Vaccinium corymbosum 'Reka' (Highbush Blueberry)

Vaccinium corymbosum 'Reka' is a cultivar of highbush blueberry, a bushy, upright shrub known and widely regarded for its tasty edible fruits, which are also prized by birds and wildlife. The 'Reka' cultivar originates from New Zealand, and is noted for its extreme environmental hardiness as well as its self-fertile nature. While other blueberry plants can suffer from late freezes and from not having multiple other blueberries planted nearby, 'Reka' is an exception, performing well even through spring cold snaps and producing berries from flowers without the need for another variety to cross-pollinate (though planting other varieties nearby will definitely improve your yields). 

Vaccinium corymbosum 'Reka' grows to 4-6' tall at maturity, producing white or pink-tinged, bell-shaped flowers which are attractive to pollinators and butterflies through their mid-season flower window around April to May, with fruits maturing and ripening by late June/early July. Blueberry bushes like 'Reka' make great additions to open yards as a source of free fruit, or as border and hedge plantings, where you can produce fruit en masse, and where fall colors of yellow and orange add multi-season interest. If utilizing blueberry bushes for fruit production, care should be taken to cover plants while fruit develops to avoid bird damage.