How to Grow Huckleberries in Missouri

Wild huckleberries have not yet been successfully cultivated, but horticulturalists continue to look for ways. In the meantime, you can grow garden huckleberries (Solanum melanocerasum) throughout most of the United States, including Missouri, which has a mild climate. Garden huckleberry plants produce fruit that is almost indistinguishable from the wild variety and is similar to blueberries if you harvest and prepare it properly.

Garden huckleberry seeds
Gardening trays
Plastic sheet
Garden tools: shovel, hoe, spade
Seed compost
Fertilizer

Instructions

- 1
  Plant your seeds between mid-March and mid-April in plastic starter trays filled with seed compost. Cover them with a plastic sheet to retain heat and moisture.
- 2
  Transplant the seedlings to the garden as soon as the ground is warm and there is no threat of frost (mid- to late May in Missouri). Treat the plants as you would pepper or tomato plants: plant in full sun in virtually any type of garden soil. Water and fertilize as needed; reduce watering when the berries begin to turn purple.
- 3
  Harvest in mid- to late August after the berries have been black for two to three weeks and after they have lost their sheen.
- 4
  Rest the berries for two to three days before washing them.
- 5
  Clean the berries thoroughly. Freeze for later use or cook, strain to remove the seeds and skin and sweeten for immediate use in pies, jellies and syrups.

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