long life” in Japan (Haskap). Sometimes found in acidic peat bogs, it adapts to even waterlogged clay soils, thriving in rich, moist soils covered with organic mulch that retains moisture, at least until the fruit is plump with juice.

With its elongated, creamy bloom, the haskap berry is reminiscent of the blueberry, its melting pulp containing a few wild blackberry seeds and the perfectly balanced bittersweet acidity of rhubarb and blackcurrant. More than welcome in jams and other sweet recipes, its pronounced, complex flavor also complements savory dishes. Long before ripening, the berries remain blue, falling to the ground when it’s time to bring out the basket, or the tarp placed under the bush, which can be shaken for added convenience.

Some prefer to cover it with netting because in some years, bird damage quickly depletes it. Although few insects are involved, after the harvest, from mid-summer onwards, heat waves and drought can strike without affecting it, as can foliar diseases, although the aesthetic damage can break the hearts of sensitive gardeners who discover plants completely dry, completely grey… completely bare, then, surprised, celebrate the resurrection at Easter when pruning the old wood whose yields are declining.

The modern varieties we select are more disease-resistant, but this is not guaranteed. Camouflage these small shrubs behind plants of similar height that are late-flowering, such as Echinacea ‘Magnus Superior‘. These won’t steal the show from the lively bumblebees, and will then take over the landscape once the leaves begin to fade.