Well, I live in the north, so I won’t be planting rabbiteye, or even southern highbush. Someone in Florida will only be looking at rabbiteye, I assume. So… Yeah, lots of options, but not quite as many as you suggest.
(As and aside, do you recognize my avatar?)
Blueberry is not like fig that you can restart very quickly and can be replace easily. It takes a couple of years to get established and it can reward you year after year. So it is important to choose some proven varieties than experimenting with new and fancy varieties. Just IMO.
Not sure…perhaps Daniel in the Lion’s Den?
Valid point.
However, if we took the advice of our local or state extension service, we’d all be planting varieties from the 1960’s or something. So, trying new ones…and pushing the envelope (or zone) that is suggested is what many of us do.
I like Sunshine Blue, but most references say it’s for zones 7 and 8 (even 9 where it gets enough chill hours). If I hadn’t tried it in zone 6 about 8 years ago, I probably would still be parroting the sources that say it won’t grow in my area. (It survived mid-winter lows of -19 degrees in 2014/2015 so it’s cold tolerance when dormant is great.)
This past spring the fruits on Sunshine Blue were damaged in the 22 degree May night. It had leafed out a month earlier and 27 or 28 had never hurt it in the past when in bloom. Overall, all but later varieties were ‘thinned’ by the weather, but since almost all other crops failed entirely, had some blueberries until in September and that was very nice.
?? Really?
Naw, it’s a photo I took of some fruiting blueberry buds that were swelling and opening in the spring. I think it’s on one of the half-high hybrids, probably Northblue.
i have 2 north sky/ north blue and several brunswick low bush… they are the most hardy here so I’ve stuck with them. i might try another type eventually. i should grow more b.b as they are grown commercially here and grow wild everywhere. believe it or not i prefer honey berries over blues now. and honey berries don’t get snow damage like the blues do
Hello…well, maybe i didn’t get the ink blotch test right in Psychology class either, lol!
I had to take it to over 200% magnification to keep from seeing a portrait of a person in the picture…but bringing it in closer and I do see the blueberry buds…\ although they could be confused with currants possibly.
Southern Highbush and Rabbiteye are common in the deep south and should be further selected according to chilling hour requirements. Most of the Southern Highbush varieties are under 400 hours while Rabbiteye varieties scale from 200 to 700. The advantage of Rabbiteye is that it can put up with a lot more stress than most other blueberry varieties and it is a bit more forgiving of poor quality soil.
This is my red currant bush in bud:
Here’s a Crandall currant:
And here’s a larger copy of the image I used for my avatar:
Oh, and taken a bit later, this is why I’m not worried about pollination of blueberries. 
Did you get your blueberries chosen?
I picked the last of the Sunshine Blue today.
It’s a 3.5 feet tall bush and medium size berries…ripen over a month.
Aurora is starting to ripen…earliest I’ve seen it ripen. It is probably later than Elliott…but not as high in sugars.
This my first time for the HardyBlue…it produced early…about Earlyblue early. Nice flavor.
Naw, i decided to give the cherry bush one more year. I’m a softy, and hate taking out plants.
But if i do it, I will be getting reka for sure.
I am jumping back on this thread as I am in the process of choosing some new blue berries to plant. I have ordered Ka-bluey and now I am looking at Hannah’s Choice and Spartan. I don’t have much room left in my blueberry hedge, so am looking for some feedback from anybody who grows these varieties and if you happen to grow both and can give insight, I would appreciate the information. Perhaps I should grow them both???
Do you want higher productivity or higher quality? I just planted Hannah’s and I think I got 3 total berries from my tiny Spartan last year (they were very good). I’ve heard Cara’s Choice, Hannah’s Choice, and Ka-bluey are THE top tasting berries, with Cara’s being fairly unproductive. I am going to try it out anyway, I’m ok with sacrificing a little yield for trying the best of the best. I’m keeping an eye out for sparkleberry seedlings to graft it to in hopes of increasing size and vigor for more production.
I’m torn on Ka-bluey as well because it’s so darn expensive and I already have a ton of blueberry bushes (my neighbors may already say TOO MANY, until they get a sample).
That is the information I am looking for, productivity and quality? My understanding is Spartan is a good producer when mature but is the quality of berry there? Hannah’s on the other hand, I understand to have a good to excellent quality but how is the harvest?
I would be willing to make a place for both as long as they are two above average varieties. I currently have Elizabeth, Draper, Cara’s Choice, Legacy, Reka, Sweetheart, Chipewa, and a few wild low bush.
I have read they are of medium productivity, more productive than Cara’s.
I agree with Ryan it is a moderate producer. The berry is excellent in my opinion. I like them because they get quite sweet if left to hang a touch. Mine is 4 or 5 years old and produces about 200 berries, not bad. I’m guessing here, I never have counted. Ka-Bluey for me so far grows a lot of green but maybe 150 berries, same size as Spartan.
@Drew51 thanks for your insight on Spartan, any experience with Hannah’s Choice?
@Drew51 @disc4tw Also do either of you have a suggestion for a blueberry I may perhaps be overlooking?
This is currently my approximate end goal based on everything I’ve read. The objective is to have the longest possible season with the best possible berries, and having enough to freeze for smoothies and daily blueberry oatmeal.
Also a disclaimer - ripening dates are approximate, I have to take good notes this year to confirm. Assuming they are correct, I can’t think of many other fruits available fresh at home from May through September…
I currently have two “native blueberries”, Reeka, Legacy, Bonus, Razz, Hannah’s choice, and Aurora. Only the first four have provided berries so far.
Aurora can be a bit acidic…unless fully ripe. Blue/black coloration happens before it is fully ripe. In zone 7 some of the Rabbiteye plants might do better later in the season than the late highbush.
