I’m in Missouri 6b where our summers can be rough on honey berry plants. Only two of my original six plants survived to year three. After noticing the struggle during the hotter months, I planted a cherry tree on the south side of the bushes to give them a little shade. They look much healthier in the summer now.
This brings me to my idea of growing figs very close to my honey berry bushes. Specifically on the south to south west of the honey berry. Our cold winters will top kill the fig which will allow the honey berry to catch all the spring sun with the added benefit of afternoon summer shade when the fig grows back. Would anyone have thoughts on how close to plant or any reasons why not to plant them together?
Interesting idea. The timing could actually work well since the figs won’t have much top growth until late spring anyway, so the honeyberries get full sun during their fruiting window and then get shade relief right when they need it most in summer. Curious how close you’re planning to plant them, root competition might be the bigger concern than the shade.
I was thinking 2.5-3’ apart. The max spread of the honey berry will be 5’. If the fig is planted south west of the honey berry it could still catch good morning sun to avoid stunted growth.