Partner Post: Boost Brainpower with Blueberries

Blueberries make everything better — pies, smoothies, salads and even your brain. Among the foods with the highest antioxidant content, they are antioxidant powerhouses.

No need to run to the market for this healthy and tasty snack, add blueberry bushes right outside your door. The easy-to-grow Bushel and Berry™ collection includes compact-sized plants that offer lots of flavor and health benefits. Small space gardeners can even plant these berries in containers to grow on patios or balconies.

Blueberries are small, but mighty. They’re nutritional dynamos packed with high concentrations of antioxidants that help guard against cancer and heart disease. Just one serving of blueberries serves up almost 25 percent of the recommended daily intake of Vitamin C. A one cup serving of blueberries contains only 84 calories but 4 gm of dietary fiber, which keeps you feeling full longer.

Blueberries have multiple benefits for the most important muscle — the brain.

A research study found that the phytochemicals and flavonoids in blueberries can help to reverse age-related deficits in motor function and spatial working memory. While another study at the University of Cincinnati showed that when wild blueberry juice was supplemented for 12 weeks to older adults, their memory function actually improved.

Blueberries can also help prevent and fight Alzheimer’s. In a 16-week study, participants who supplemented their diet with freeze-dried blueberry powder improved their memory and accessed words and concepts along with better cognitive performance and brain function.

Plant Blueberry Bushes for Brain Power

Perpetua will give you two crops of sweet and delicious blueberries! The first fruit will appear in mid-summer and then the plant will flower and set fruit a second time in the fall. Its smallish berries are mild and sweet. Grow in full sun in zones 4-8.

Pink Icing® is a four-season showstopper blueberry plant that grows 3-4 feet tall. This bush is perfect for planting in containers for patios or decks. Enjoy its large, sweet berries during mid-summer. Grow in full sun in zones 5-10.

Jelly Bean® blueberry plant may be small but it’s prolific, producing a bumper-crop of large, sweet jelly-tasting fruit. Brilliant green foliage emerges in spring, which gives way to darker greens with red hues throughout the summer and fall. Grow in full sun in zones 4–8.

Blueberry Glaze® looks like a boxwood, but is loaded with nutrient-rich berries. It grows 2–3 feet tall. Producing small, mid-summer berries have intense flavor, much like wild blueberries. Grow in full sun in zones 5-8.

About Bushel and Berry

Bushel and Berry™ is a collection of easy to grow, exceptionally beautiful and delicious berry plants for the home garden. With 9 stunning and easy-to-care-for varieties to choose from, this collection is revolutionizing the way we bring food to the table. Learn more by visiting www.BushelAndBerry.com.