Suggest northern high bush blueberry varieties?

I’m looking for 2 different varieties of northern high bush blueberries

  1. Early. Before my blue crop. I have a duke but it’s pretty flavorless.

  2. Middle-late. Between my blue crop and aurora. I have a chandler but it’s yield is low and the long ripening period is annoying.

In both cases, I’m looking for best flavor, good yields, medium or larger berry.

What are your best ideas? Thanks.

Spartan may be my favorite NH and early.Reka is good also.
About the only one I grow that in the mid-late category,is Rubel.The berry size is small to medium though,but flavorful. Brady

I have several varieties of bloobs planted in Zone 6b, and plan to plant many several more varieties in the future.

To meet your needs, you might consider “Meader” and “Elizabeth.”

I do not yet have these two, but I eventually plan to acquire them. Here are the notes I’ve collected on them, from various sources.

Meader. Northern highbush blueberry. Bred by U of NH Dr. Elwyn Meader (same guy who bred the most cold hardy of American Persimmons, also called “Meader.”) Available from Fedco. Upright; 7 feet tall at maturity. Reported to have exceptional flavor. Z6 hardy (probably can take much colder; I just can’t remember). Early-mid ripening, before Bluecrop.

Elizabeth. Wild NJ highbush w/ superior flavor. Z6 hardy. 6 feet tall at maturity w/ strong spreading branches. Ripens Mid-late, after Bluecrop. Available from Fedco and Gurney’s.

On a side note, I’ve heard one forum member report that “Patriot” blueberry is extremely productive, if you need the high yields. Good, but not the best flavor. It’s actually a northern highbush-lowbush hybrid, so maybe not what you’re looking for. It is 4 feet tall, and spreading, at maturity, but supposedly a powerhouse of a producer. Z6 hardy. Early-mid ripening, before Bluecrop. Available from Fedco, White Oak, and Stark Bros.

I think Darrow is the Bees knees for flavor followed closely by Northland for NHB.

Darrow has large berries almost spherical, tart when first blue, I let em hang a day or two after, and nothing comes close to it for flavor. It is an upright grower and ripens about 2 weeks after Duke and 1 week after Jersey
Northland is a low spreader NH/LB hybrid, it ripens with Jersey and has small berries, but a really true wild blueberry flavor.

Best flavor in my yard this season was Jewel, Sweetcrisp and Darrow in no particular order.

I still have Legacy, Pink Lemonade and an two unknown varieties still ripening.

I planted 8 varieties of blueberries 25 years ago on my property, making sure I included the best spread of season possible. Here the difference between early and mid coming into ripeness is only a few days- Duke to Bluecrop, say. Elliot is the only one that meaningfully extends my season, which used to matter but by the time it peaks I’m pretty well sick of picking blueberries and my freezer is stuffed with one gallon bags plump with bloobs.

Position on the plant matters more to me than variety, with the most exposed blueberries in not too large clusters having sweetest taste. Beyond that. to me, bigger is generally better- probably partially because more pulp to skin. Bonus and another huge one I lost track of the name are a treat while I pick, but they all go into the same bucket and the difference is not enough to matter to the point I keep them separate.

This may be because there is now so much else to pick in my orchard, but I think once the plants are mature and bearing a lot of fruit you tend just to pick them without much attention to variety.

Darrow does, in fact, have an amazing level of brix as grown here, probably because on an average season a mature plant will bear about a cup or two of fruit- at least that was my experience. I pulled it out of my fenced house and planted where the birds could enjoy a few truly gourmet berries.